Stolen Pixels

Stolen Pixels #228: All Points Bu

Seventy-nine days. That's how long APB ran. The box is still on shelves, and I'm sure a few unlucky stragglers will end up buying it, despite the fact that with the servers gone the disc is just a very expensive coaster. Good thing you can return PC games for a full refund, right?

It's a sad tale. I actually (briefly) considered APB for my next Shamus Plays series. The game wasn't interesting enough to support that sort of attention, but there were a few gems mixed in with the dross. This wasn't a game shoved out the door early to make a quick buck. This wasn't a game built by fools. This title was lavished with money and talent, and it ended up falling apart anyway. There were a lot of risky ideas here that just didn't pan out and weren't all that fun, even though they probably sounded like dynamite on paper. That's the way it goes in business sometimes.

The game featured the most comprehensive customization system of any game, ever. In panel 2 you can see a car I designed myself. Okay, it was eye-searingly ugly (which was the point) but was also very, very unique.

Shamus Young is the guy behind Twenty Sided, DM of the Rings, and Stolen Pixels, Shamus Plays, and Spoiler Warning. And none of that is his day job.