Tabula Rasa Interview

Killer Betties recently sat down with the Tabula Rasa development team for an interview. For those of you who have never heard of Tabula Rasa, it is an action oriented MMORPG being developed by several members from the Ultima Online team including Richard Garriott aka Lord British himself. The game is described as a FPS but using a 3rd person view. The game is being published by NCSoft, and several members from other NCSoft titles have been recently transfered to the Tabula Rasa team, including CuppaJo from the City of Heroes community team. Anyway, here is just part of the interview Killer Betties did with the TR team, for the rest click the View link to see it all:

1. Tabula rasa refers to the thought that "human beings are born with no innate or built-in mental content, in a word, "blank", and that their entire resource of knowledge is built up gradually from their experiences and sensory perceptions of the outside world." How does the meaning of tabula rasa apply to the game?

In the game players actually have a Tabula Rasa, a "blank slate" that they use to record found logos knowledge. This allows them to create powerful logos abilities based on this found knowledge. The idea is further explored in the game via ethical parables and choices players make that determine who the players turn out to be since every player begins basically the same. Other games have you make choices about skills or races before you know anything about how those choices will affect your game. Tabula Rasa gives you a chance to make informed choices about your character.

2. What is the central story of Tabula Rasa and where does the player fit into it all?

Tabula Rasa is a massively multiplayer online action game that takes you into the heat of battle at the frontlines of an epic war between a xenophobic alien race bent on galactic conquest and the coalition of rebel soldiers who've traveled across the galaxy to stop them. Combining the action of a shooter and the immersion of a role-playing game, Tabula Rasa takes the player on an intergalactic adventure where the individual has an opportunity to significantly impact the pace of battle on a global scale. Players enter the game as rebel soldiers wielding a variety of futuristic weapons, potent demolitions and the mystical power of "Logos." It is up to each individual to use their stealth, ingenuity and skill to assist a ragtag coalition of rebels in their efforts to stop an enemy known for its intelligence and unyielding determination to enslave the Universe.

3. Character creation is always one of the first things you do in a MMORPG and is vitally important for a player to distinguish themselves from the crowd. How will players be able to distinguish their character from others?

Players will be able to customize their character at the character creation screen by gender, body size, skin tone, hair style and starting armor colors. Once players enter the game, more armor types and styles will be available from NPCs and as loot drops.