"F...ing" Conclusion..
GTA, to me, means a lot of things. Brilliant mission design, well-structured storylines, humour, great music, fun driving, and a wide array of weapons that can be used for a variety of tactics. APB, regrettably, means none of these things. The missions weren’t designed, they were a “press F” afterthought; the entire world is bland and boring; the music is purely an irritation; I’ve had more fun driving in submarine simulators; and the weapons are bland and boring, with no opportunity for any kind of tactics. And perhaps its biggest draw, the fact that it’s an MMO, is really under-utilised. Occasionally, if you get a big kill streak, or cause enough mayhem, you’ll become cannon-fodder – the game will make you a viable target for any player on the other team, not just the ones you’re in direct conflict with. These situations, however, are few and far between, and mean that for 95% of the time it’s a 5 vs 5 gunfight. Now, call me a cynic, but that sounds like virtually every multiplayer FPS that’s ever been released. And they don’t cost £8 per month.I would finish with a quick summing up of the game, but I’ve worn out my “F” key.
Right2Reply
In our review, we left out details of the customisation features in APB, which RealTime Worlds deems to be an important feature. The following email was sent to us from a representative, which we're happy to print out in full.
When players enter the social district, having created a character specifically geared towards their own unique aesthetic tastes, there are a wealth of options available to them in terms of personalising their avatar. The persona suite allows players to make physical changes to their avatar, the application of tattoos, a change of hairstyle, even a change of body mass, height or facial construction all with a scaled in-game monetary cost.
Then there’s the symbol editor, a tool which allows players to design logos, tattoos and decals using preset patterns and shapes – of which the player will unlock more while progressing through the game – to apply to clothing, skin or vehicles. The range of possibilities is incredible and affords players the opportunity to ensure their avatar sticks out from the crowd.
The wardrobe suite allows the player to pick their clothing, accessories and piercings. Each item can be adjusted down to the smallest detail, from the stitching on their jeans to the buttons on their shirts, applying logos and designs to these items further enhances their uniqueness.
The Garage allows players to customise their vehicles, pearlescent two-tone paint options are available as are metallic paint options and different colours can be applied to multiple sections of the vehicle to suit the players’ tastes before custom decals are added. Changes can be made to your wheel rims, sirens, lights, exhausts, stereos (a better stereo will produce better sound quality) and other accessories such as bull horns and bumpers can be fitted to the players vehicle.
One of the most unique features of the customisation engine is the music studio. Anyone who has ever used cubase or a similar composition tool will be instantly familiar with the more simplified version present in APB. The music studio gives you the opportunity to produce your own ‘death theme’, a short five-second ditty which opposition players will hear every time you kill them. Players can also produce full length tracks using the editor and import their own MP3’s to play while cruising through San Paro’s streets.
Where this all really comes together is via APB’s in-game marketplace. Players who have created cool items of clothing, designs or music can sell their creations to other players either for in-game currency or Realtime Worlds points. This means the most creatively talented players within the game can potentially play APB for ‘free’, using Realtime Worlds points garnered from item sales to pay for their game time.
