Aliens, though not as popular as elves and gnomes in the massively multiplayer gaming arena are certainly not new. Tabula Rasa makes for an interesting setting with its universe of extraterrestrial creatures, artifacts and weaponry systems. However, it’s not only the setting that makes this game interesting. Tabula Rasa features a unique battlefield, optimized system of control points and an action oriented combat system. Don’t get your expectations too high and imagine groundbreaking visuals and gameplay, the game is not even close to Anarchy Online’s Rubi-Ka. Tabula Rasa is nevertheless an entertaining game that deserves a look for any gamer who is into MMORPG. Tabula Rasa’s interesting facets come to light right from the moment you create your character. As with any RPG you have to choose the physical attributes but why would you want to choose a profession for your character? No matter which profession you choose, you start out as a generic AFS (Allied Free Sentient) recruit.
You are basically the “blank slate” that is referred to in the title, as eventually you get to specialize in eight different classes. These are rough separation criteria is combat and support, you’ll have to wait till you get to level 30 before you get to choose your profession. For those of you who are worried about not liking the profession you choose, the game allows you to copy all your experience and stats intact and go back to try different options. The game’s two planets are scattered with artifacts known as logo elements, these are snippets of an ancient language that reveal the secrets of a universal power. You will need to collect them to gain access to specific abilities in your tech tree. What this means is that you will be able to gain access to the desired profession just by leveling up, but in order to utilize all the skills and weapons available to that profession you will need to go on a mad logos hunt. Most logos are attached to missions; however it doesn’t hurt to go after particular logos as there is experience to be gained.
Right from the word go, you’ll notice the difference in the combat form compared to other multiplayer online role-playing game. Tabula Rasa plays much like a third-person shooter, you use the mouse to free-look, and the mouse buttons to fire weapons and perform abilities. You can cycle through the weapons by using the Q and E keys, this means you can change the weapons even in the heat of battle, this is important as certain weapons are deadly against a foe while the same may not even scratch others. The damage you do is linked to a series of under-the-hood-calculations as in most of the RPG games out there. Exploration is not that rewarding as you would expect from a MMORPG. Once the initial freshness wanes, there is nothing much to look at. Many of the creature and character models look repetitive and the color palette is a crazy mess of brown, orange and other dreary colors. Neverthe less the game is fun to play and if you can assemble a good group, the instanced area is a blast.
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