One thing that I think is hilarious is that my friend and I thought of the idea for APB 9 years ago. I hope someone finally does the cops and robbers Online idea right!

static

Rockstar Devs handed $50 million for add on content alone. Scope.

RaepGoblin

Hooray for Humanity, Games and Cash!

Although not necessarily in that order.

TokeYo

I thought I heard the champagne glasses chinking as I walked pass Realtime Worlds this morning...

SPni

I'm looking forward to this game a lot. It sounds ambitious, like the first true PvP game where the PVP action is completely player-driven rather than being shoe-horned in like most MMOs. Hopefully they deliver.

But man, $50 million is a lot of money, even for modern video game development. They should probably work on a second game as well. You know, something that's kinda in the whole cops-and-robbers vein, but instead, the cop is a superhero who can leap around the city, and the bad guys are all racial stereotypes. I WANT CRACKDOWN 2 DAMMIT!

thenino85

I highly doubt they would charge more $$ on top of XBL. Much more likely is a ton of DLC 3 months later.

E-Grizzle

With that much funding there is no reason why this game shouldn't be a blockbuster.

PhilESkyline

"It would actually make very little business sense for them to charge extra, because this is a console game. If people have to pay to keep playing it every month, when games are coming out all the time that are awesome on the system, people are going to quickly just stop paying when they start playing other games."

There are lots of decent PC games as well, and lots of free online play too. Doesn't stop Wow making billions.

I think this has a very good chance of success (at least by MMO standards). First, Realtime Worlds are great devs, and know how to make an accessible, addictive game. Second, MMOs on PC have all been crushed by the WoW juggernaught, but there's no competition on consoles (Animal Crossing?). Third, a lot of people try to ape PC successes on console without playing to the strengths of the systems - eg strategy games are ported with comlicated control schemes, rather than building them from the ground up for a controller. From what I've seen, APB is very much suited for consoles.

Finally, $50m is a huge amount of money for a standalone title. You'd have to sell multiple millions of copies to make your investment back. You need some kind of additional revenue stream. It's either going to be a subscription or microtransactions, and I'd be very surprised if it weren't a subscription. Investors see subscriptions as a pot of gold if you can break the WoW stranglehold, whereas microtransactions outside of Guitar Hero/Rock Band are unproven.

cdammers

@SAKY: Or, you know, killing the gang bosses. Perhaps sandbox games aren't your thing?

Captain Impulse

Maybe they can make a good game this time. Creackdown was so repetative and boring that the game quickly became an easter egg hunt as player opted to run around the city looking for all power icons.

SAKY

That's great, now how about giving us Crackdown 2?

XbhaskarX

@kiigan: Agreed. From what they've put together already, without any real financial backing, boasts potentially VERY GOOD things in the future. And $50 million is enough to make pretty much anything work...except for maybe Too Human. ;)

Captain Impulse

@pb00: They'll be working on that too I'm sure. Crackdown and APB were both in development at the same time, made by two internal teams. I'm sure that some people will have been lifted from the Crackdown team to work on APB as it's nearing completion, but there'll still be plenty of folks working on something else, and I'd wager Crackdown 2 is a good guess for filling that role.

reno84

Being realistic, this is the sort of investment you need to get a new MMO off the ground these days. Big risks but potentially big rewards. FWIW, I think APB is looking really fucking good. Expect big things!

kiigan

@Komrade_Kayce: Shut up. It still stings.

Captain Impulse

@Captain Impulse:

But you live on Impulse. You're the goddamn Captain of it. You were probably all over that horse armor shit before you even knew what happened to your 200 points. ;)

Komrade_Kayce

@Komrade_Kayce: DLC Expansions would be a way to milk for money that I'd be a bit more inclined to paying.

Yep, as long as they're filled with actual content (re: Oblivion - Shivering Isles) as opposed to tack-on crap (re: horse armor). ;)

Captain Impulse

Could they not just use some of this 50 million to set us up with free servers to play on? I don't think thats too unreasonable.

