Tabula Rasa

From Entertainment Bobber Wiki

Richard Garriott's Tabula Rasa
Release date	November 2, 2007
Servers shutdown date	February 28, 2009
Developer(s)	Destination Games
Publisher(s)	NCsoft Europe
Platform(s)	Microsoft Windows
Media	1xDVD
Genre(s)	MMORPG

Richard Garriott's Tabula Rasa is a sci-fi MMORPG developed by Destination Games (also known as NCsoft Austin) and published by NCsoft Europe. Tabula Rasa was in development for over 6 years. At some point during the course of development, due to difficulties the development team started having, it was decided to abandon the first couple of years worth of work and start working on the game almost from scratch again. This way Tabula Rasa's aesthetic style was transformed from a futuristic Asian martial into a futuristic contemporary military one. Despite that fact, according to Richard Garriott, the gameplay mechanics and almost all of the original ideas remained consistent through the game. The game went live in North America and Europe on November 2, 2007.

History

July 2, 2008, April "CuppaJo" Burba, Online Community Relations Lead and Associate Producer, leaves Tabula Rasa development team to work on another NCsoft project, Dungeon Runners. At the official Tabula Rasa site she posts the following message:

...

Finally, it is with deep sadness that I announce that I have been reassigned to another game within the NCsoft family and will be assuming the Associate Production role on Dungeon Runners. The bling gnomes have run amok and believe they can turn my ban-hammer skills into gnome-hammer skills. All joking aside, it has been an honor serving in the AFS with each of you. Your knowledge and passion for the game are unparalleled and I look forward to watching how the community and the development team work together to make TR great.

/salute

Dev_CuppaJo

Dane Caruthers, previously a QA Lead, is promoted to Assistant Producer to take CuppaJo's place. On July 7, 2008 he posts the following message on the official Tabula Rasa page:

Hi folks! My name is Dane Caruthers, and I’m the new Assistant Producer on Tabula Rasa. You should be seeing me up on the boards shortly, posting as Entropic. I’ve been working on TR since the beginning of 2007 as the QA Lead, and I’m very excited about moving into a new role.

...

September 23, 2008, Tom Potter, the Tabula Rasa Lead Designer, leaves Destination Games and is being replaced by Susan Kath. Tom posted the following message on the Tabula Rasa official site:

Greetings TR fans,

Although it's been a difficult decision, after much thought I have decided to leave Destination Games and pursue another opportunity in the industry. My time at Destination Games has been a phenomenal experience. Since joining the team I've witnessed TR get better and better with each Deployment, and I can truly say that the game is better than it has ever been. And that would not be possible without the amazing talent here at DG. I feel fortunate for having been part of that. I would also like to thank the players for being the most positive and supportive community out there. Your feedback is essential for our success, so please keep it coming!

Looking forward at what is in the development pipeline, I'm very excited for the future of TR. This seems like the perfect opportunity to introduce Susan Kath as the new Lead Designer. Susan has been on the team for four and a half years, was previously the Lead Mission Designer, and knows the game inside and out. I've worked closely with Susan and know she has great ideas about the future of TR, and know she will be an excellent Lead Designer. I can't wait to experience the game from a new perspective: as a player. (Doctor Whom: Orion). See you on the frontlines!

Tom Potter

The message is followed by a word from Susan Kath:

Thanks for the intro, Tom. Tom has been an invaluable presence on TR in the last months, and we all hate to see him go. Fortunately, he's letting us make him work on new content up until the last possible moment. ;)

So, hello, everyone! My name is Susan and I'm the new Lead Designer of Tabula Rasa. I've been working on Tabula Rasa for the last four and a half years. I originally joined the project as the fiction writer, and then worked in early systems design, then as a mission designer and eventually Lead Mission Designer. I've worn many hats around here and acquired a good bit of knowledge about the game over the years. In fact, there's a megaphone sitting beside me emblazoned with the words, "Hey, Susan!" given to me as a joke about the number of people who are in my office on a daily basis asking, "Hey, Susan... do you know how to do that thing with the stuff?" types of questions.

Prior to joining the Tabula Rasa team, I started the Community Relations department here at NC Austin and led that for several years. I also spent a few years in Community Relations at Origin, and before that got my start as a game designer at a company called Simutronics. Over the years, I've worked in both game development and publishing, on 'live' games and games in development. I've been fortunate enough to work with many smart, creative, people - and I hope to bring everything I've learned to this new role on Tabula Rasa.

...

