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NCSoft Media Quickie

Tabula Rasa

Presentation by Victor Minart, Art Director of NCsoft 

This is the near future MMO shooter/RPG hybrid. With shared persistent spaces and also instances, this game will feature 3 planets upon release. Combat is a key feature, and missions will involve many tactics and the ability to react and respond on the fly. Fear not, those of you unskilled with FPSes. Tabula Rasa will minimize the twitch needed by having a “sticky” targeting system which is easy to use and allows players to focus more on having a fast paced and exciting action experience. As shown in the demo which featured a mission to infiltrate and destroy an objective in an enemy base, the battle which occurs is very chaotic—just like a war. With reinforcements being dropped in to massive bosses appearing along the way, a squad is faced with plenty of challenges. Enemies act differently depending on what you are doing, and being able to adapt to their behavior to hit their weak points is often necessary. This was shown in the demo by the example of how certain enemies were more vulnerable from behind, and thus it was advantageous to maneuver around. 

Tabula Rasa also offers a new and unique character advancement system. Everyone will start as a recruit, and gradually be given more options to progress after figuring out what suits them the best. Everyone is capable of combat whether they are a medic or an offensive specialist, but different traits will be valuable to have for a well-rounded group. But the most exciting part is this: “cloning.” Anyone can clone themselves for free at anytime. What this allows players to do is be able to go back from a previous save-point of sorts, and then explore different character paths. Clones will all show up as separate characters, and you can essentially try out everything without starting all the way over from the beginning. You won’t suffer as harsh of a time investment penalty if you discover that you don’t like what you are and want to switch. For example, before you level up and need to make a big decision on your next advancement, you can clone yourself so you can be more worry free. Seems like flexibility is a significant design goal, and this is further implemented in the form of character customization of appearances. It will be changeable at any time if you have enough money, and you can change your physical look in aspects such as hair, skin color, face and body, and items. Something like going to a spa, or getting surgery!

Although this presentation has come to an end, you can find out much more about the gameplay experience and learn more about topics ranging from PvP to future developments in Ten Ton Hammer’s personal impressions such as Ratboy's and my own previous guided tour experience.