Komrade_Kayce

I don't think the investiment is going ONLY to this game, I bet it's for this and all RTW projects.

Ludwig

@egyptomix:

Yeah, come to think of it, they'd better not. I already pay xbox live my subscription fee for gold service. I don't want to pay extra just for this game.

It would actually make very little business sense for them to charge extra, because this is a console game. If people have to pay to keep playing it every month, when games are coming out all the time that are awesome on the system, people are going to quickly just stop paying when they start playing other games.

Sure, there will be a playerbase for a while if its really good. But its not like WoW. It doesn't fill that casual niche. Its not a PC exclusive. Its going to be a lot more meaner and agressive. I dont know many console gamers who have ever sat down and played nothing but one single game for the length of an average WoW subscription.

Just imagine right now. The reaction from people if we had to pay extra to play this. Then the shouts of "Fuck it, such and such a game comes out two weeks later, I cant seriously start paying when I cant play as much right now".

Well... at least, I for one, really hope they dont charge me extra for it. Because those would be my arguments. :(

DLC Expansions would be a way to milk for money that I'd be a bit more inclined to paying.

Komrade_Kayce

APB looks like a step in the right direction. I hope, and expect, that they will put this funding to good use.

TheEngineer: Rocking the Goggles

This is what I'm wondering: Is it gonna charge extra to play on top of xbox live?

That's the only thing that would keep me from buying this game.

egyptomix

@IronsUK: My one and only hope is this: a fully fleshed-out city. If the buildings are nothing more than solid fronts (meaning I can't walk into a skyscraper and take an elevator to the 50th floor before raising hell), this game will lose serious points with me.

I want a fully-interactive city, not just a bunch of solid rectangles to jump off of. I want to be able to walk into a donut shop and buy a donut and coffee to refill my health. I mean, c'mon, I'll be playing a cop...I need somewhere to hang out when I'm not bustin' perps.

Captain Impulse

Holy crap... thats alot of money. There gonna need it if they wanna deliver to the masses though.

Ra on the Moon.

$50 million is a significant wad of cash! Time to set my expectations unobtainably high =)

IronsUK

The pressure is on now. They better be able to deliver.

t0yrobo

They should just make crackdown 2, the original was a unexpected blast, considering most people got it for the Halo 3 beta

pb00

So since they're funding the game they expect revenue back right? It seems like a logical plan seeing as how:

FPS's = very popular right now
&
MMO's (Really just WoW) = very popular right now

SO logically if you combine those two you get: $$$$

NeoAkira

This is a good sign for the development of what seems like it could be an amazing game.

Captain Impulse

I dunno, I'll have to wait and see.

Knight-Zero

Thats cool I say good on them!

Witzbold

I'm looking forward to APB more than GTA 4. I'm gonna buy GTA 4, and the multi looks sick, but APB looks exactly like the sort of game I've had only in my dreams. For *years*. Virtual Cops and Robbers in a huge open city. Yes.

More money to them = just make it awesome, and you've bought me hook line and sinker for as long as you want me. DLC and all.

Komrade_Kayce

I wonder who is going to say Halo had something to do with it. I liked the game. it was fun just going up with some friends and blwoing stuff up. I wonder what kind of MMo they are going to make. I hope something tha goes boom i the night.

[KU]Shindokie: Hates The New Layout!

That's a pretty big coup for Microsoft, assuming it lives up to the hype. Bioshock sure did.

MrAkash

@MrAkash: last I heard it stil is.

Noks415

The same guy who gave the $50 million works as a product buyer at Target...

mishakoz

I haven't read this much positive preview press in a long time. Is this game still 360/PC exclusive?

MrAkash

Crackdown really seemed to be an MMO shoehorned into a regular game's shell. It'll be cool to see what they can do with this one. Funding's always a good thing, but let's just hope the strings that are attached don't go pushing the game out before it's fully baked.

MisterSleep