October 9, 2008, Amy "Critters" Crider leaves Destination Games. She made the following post on the official Tabula Rasa page:

Today is a very sad day for me, as I will be leaving the Tabula Rasa staff to pursue another opportunity. With every build, I've watched this game transform for the better and I'm eager to see what's in store once it goes to the Live servers. With a new Lead Designer and end-game content directives such as Epic Instances, PVP CP's, and Mechs - this is an exciting time for TR!

Before I leave, I want to thank the PlanetTR staff for all the hard work and dedication they have put in to make the Tabula Rasa community so great. PlanetTR is a community person's dream - always coming up with new and interesting events, promoting the game, and just being an overall area where players can freely banter with each other.

Thank you to the Destination Games Devs, QA, and GMs that welcomed me with open arms when I joined the team. They are some of the most talented, friendly, and customer-focused people I have had a chance to work with.

Most of all, I'd also like to thank the Tabula Rasa players. You make our jobs possible - and fun! I'll definitely miss getting pwnd in Friday Night Fights, dropping Stalkers and Juggernauts on your heads, and doing a conga line around Wilderness :).

I leave you in the very capable hands of Dane Caruthers, also known as Entropic on the forums, who will be taking over my community responsibilities for Tabula Rasa. Dane has been with the game since beta and will be a great fit for such a wonderful community. Avatea will still be working on the EU side of community and working with Dane to keep you up to date with all the latest and greatest in Tabula Rasa developments.

Take care and Happy Hunting,

Amy Crider AKA "Critters"

November 11, 2008, Richard Garriott, soon after returning from his space flight, officially leaves NCsoft. At the official Tabula Rasa site he posts the following message:

Fellow Soldiers of the AFS,

I am happy to finally be able to write the players and community of Tabula Rasa. We've been on quite a journey together. First in creating a game unlike any other on the MMO market, then growing a loyal community and finally launching the game and its players into space with Operation Immortality. It has been quite an unforgettable journey, one that I will treasure for the rest of my life.

I am very grateful to you loyal players for sticking around through what I think we can all honestly say was a rough launch. I thank the development team for pushing hard to get polish, updates and new content out every month since launch...a feat that I think is unusual in MMO development. They have a lot to be proud of.

Many of you probably wonder what my plans are, now that I have achieved the lifelong dream of going to space. Well, that unforgettable experience has sparked some new interests that I would like to devote my time and resources to. As such, I am leaving NCsoft to pursue those interests.

This news is difficult for me to deliver. I am honored to have worked with the team I've had and I'm grateful to the community who makes this game so unique and fun.

Thank you and farewell.

Richard "General British" Garriott

November 21, 2008, Tabula Rasa team made the following announcement on the game official site:

To the Tabula Rasa Community,

Last November we launched what we hoped would be a ground breaking sci-fi MMO. In many ways, we think we’ve achieved that goal. Tabula Rasa has some unique features that make it fun and very different from every other MMO out there. Unfortunately, the fact is that the game hasn’t performed as expected. The development team has worked hard to improve the game since launch, but the game never achieved the player population we hoped for.

So it is with regret that we must announce that Tabula Rasa will end live service on February 28, 2009.

Before we end the service, we’ll make Tabula Rasa servers free to play starting on January 10, 2009.

...

The Tabula Rasa Team

Coupled with the following message:

On February 28, 2009, Tabula Rasa will be shutting down its servers, and as of January 10, 2009, the game will be free to play.

To thank our loyal Tabula Rasa fans we've prepared a little closing down gift. Any active paying player as of 10:00 AM Pacific Time on November 21st, 2008 will be eligible for all of the following:

• 3 free months of City of Heroes including digital client
• 3 free months of Lineage II including digital client
• Aion Exclusive Preview Event access (details coming soon)
• Aion pre-order access (available in 2009)
• 1 free month of Aion including digital client (available in 2009)

These offers are limited to active paying players. Subscribers who join or reactivate canceled accounts after 10:00 AM Pacific Time on November 21st, 2008 will not be eligible.

If you are an eligible Tabula Rasa player, you'll be receiving notification directly from NCsoft in the near future with information on how to collect these thank you gifts.

If you are a player that has pre-paid for Tabula Rasa subscription time beyond January 10, 2009, you will be refunded for that pre-paid time by February 28, 2009.

...

Reception

In 2008 NCsoft reported a revenue of mere KRW 5 billion (USD 5.4 million) from the previous year and projected it will earn KRW 15 billion (USD 16.2 million) in the year 2008. Though the company didn't reveal how much money was spent on the game development, industry watchers estimate (and it's a really rough estimation) the total cost to be around KRW 100 billion (USD 108 million).