Even with those issues, the players of the game seem whole-heartedly
content to continue playing. Despite the changes and augmentations that
are consistently being made with each patch, those individuals that
have been playing TR seem extremely happy with the worlds they've encountered
and are persistent in their desire to play through the levels of the game. Why? The
answer to that lies solely in what may be the newest trend that Richard
Garriott brings to the MMOG table: the Character Cloning System.



The Cure for Alt-itis



Already trademarked by the NCsoft team, the Character Cloning System
represents a new way for players to engage in the world around them. In
short, the Character Cloning System introduced in style="font-style: italic;">Richard Garriott's
Tabula Rasa allows players to make a "photo-copy" of their
character at
each of the levels where they make an important decision. Dubbed
"cloning" - a term that works in this science fiction based game - the
system allows players the leverage they need in creating characters,
allowing them to not be confined to a particular class that they chose
in the beginning of the game.

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title="Danger is on its way"> src="/image/view/14184/preview"
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style="font-style: italic;">You'll get an
opportunity to try out a variety of characters with TR's cloning system.

When a player makes a clone, they basically create an exact replica of
their current character save for the skills they've selected for that
particular entity. Any class choices or branching selections are
stored, but the process now allows players to "back-up" their characters at particular
points which allows them to go back and try different class trees. When
you're progressing, you're given the option to clone your character at
level 5, 15, and 30 - basically each time you select a different branch
in a particular class tree. While some players may use the clones to
create different classes, other players have decided to hold clones in
reserve until later levels. This gives them the opportunity to create an incredibly
skilled character by redistributing abilities without any fear of being
underpowered through a certain portion of the game.



Although the combat changes have been the areas most talked about by the general
media, the Character Cloning System, in my opinion, is the most
evolutionary portion of the entire game. The developers have really
hit upon a terrific way for characters to create alternate characters
(or min-max their own characters to perfection), and gamers are very
happy with the way the cloning system works, albeit they want more ways
to clone their characters in the long run. Though the skills and weapons
portion of the game may not be completely finalized, most players
simply aren't worried due to the flexibility they feel with the
Character Cloning System.



The Technical Scoop



When it comes to world creation, Richard Garriott and the NCsoft team
have ultimately outdone themselves when it comes to style="font-style: italic;">Tabula Rasa.
Instead of making one planet with a variety of different biomes, the
NCsoft team developed several planets, each with its own particular
personality and hazards. As you progress in levels, you'll be traveling
to and from these different locales and each area provides you with a
completely different visual experience. With the settings cranked to their maximum,
you'll almost feel like you're in a living breathing world, where alien
life forms are common place and your insistent shooting is just another
part of the greater ecosystem.

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style="font-style: italic;">The different
planets all have their own particular flavor when players are exploring
them.

From a graphical standpoint, many developers could learn a thing or two
about creating particular atmospheres and environments by taking a look
at the work the Tabula
Rasa development team put into the different planets
in the game. With each move up your advancement ladder, you'll find
more amazing vistas and locations rife with biological specimens that
you would have never dreamed of. It's a futuristic world, but it
certainly has the fantastic spin that players have commonly found in
all of Richard Garriott's products.



Truth be told, while the environments in style="font-style: italic;">Tabula Rasa are
stunning, I
was a bit disappointed with the character models that the players are
forced to run around with. Not only are the initial character creation
options fairly limited (especially in the facial department), but
players can only choose from stock bodies and have no option to finagle
with body types. Although I do love looking like Rambo, I'd prefer that
my character have just a hint of girth to make it feel more accurate to
the real "Micajah" deal.



What Didn't Make It?



Now that the praises have been heaped on, you're probably wondering
about the elements of the game that I found frustrating. Simply put,
there were a number of parts of the game that didn't make it fully into
the final release. Although many other reviewers have complained about
the lack of a solid crafting system (and it is a frustration), I
generally had more concerns with areas that are more intuitive to a
futuristic combat experience. I would have loved to see vehicular based
battles early in the game. I understand that mechs are available at
later levels and the Personal Armor Units are making their way into the
game, but what about the standard hovercrafts or spaceships? Why can't
players fly around in enemy vessels or command the enormous guns that
can blast the crap out of you? These elements almost seem like a
natural part of any science fiction world, and they seem egregiously
left behind in the world of Tabula
Rasa.

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style="font-style: italic;">Logos serve very
little purpose in TR except to provide players with needed components
to activate their abilities.

Along with that, it's also frustrating to hear about how many of the
initial abilities in the game had issues. By simply perusing the patch
notes from the last several updates, you'll find that a number of
abilities weren't active at all in the beginning, and some (like the
Guardians Staff skill) still aren't working properly. Although it
hasn't seemed to upset the player base, it is frustrating to think that
a game so long in development still wasn't completely finished by the
launch date.



Finally, I was wholly disappointed with how the Logos language played
out in the game. As Garriott's pet project, I expected more
interactions between my character and the language as a whole. At this
point in time, Logos seem to only provide the necessary components
needed for activating your special abilities and function more as a
"runner" type mission for the players in the game. Without some sort of
necessary player interaction using the Logos, I'm afraid that the
concept of a universal alien language simply won't catch on.



The Final Throwdown



Tabula Rasa
is the swift kick in the ass that the MMOG industry needed.
Even with its faults, it's evident that the NCsoft developers are
really trying to blaze a new trail in the massively multiplayer gaming
marketplace. With a new and intuitive combat system, a fantastic
Character Cloning System, and a fundamentally different take on the
science fiction experience, NCsoft has delivered a product that is
strikingly original while still maintaining ties to an already storied
past. More game developers need to take NCsofts cue and stop hesitating
before jumping into the fray. Gamers want change, and they want things
to stay the same. To me,
Tabula Rasa delivers on both fronts.

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