Realtime rumoured to want to sell APB

By Wesley Yin-Poole Published 13 August, 2010

UPDATE: Community man responds.

UPDATE: A community officer called APBMonkey has posted on the European APB forum in response to the current rumour surrounding Realtime Worlds.

"As we've announced we had to restructure the company to make it so that we can focus totally on APB.

"APB is still going strong and we fully intend to support 100 per cent. In fact we have a cool announcement coming this afternoon, so keep your eyes peeled."

ORIGINAL STORY: Speculation is mounting that Scottish developer Realtime Worlds wants to sell on its MMO APB.

According to an unconfirmed report on VG247, Realtime made the entire team behind its recently announced social game Project: MyWorld redundant today.

As many as 60 are said to have been laid off.

Eurogamer has contacted Realtime Worlds for clarification.

In July Realtime announced it would restructure following the release of MMO APB.

Realtime said staff headcount would increase on APB in order to provide "total support", fresh content and aggressive marketing.

Indeed new "post-launch" positions on APB were advertised for.

Last month creative director Dave Jones defended APB following disappointing review scores, blaming them on "misconceptions" and "huge expectations".

Eurogamer gave APB a 6/10 review.

Picture of Wesley.

About Wesley Yin-Poole

Wesley is Eurogamer's news editor. He likes news, interviews, and more news. He also likes Street Fighter more than anyone can get him to shut up about it.

Read more articles from Wesley by visiting the Wesley Yin-Poole archive page.

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Comments (61) Latest comment 2 years ago

Comments for this article are now closed, but please feel free to continue chatting on the forum!

  • INSOMANiAC #1 2 years ago

    Theres a shock, release a half-baked shitty MMORPG noone wanted with a ridiculous convuluted pricing system and you fail!


    GOOD !

  • Crea #2 2 years ago

    Insomaniac, I hope you never have to experience what those guys at RTW are going through. It's a shitty, shitty thing. So they failed. They were ambitious, and fell short. Gloating over the internet over people with families losing their jobs isn't cool. It's easy to do, what the f**k do you care, right? But it's not cool.

  • RobTheBuilder #3 2 years ago

    Project: My world looked amazing. I think they will easily find a buyer for that.

  • shamblemonkee #4 2 years ago

    ruh-roh!

  • CaptainQuint #5 2 years ago

    Holy shit they're in trouble. I'm surprised by how bad it's turning out for a once very illustrious studio.

    As they say in the movie biz: "you're only as good as your last movie".

  • dingo75 #6 2 years ago

    I called it!
    I said it will be going F2P VERY fast and it's on a "good way" to reach that point soon.

    Hope the genius that figured out:
    - a monthly sub / paying by hour AND
    - in-game audio advertising

    was a terrific ideas was kicked out first.

  • Pinky_Floyd #7 2 years ago

    Holy cow, kinda glad I didn't take that job at RTW when they demoed my world for me at the interview.

  • Distributor #8 2 years ago

    come on guys, to be honest the game tanked. Poor pricing system implemented into a poor game. What do you think was going to happen? Oh yeah....we were just playing it wrong.

  • Spekingur #9 2 years ago

    It's not the pricing system that made the game the way it is.
    It's the gameplay and the assumption of a much larger gameworld than the game actually provides. It doesn't feel large and it doesn't feel like a GTA MMO, which so many were hoping it to be.

    Customisation in APB though, is top notch.

  • Amblin #10 2 years ago

    This is what happenes when you make a game, pull it close to release and re-make it.

    APB should have been killed a long time a go and they should have gone with making Crackdown 2.

    APB had fine ambitions but took way too long and cost too much to get where it is today.

    Good luck to all those that got canned, it's a tough market right now.

  • Kerome #11 2 years ago

    Another one hits the subscription-based MMO Lauch Barrier... and they didn't even get as close to reaching escape velocity as Tabula Rasa or Age of Conan. Feeling a bit sorry for RTW to be honest.

