APB Reloaded beta targets February
Grand!
Beleaguered MMO APB may be ready for testing as a fresh-faced free-to-play game next month, new owner GamersFirst has revealed.
Details on how to apply for the closed beta will release this week, the APB_Reloaded Twitter promised.
K2 Networks (owner of online portal GamersFirst) bought APB for a pittance late last year. Company bigshot Bjorn Book-Larsson couldn't tell Eurogamer the exact sum, but confirmed he'd snapped up the modern day crime MMO at a "huge, substantial discount". Rumour has it that APB cost just $1.5 million - a tiny percentage of the $100 million investment.
GamersFirst's plan? To quickly relaunch APB as a free-to-play game, making only bare-bones and fundamental changes. The release-target was six months from November 2010, which puts the prospective date at May 2011.
After that, APB will be adjusted and altered over time - it could take as long as five years for the game to realise its full potential.
The progress of the project is regularly discussed on the APB Reloaded blog.