Lord British Talks TR

Welcome to the 539th edition of Loading... If you aren't reading this in your e-mail, you could be. Sign Up

Our GDC coverage is still rolling in. This is a great conference for the press as the setting is much more intimate than an event like E3 (was) or PAX is.

TenTonHammer.com's GDC 2007 Coverage Portal

There is nothing like coaching 7 and 8-year-olds to put everything in perspective. They tell it like it is, no holding back. The parents also don't hold back, but in a much different way. Someday a wise scientfic type will put his or her finger on the point where we move from being polite, happy human beings into adulthood.

In the good news department, I woke up to a pair of bald eagles, a pair of swans and some otters in the lake 20-feet from my back door. Amazing!

While I'm discussing amazing things I'll take a minute to tell you about my sit down, chat it out session with Richard Garriott, the man behind the Ultima universe and who is currently working on Tabula Rasa.

Today I'll take a lok at what Tabula Rasa is and what it isn't. There are many misconceptions concerning this game. Let's try to clear them up shall we?
It is a title that has been in closed beta since Christmas with hundreds of testers scampering through the science fiction world discovering any bugs or discrepancies. The beta will soon be opening the floodgates to thousands of new testers per cycle. How soon is soon? That question couldn't be answered, but expect to start seeing announcements in the next few weeks.

Richard described Tabula Rasa this way:

"Tabula Rasa is a real-time, fast paced tactical combat game with socially relevant missions based on moral parables."

In other words, this game is not a first-person shooter. It is a massively multiplayer online game with ranged weapons, but it is not a first-person shooter. Hits and misses will be calculated based on statistics and not on mouse accuracy or how fast you can strafe or bunny-hop around your opponent.

Targeting is "sticky". If you mouse over an enemy they will become your target even if you do not keep them in your sights. Mousing over "even a pixel of another enemy" will set them as your target.

The game is based in the "near future". Players will be familiar with most weapons, technology, etc., and will be playing as the survivors of the "Bane Destruction". The Bane are a race of aliens who decided to ram a steaming chunk of a planet that they had conquered into Earth. The results were less than optimal for those of us on the receiving end.

Tabula Rasa takes a giant leap forward in the area of character advancement. Players will be able to load, save and clone their character at any point. Coupled with the open-ended class system this means that you can keep saving your character to try out different class trees. You aren't forced to save at "logical points" in your character's progression, but you are prompted to. Also interesting is that your characters will be unique based on their Surname and not their first name. Clones of your character will all have the same surname.

I knew very little about Tabula Rasa prior to the demonstration, but after seeing what has been created so far I'm excited to see more.Tomorrow I'll take a look at the two kinds of maps that will be available, battlefields and instances.

[Vote, rank, share, comment!]

--

Guild Management has never been easier! Not sure what GuildPortal is, or what it can do for your Guild? Click here to read about what GuildPortal is, why it's the most imitated, and why people have been using GP since October of 2001 to host their Guild web sites!

Exclusive TenTonHammer.com Content!

03.19.2007

Dungeons and Dragons Online: Guide To Dwarf Enhancements
"The Dwarf is one of the finest races in DDO, and Darkgolem gets you in touch with your shorter side with his new enhancement guide, The Daunting Dwarf!" EverQuest 2: Mithaniel Marr Miracles Guide
"Are you thinking Marr might be the deity for you? Don't put yourself through all of those grueling deity quests until you have read through the blessings and miracles first! This guide will help give you the insight you need to decide if Marr has what you need!" Vanguard: Saga of Heroes - Paladin Spells And Abilities List
"To complement our newly revamped class guide, we've released a completely list of level 1-50 paladin spells and abilities. Check out the list to see what this righteous fighter can do." Vanguard: Saga of Heroes - Paladin Class Guide
"Our most recent class guide revamp explores Vanguard's holy warrior, the paladin. Check out our shiny new format and discover all there is to know about this versatile tank." Vanguard: Saga of Heroes - Art of Death Quest Guide
"This quest is a must for every Necromancer. Complete the Art of Death Quest to gain the coveted Feign Death Spell. Polkadots tells you how to do it." Warhammer Online: Empire Overview
"The Empire Overview page has been updated to include the listings of the new zones to go along with this location page update." Warhammer Online: Locations Page
"Today we've updated our location page to include all the currently released locations as well as basic information on how zone structure works." Warhammer Online: Chaos Overview
"Today we've updated our Chaos Overview page to include the new locations listed in the past issues of the monthly WAR Newsletter. Also included in this update is an updated description of the Chaos Zealot. Enjoy!" World of Warcraft: Dungeon Set 2
"Now that the Burning Crusade is out and the dungeon sets are more commonly referred to as DS1 - 3 it was time to update our quest guide to getting the DS2 set. In a large part because it was still referred to as tier 0.5 when we created it! Check out the changes and let us know, is DS2 still worth the effort? Even for Collectors?" World of Warcraft: Paladin Equipment Guide
"Our Paladin Guide's equipment section has been updated with tons of new and helpful information that allows you to find the best gear for your character. In the guide we cover some info on the new dungeon sets and the tier 4 and tier 5 raiding sets along with what stats and effects you should really look for on Paladin gear and why!" World of Warcraft: Jewel List
"Our list of WoW jewels has been updated with a ton of new jewels! Mostly multi-colored jewels, our list is almost complete, now having the majority of known jewels in one convenient location. Check back for more updates as more jewels are found and added!" World of Warcraft: Alliance Leveling Guide
"Our Alliance 1-60 guide has been improved with more specific details for the 20-60 levels providing you with a good foundation of where to go and when. Look out for an update to our Horde guide along with detailed 60-70 leveling guides in the near future!" World of Warcraft: Dungeon Set 3 Drop Locations
"You've now reached level 70 and are looking for your new Dungeon Armor set but don't know where to get them? Check out our new table that shows in which instance and which boss drops which piece of the Dungeon Set 3 armor sets. All of the items are available in various 5 man instances in the Outlands."

Hot Content

GDC: Gods and Heroes: Exclusive Gameplay Footage GDC: Hero's Journey: Exclusive In-Game Video GDC: Vivox: Interview With Monty Sharma And Rob Seaver GDC: Hero's Journey: Interview With Eric Slick GDC: Fury: Hands-On GDC: EVE Online: Interview With Magnus Bergsson GDC: Age of Conan: Screenshots GDC : Age of Conan Preview GDC: Developing Story-Driven MMOs GDC: A Dreamlords Interview With Jon Selin World Exclusive EVE Online Avatar-Perspective Video

Real World News - You Can't Make This Up

Pirate Toob [Thanks Danny]
Ninjas still > Pirates and can spell "tube". Muslim Workers At Target Refuse To Handle Pork [Matt]
Can we still call them "workers"? Be More Than You Can Be [Thanks Matt]
No glove, no love. Underwear Thief Arrested In Japan [Thanks Matt]
We had to get to the bottom of this.

Vin Diesel Fact: Vin Diesel once played on all teams in the "Final Four". [Thanks Pat]

Thanks as always for visiting TenTonHammer.com

- John "Boomjack" Hoskin

You can read previously enjoyed editions of Loading... in the blog archive.