Jump to content

GDC: David Jones' new MMO: APB


lazygecko
 Share

Recommended Posts

David Jones is the brainchild behind concepts like Lemmings and Grand Theft Auto.

Basicly what Jones said at the show was that MMOs have become synonymous with World of Warcraft and the mechanics behind it, and he doesn't like that. So he's taking the core idea of a persistent world and building something new around it.

APB is basicly an online version of cops and robbers. It's not an RPG in the sense that it's based on building your character's stats and skills, but there should still be that sense of progression. It will also have unprecedented customization features, but within reasonable limits so you don't end up with a heap of disjointed turd (and furries) like in Second Life.

To show off just how versatile the character creation process is, they create a poser gang of high-profile game developers: http://gamevideos.com/video/id/17691

Here's a gameplay segment of an experienced Shaft-lookalike taking on a group of n00bs trying to steal some TVs: http://gamevideos.com/video/id/17694

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Many developers who propose this don't follow through on it effectively and the game ends up more like a WoW clone anyway; probably because investors want them to go after an established model. But I seriously have heard this proposed at least a dozen times, not only by developers but by MMO critics. IMO it's a flawed model; really user-alterable, persistent worlds are too ambitious, and we already saw UO do that (with some of the best developers around) and it didn't work for them in the end. People LIKE grinding for reward, it's what keeps them playing MMOs to begin with.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

×
×
  • Create New...