Ouch! Lots of text. Where to start...where to start...
Here's a
good article on the hands-on experience. I'm going to answer what I can based on what I think is in the realm of answering them.
Ragdollmaster wrote:So it's GTA + Second Life + Instant Messenger. Sounds great
Not even close. You're really not getting it. It's like an online battleground, with up to 100 people per server (creating a tighter-knit community), and a lot of interconnected servers, that emulate a cops vs robbers sort of conflict. The game has more than just running around shooting people. There are a lot of nuances that make it truly unique and engaging, quite a few of which I'm not going to share so that I can keep my beta tester status.
It's really nothing like GTA, other than the fact that you can steal cars.
Ragdollmaster wrote:Again, they can only go so far with a single game before it gets repetitive, whatever they may be saying now. This is what every game developer says, to generate hype and sales. Do you think any companies would make money if they declared, "Yeah sorry, but our game pretty much gets boring as hell after about a month so good luck with that."?
That's where you'd be wrong. Halo 3 still has millions of players monthly, and it has been added on to at a steady rate once or twice per year. Everyone revered ODST as epic, though it was just a standalone Halo 3 expansion.
Plenty of people still play the original Left 4 Dead, which Valve explicitly stated it will continue supporting. You're saying it's getting repetitive too?
Ragdollmaster wrote:As for what's different between FPS games, a lot, actually, the same variance you see in other games. Different stories, different engines, different gameplay mechanics, different amounts of realism, difficulty, multiplayer modes (or lack thereof); FPS games can get pretty varied, unless you can't get past "BUT IN ALL OF THEM YOU FIRE WEAPONS IN FIRST PERSON MODE CLEARLY THIS MEANS THEY ARE ALL THE SAME." Are you about to tell me there's no difference between Half-Life and Modern Warfare? Or no difference between Oblivion and Battlefield? How about Halo and Gears of Wa- OH WAIT MY BAD.
Those are absolutely horrible comparisons. First off, you compared a game that is, at its root, more of an adventure game with an FPS tacked on to a stereotypical war FPS. Then, you decided to compare a shallow action RPG to yet another stereotypical war FPS. Then, you finished off with comparing a game that encourages you to be a lone hero to a tactical, team-based TPS. Really, you should be a lawyer. Neither gears nor Oblivion are FPSs at all, and Half-Life can hardly be considered a traditional FPS.
Ragdollmaster wrote:The point is that there are plenty of FPS games with huge variances between them and the status quo.
There are, but not if you look in the same niche. There's no difference between CoD and BF, other than gimmicks and graphics. Well, there's that and the fact that Battlefield Bad Company emulates the battlefield much more effectively.
Ragdollmaster wrote:So how much CAN you do in APB? Shoot people, drive cars (oh wait, there's also probably boats and motorcycles and helicopters derp), and "in-depth customization", which I assume is purely cosmetic (changing the appearance of your character and weapons and vehicles) or at best practical in minor ways (adding silencers, laser sights and the like to your weapons, adding upgrades to your vehicles and weapons)
I would tell you, but the NDA tells me not to. Let me just say that in the case you decided to buy it for the 50 hours of gameplay (you're still getting 5x more playtime out of box than the average game), you will be pleasantly surprised. For one, driving is a challenge in itself, in that it's realistically emulated.
Ragdollmaster wrote:You're saying a lot of things without actually saying anything here. Give me an example of this in-depth customization, or all of the great gameplay routes, or indeed, how any of these examples add core gameplay mechanics and are not superficial additions meant to pad out the content so that it seems like a better buy?
The customization I will touch on by comparison. Have you ever played a Cryptic game? Like as in City of Heroes, Champions Online, or Star Trek Online? Take the customization in those games and they'll be crap compared to APB's level of customization.
Ragdollmaster wrote:tl;dr I hate hype.
I do too, my friend. I don't hype. In fact, I didn't do anything other than raise awareness for what I think is a great idea in the OP, and then defend my decision to do so. You guys are taking this entirely wrong.
underthedeep wrote:you are honestly making an ass and a fool out of yourself, JUST SAYIN'. he wasn't stating that all FPS games are the same if you read his post correctly. He was stating that a lot of them play similar.
Exactly.
underthedeep wrote:now i do not think i agree completely with that statement completely, but i can see what he means. ie. sooo manny fucking games now use the same health system that was introduced in halo.
Like I said, a lot of them have the same mechanics backed by different engines. I don't know how many times FPS makers have been sued by each other for the mechanics being so similar.
A good example: Duke Nukem, Hexen, Heretic, Doom and Wolfenstein. They were all really similar games, and in fact one could say they were all reskins of each other. However, the thing that set them apart in the end was gimmicks. It's no different now.
underthedeep wrote:and basically what you are doing now is knocking something before you try it. Blorx is beta testing it so i would honestly take his opinion and info on it over your shitty word generalizing every MMORPG as a grindfest. have you ever even made it to ANY endgame play of ANY MMORPG? or even just QUESTED instead of grinding? yikes.
Thank you! I'm trying to give an objective opinion here. I'm not a game critic, I'm a game player and designer. I'm not even playing the finished game. It's full as hell of bugs. Doesn't change anything, it's still fun in my opinion, and so I'm telling you guys it is.
underthedeep wrote:lastly, your end request for him to explain more of the in-depth customization and all the other good stuff. blorx SPECIFICALLY mentions that it is still under NDA, and if you don't know what that means.
it means. NON DISCLOSURE AGREEMENT
It's amazing how many people won't respect that.
Renegade_Turner wrote:His generalisation of MMORPG's as grindfests is well-founded.
No, in fact, it really isn't...F2P MMOs and WoW clones are grindfests. You need to try something out of the box. Try RISE, try Spellborn, try Neocron, try APB. There are many more, but I won't waste my time.