  • PaulieWaulie #12 2 years ago

    Post deleted at 14:23:40 06-01-2012

  • chicknstu #13 2 years ago

    Insomaniac, nobody would rub your face in it if you got made redundant from your job at McDonald's, why can't you show these guys the same courtesy?

  • mingster #14 2 years ago

    I said APB was gonna bust this developer.
    I told them, i warned them and did they listen...

  • RobotRocker #15 2 years ago

    RTW seemed to get a bit too big for their britches when they started moaning about how Microsoft should have asked them to do Crackdown 2 earlier and got even more snippy because they gave it to Ruffian.

    Oh bad business decisions, where would Eurogamers news section be without them?

  • peteb #16 2 years ago

    It seems like MMOs are a tough business. Why do they even bother if the risks are so high? Best of luck to the guys laid off anyway. Is it possible that Ruffian would reunite some of these guys with their old colleagues?

  • teabagger #17 2 years ago

    Gosh. Three new ignore list additions in 17 posts.

    Pretty sure that's a record

  • Haloboy #18 2 years ago

    Glad I didn't buy into it, not so glad that it backfired so harshly on them. RTW are a very talented bunch, they just made a bad judgement call and paid a heavy price. I still remember when they gave a live demo of the game at Edinburgh last year and we were all completely blown away by the level of customisation. The game itself however had a very different reception.

    Also, sorry Insomaniac but you are a bit of a knob.

  • Brodie #19 2 years ago

    Does make you wonder how many more MMO's will hit the wall before they realise there simply isn't space for that many of them.

    Gamers have finite time, money, patience, etc, and MMOs make HUGE demands on all three.

    I guess the message is quit with the "me too" development. It never works. Remember when we had loads of extreme sports games after the inital success of the early Tony Hawk games? Loads of gangsta wannabes after GTA 3? How many music games recently?

    There's always room for 2-3 at best, and they have to be good. Too many devs/publishers all doing the same thing, and hamstringing themselves with ideas that end up killing them before they get a chance.

    Shame for the guys who've lost their jobs, but it's a sign of the videogame times :(

  • darleysam #20 2 years ago

    Man, this is horrible news. My biggest sympathies to everyone being affected by this.

    I wonder how much the u-turn on tax benefits has hastened this..

  • Geordiemp #21 2 years ago

    What I dont understand is if you are going to create an MMO, and expect lots of customers to pay over long periods to play the game, it better be blooody good.

    MMO path is a greedy one, subs over long time, which is fine if game is excellent. If you do a game which is fair to good, sell it on consoles for 20 bucks !

    I hope the employees get new jobs, they will be qualified enough to move on easily enough, sounds like the owners of REALTIME worlds are the misguided fools.

    Edited by Geordiemp at 13/08/10 @ 14:21

  • SpaceMonkey77 #22 2 years ago

    Such a shame. And how different it could have been, if they'd just developed APB for consoles instead. When they canned the console option, and decided to develop this hastily for PC, alongside Crackdown 2 (which I think also suffers for some used influence) it was always too risky, not matter how sweet APB looked.

    You good people ever wonder why Crackdown 2 is in the same city. Probably because assets were redirected from Crackdown 2 onto APB instead.

    Good luck to those now out of work. As for RTWs, they should try selling APB to Valve or Google. They might bite, and with some tweaks and remixing, APB could be just as awesome as other games. Give it a single player story mode, and cut the mmo down to an online multiplayer mode.
    Edited by SpaceMonkey77 at 13/08/10 @ 14:26

  • darkmorgado #23 2 years ago

    You good people ever wonder why Crackdown 2 is in the same city. Probably because assets were redirected from Crackdown 2 onto APB instead.

    Nope. Crackdown 2 wasn't made by Realtime Worlds for a start, it was made by Ruffian, which was formed by a load of guys who left RTW. While we can't say for certain, I think it's a damn good bet that the reason the city was reused in CD2 was because MS only gave them a 9-month dev cycle.

