APB: All Points Bulletin, the ambitious multiplayer action game from British studio Realtime Worlds under the leadership of GTA creator David Jones, was shut down shortly after launch and will be given a new lease of life thanks to fan support.
Image source: Xiaoorui
Let us remind you that APB was launched in July 2010, but Realtime Worlds closed due to bankruptcy in September. After K2 Network bought the rights, the game was re-released as APB: Reloaded, but the original version seems to have been lost forever.
It is understood that a group of concerned fans have been working for more than three years to restore the original APB: All Points Bulletin by reverse engineering and writing their own server implementations from scratch.
Enthusiasts do not have the server source code or original server software
So far the game is fully functional. Fans have restored over 50 missions, the development system, and much of the network functionality, and are now busy fixing less important elements and improving client stability.
For the last month, the team has been posting gameplay videos showcasing the development process on the apolune YouTube channel. A week and a half ago, fans showed off seven minutes of gameplay in the Waterfront area.
As for the legal aspects, the franchise’s owner, California-based publisher Little Orbit, is already aware of the project. Additionally, the team does not use proprietary server code from Realtime Worlds or Little Orbit.
The restored version of APB: All Points Bulletin does not have a public release date at this stage. The goal for enthusiasts is to first get the game to the desired level of quality and only then decide on a release window.
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