Place 4 – Tabula Rasa
Setting: Science Fiction | Developer: Destination Games / NCSoft | Release Date: November 2, 2007 | Discontinued: February 28, 2009 | Payment Model: Pay2Play | Voting Result: 3.25% (47 votes)
What kind of MMORPG was it? Tabula Rasa was a sci-fi MMORPG from Destination Games. Similar to Guild Wars, the American company belonged to the Korean firm NCSoft. Well-known faces from Ultima Online were involved in the development, including Richard Garriott, who last worked on Shroud of the Avatar and is now working on a new MMORPG.
In Tabula Rasa, players fought together against aliens. The game featured a mix of action and shooter combat systems. Along with a story and PvE in the game world, the MMORPG also offered PvP in so-called wargames.
What made it special? Tabula Rasa aimed to be an MMORPG where players felt like real heroes and not just part of the game world. Additionally, the game focused on a villain with whom there was a direct rivalry.
It was among the first MMORPGs where missions were not static but depended on the course of battle.
What did it fail to achieve? Throughout development, the game’s concept was reworked multiple times. Originally developed primarily for the Korean market, it later focused entirely on the West.
Furthermore, shortly before release, the game underwent graphic enhancements because Lineage 2, surprisingly from NCSoft itself, was released and looked much better than Tabula Rasa.
Another problem was the limited content and features available at launch. While it was intended to expand over the years, this did not happen due to weak subscription numbers.