  • LR100 #24 2 years ago

    A friend of a friend who was made redundant a few weeks ago from RTW has mentioned that the rest of his team have been made redundant today, so i'd say that confirms it.

  • speedjack #25 2 years ago

    A real shame - just goes to show you how risky launching any MMO is and how slim the margin of error is.

  • TeaFiend #26 2 years ago

    I hope the guys there are alright. Usually though when this sort of thing happens industry HR folk are are there quick snap and able to book interviews.

  • PearOfAnguish #27 2 years ago

    Sad, but not surprising. The reason so many people predicted this when the review scores came in is because it's happened before. MMOs are massively expensive and few companies can survive spending that much cash without seeing any return.

  • Retroid #28 2 years ago

    Oh dear :(

    Good luck to all involved.

  • dadrester #29 2 years ago

    fuck dundee :(
    [edit] poor guys (and gals). i know a few of them
    Edited by dadrester at 13/08/10 @ 15:26

  • Haloboy #30 2 years ago

    $100 million. That's quite an expensive lesson in how entering the no f*cking mercy/margin for error MMO market can go drastically wrong right there.

    I still believe there can be a positive future for APB, just not in its existing form as others have suggested. Come on Valve, give APB some TLC.

  • rojjer #31 2 years ago

    unfortunately anyone looking at buying this as a going concern will look at the projected costs and run a mile. Needed a solid investment behind it and a re-jig of its fee system to gain success I think. I saw it being a good game a year or so down the line.

    Sorry to hear all those artists/devs are going to be out of work. Truly sucks. On a Friday the 13th as well :-(

  • SpaceMonkey77 #32 2 years ago

    @dark

    Okay, thanks for correcting me.

    APB has potential still, but only the money bags few can afford it. It would certainly be a fine feather in the Actiblizzard cap, especially since they are the king of MMOs. However, I'd still prefer the likes of Valve to bag it, as they would allow for awesome users mods and maps to be made, and breathe new life into it like no one else can.

    Who knows? On a positive note, we have another diamond in the rough, like Red Dead Revolver. Who would have thought that Capcom selling it on, would have resulted in Rockstar's cool RDR now.

    Damn, 100 million! No wonder some lost their jobs.
    Edited by SpaceMonkey77 at 13/08/10 @ 15:03

  • geeza2020 #33 2 years ago

    a studio closing is never a good thing. Less talent in the pool for the whole industry is a BAD thing.

  • Perfecto #34 2 years ago

    I have been made redundant from two jobs whilst in the games industry, it's certainly no laughing matter. Shame on you people who make childish and unthoughtful comments. Have a bit of decency.

    I wish all the best of luck to those who are effected by this, hope they get jobs soon.

  • Crea #35 2 years ago

    If by 'restructure', he means 'sack the entirety of the other, 60-man strong project', then yes, restructure just about covers it. With more coming, I'd wager.

  • kiroquai #36 2 years ago

    @Crea - Plus fucking 1.

    I've been through the situation too (I didn't lose my job, but a number of good friends did) and yeah, although you can understand the reasons it happens and lay the blame at something not doing as well as it was intended, gloating on gaming forums (which, hey, we do look at) isn't really on.

    Oh, and I don't work at RTW just in case the above gave the impression I did.

  • Embar #37 2 years ago

    Dundee remains a hotbed for development. While this problem of closures plagues the industry on a monthly basis, they are all very talented and I'm sure we will see something rise from the ashes.

  • Vin #38 2 years ago

    APB was a dead horse from the start. The whole thing reeks like the stillborn that was Star Wars Galaxy.

  • Eldritch #39 2 years ago

    "cool announcement" = Free to play

  • optimusprym8 #40 2 years ago

    How the fuck can anyone sit there and think it is funny, big or even remotely clever to post a "Har Har fuck them" type post when it's about people losing their jobs.

    Sometimes the industry gets it right, sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes it looks like we're getting close to being recognised and accepted as a grown-up, mature industry. Then a few gamers get behind a keyboard and I wonder why the fuck I bother slogging guts out, working overtime, getting ill when there's retards like these in the audience.

    FYI I don't & never have worked for RTW but have been through similar situation with another large MMO company.

  • kiroquai #41 2 years ago

    The other point to make is that it tends to be the poor bastards considered 'lower down the food chain' who get the axe, most of whom have no creative call or business decisions to get wrong but merely come into work every day and work their arse off on a project, often seven days a week.

    It's a harsh situation. Really, really unpleasant.

  • Retroid #42 2 years ago

    Agreed totally with the people here asking for a bit of respect.

    These are people's jobs and livelihoods we're talking about here! Best of luck to them and I hope, one way or another, things work out for anyone who finds themselves in financial trouble because of this.

  • anomagnus #43 2 years ago

    You know, the have said they're laying of the staff from a project that is not APB. Now, if APB was the milestone around their neck, that the self indulgent gloaters on this site seem to infer, its not great to fire staff from a social game, which in todays market, is probably a great return on investment.

    Also, the report says up to 60. Now, while i'm not suggesting that 3 people are being let go, we dont seem to know the full figure.

    I don't understand the self satisfied rage when an MMO goes under. People act like it was a pension fund, and in its collapse, thousands were left destitute. They tried to build an MMO that was different. They charged the market price. It may, or it may not work, no one knows yet, but that is hardly grounds for the absolute bile on this forum. I wonder how many of you would have the stones to walk up to the management of RTW and talk your talk? You might also want to remember that management don't wake up looking for people to fire. From what i have seen, firing en mass is soul destroying. If you somehow think that managers are sitting around smoking a fat cigar after doing this, you're actually delusional. No one will have wanted to do this.

    Edited by anomagnus at 13/08/10 @ 16:03

  • crozon #44 2 years ago

    @optimusprym8

    to answer your question its because most people are dicks. Give people anonymity and they abuse it. Christ i swear on most of these kinds of comments and forums people get really bitchy and whiny.

  • harshahorizon #45 2 years ago

    These days all publishes and developers aiming at MMOs,why?............. because of the greediness.This would teach all of them a good lesson.

  • optimusprym8 #46 2 years ago

    @Crozon

    Maybe EG should introduce RealID? Oh wait... One job I could never do is community management.


    Best of luck of course to those affected by whatever happens at RTW

  • Dolly #47 2 years ago

    Really disapointed in some of the comments in this thread. If there's one thing this country doesn't need, its 60 more people out of work. Take a look at the news if you want to see how grim things are going to get for all of us over the next few years. Financial experts are genuinely worried that we might be heading for another depression.
    Just think of it this way: if you lose your job next week, there are now 60 more people ahead of you in the job queue. These guys are probably more creative, intelligent, talented and hard-working than you could ever dream to be.
    Good luck with that.

  • Pinky_Floyd #48 2 years ago

    @PaulieWaulie - erm.......

    Why on earth would I make that up? Anyway it was called D-World at the time.

    Hope RTW recover, I have nothing but the greatest respect for them and if my circumstances had been a bit different would have loved working there.

  • SpaceMonkey77 #49 2 years ago

    I'll keep an eye on the APB news update.

    I can feel those 60, been laid off of jobs before and its sucks. I have a close friend in that same boat now. Question is, how many people here actually said something negatively insensitive about these lay offs?

    Can we count such posters? Surely there aren't that many to ignore.

  • brod #50 2 years ago

    I wanted to buy this game, but they didn't want to support my region (Australia / South East Asia).

  • Riggers #51 2 years ago

    Such a shame, and I hope the RTW guys find new jobs quickly - it's a tough time for the industry at the moment. Some of the comments on here are pretty unpleasant - even if you hated APB, it's harsh to mock the (extremely talented) dev staff for mistakes and decisions made higher up the management chain. Too often the industry gets panned for taking the safe option with sequels, so it's a shame they took the tougher option - an original IP,non-orcs and elves MMO - and ran into trouble.

  • Scottishgod #52 2 years ago

    The original Crackdown team ie the Project: My World lot paid the price for a bunch of talentless lazy c*$%s squandering £100 million on APB. Don't belive the rumours that loads of the original team went to Ruffian. When Crackdown finished the vast majority of them went onto My World.

  • djed #53 2 years ago

    If making PC-gaming mainstream means comments sections will be overrun by these bleeding heart semi-literate nationalist retards who cry foul every time someone makes a joke about a company's bad business decisions or derides its products, let it stay elite.

    If you think the "creative, intelligent, talented and hard-working" developers (as one poster called them, apparently having been intimate with several of them) who have just lost their jobs require unanimous support from the EG comments section to get through their day, then at the very least you shouldn't neg other posters here, who obviously are more invested in this forum than any random developer; You should just ignore the poster instead of clicking that minus-button and passive-aggressively letting your contempt for them spill into their lives.

  • Scottishgod #54 2 years ago

    a different team completely pays the price!
    Edited by Scottishgod at 13/08/10 @ 19:00

  • Stratix #55 2 years ago

    The subscription model works very well for me, I can pay by the hour or pay by the month. A month costs £8 and 20 hours costs some where in the region of £5.80. If you spend real money to buy things in game, the money goes to other players. This means that they can use it to pay for their subscription.

    Yes, this game has it's flaws, but the interesting post in the afternoon was regarding a massive patch. There have been many useful patches come out fixing most of the game's flaws, and the developers are communicating well what they are working on fixing next.

    Despite the terrible reviews, some of which came out on the same day the game did, I am having loads of fun with this unique game. I hope RTW continue to support it into the future. I hope that Eurogamer do a re review for this game in a few months time.

    I feel for the people being made redundant, although being a game developer seems like the dream job to many teenagers these days, but it's a harsh world out there. The industry could have done with those tax breaks, altough I doubt they would have fixed the problem at hand.

  • hiddenranbir #56 2 years ago

    Has any MMO with a high barrier of entry (spec wise) succeeded well?

  • hobojebus #57 2 years ago

    These days you really cant afford to release a buggy beta and pass it off as the finnished product, conan did it and lost most of its subscribers after 2 months, WaR did it and lost the majority of theirs after one month, CO was far from pollished and the demo out off anyone who didnt pre-order.

    Its sad for the people who lost their jobs but the publisher wasted a fortune makeing a sub-par game and its hard to have sympathy for a publisher that did this to them selves.

  • Marshall2008 #58 2 years ago

    Guess they shoulda made a better game then. Only Rockstar North would get away with what is essentially a GTA MMO.

  • makememoo #59 2 years ago

    I've been made redundant plenty of times. Why should we pour false sympathy on people getting canned when anyone who is even vaguely decent at their job can get another one no problem. I have no sympathy for anyone involved if they hung around long enough to make being made redundant a problem in their lives. I don't believe that people don't know something their studio are producing is mediocre, would tank and the company would be in trouble. I know when my projects suck and when they are good. I work in a different IT sector entirely and even I know how flimsy game studios are and what happens to employees when their bank-roller game fails. If they stuck around knowing that the company would be in some trouble post release then they were being complacent and foolish, regardless if it was directly their side of the business or not.

    If they ditched APB then the management would get shit-canned, so to save themselves for another few months they pretend that APB is their focus and it can all be turned around... which we know it can't, but by axing front line staff the management buy themselves time. It's fairly standard practice in lots of industries.

    Oh i forgot, this is the board where everyone pretends they are in the industry and everything is really heart felt and touching when one of their kin goes down.
    Edited by makememoo at 14/08/10 @ 17:16

  • CatWeazle #60 2 years ago

    insider info..

    [link url=http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2010/08/16/redundancies-at-real-time-worlds/#more-36054
    ]http://www.rockpapershotgun.com/2010/08/...[/link]

  • dadrester #61 2 years ago

    makememoo: I've been made redundant plenty of times

    wow. you must be really shit at your job, not to mention "complacent and foolish" :D