Paul Sage, the Lead Designer of Tabula Rasa has given us a detailed look at their unique cloning system. Tabula Rasa gives players the ability to clone their characters so they can go back and change mistakes they might have made.

When we were in the early stages of development, I was just sitting down and really thinking about what it was that I just didn't like about most MMOs. I realized that what I was most unhappy with was that I didn't always feel like I could get out there and do something different. I wanted to be able to dabble in other things with my characters. That really is my favorite aspect of cloning; it lets me try something new without starting over. Of course, that was mitigated a little bit because people could exploit it. But to help balance limiting the times someone could clone, we added in the ability to respec your character at that point, so not only can the players save at cloning, but they can also experiment with their character and really personalize their character.

Click on "Read More" to read all about Cloning.

Richard Garriott, the Executive Producer of Tabula Rasa, has finally undertaken a longtime goal of his: a trip to space. This fall, the legendary game designer will blast off and conduct some scientific research about the International Space Station. The trip is through Space Adventures.

Read more after the click.

It's that time of the week again! This latest entry to the Screenshot of the Week gallery depicts a Commando rushing into battle at the Warden Bot Facility, EMP launcher in tow. Hey, he's fighting robots, no batteries, no pain, right?

Check out the rest of the gallery here!

Lead Designer, Paul Sage lays out details on the Character Cloning system in Tabula Rasa over at GameSpot. This is part 4 of a Developer Diary series. Character Cloning is a feature in Tabula Rasa that essentially lets you to save your character as he is at any given point, and creating a copy of that character. This can be useful for playing through different classes, as you could conceivably clone at junctures in which you must choose between classes.

When we were in the early stages of development, I was just sitting down and really thinking about what it was that I just didn't like about most MMOs. I realized that what I was most unhappy with was that I didn't always feel like I could get out there and do something different. I wanted to be able to dabble in other things with my characters. That really is my favorite aspect of cloning; it lets me try something new without starting over. Of course, that was mitigated a little bit because people could exploit it. But to help balance limiting the times someone could clone, we added in the ability to respec your character at that point, so not only can the players save at cloning, but they can also experiment with their character and really personalize their character.

Check out the full story here.

An Australian blogger going by the alias 'Stropp' has posted his impressions of Tabula Rasa. He's played a myriad of MMOs and offers his unique perspective on the game.

The problem I think is that the gameplay will turn out to be fairly one dimensional. There seems to be only one real style of play, and that is using guns with some Logos action in the mix. Games like WoW, LotRO, and the like have a number of classes which allow a player to mix it up. Mages can be Frost, Fire or Arcane. There are Tanks, Rogues, Hunters with lots of variations. Tabula Rasa does allow specialisation of your character into a Guardian, Ranger, Demolitionist, Medic and the like later in the game, so it's hard to say for certainty on this, but I'm not sure it will really make all that much of difference to mix up the gameplay.

See what else Stropp's got to say here.

Richard Garriott, the Executive Producer of Tabula Rasa and creator of the Ultima series, is the keynote speaker for the 2007 Independent Game Conference, which takes place at the end of November.

For more, click below.

Richard Garriott's Tabula Rasa is the latest MMO from NCSoft Austin and aims to change the way people think about the genre. Garriott has created a game that combines fast action tactical combat with RPG mechanics and character development in a world full of stories that have moral consequences.

Here on WarCry, we offer you the chance to win one of 20 box copies, to be distributed after the game launches.

Interested? Click below to enter for free.

NCSoft has released some information about the Spy and Sniper classes in their upcoming MMO Tabula Rasa. Both Careers are an advanced class of Rangers.

A spy has a variety of specialized weapons at his disposal. You will receive specialized training in Chain Guns and Net Guns. Due to the importance of silent infiltration, you will also be trained to use an AFS Filament Blade, giving you the ability to sneak up behind your enemies and take them out efficiently and quietly, as well as allowing you to defend yourself in the unlikely chance you are discovered.

Click on "Read More" to see the new information.

A far cry from the likes of a dwarf versus an orc! Tabula Rasa's latest screenshot of the week pits a Thrax Strider against an AFS Mech in what looks like an exciting showdown. I'm rooting for the little guy (who's about 4 times your size.)

You can view the other Screenshot of the Week entries in our Tabula Rasa gallery!

Game developers love a good opportunity to sit down and talk about their visions for the future of this industry, and of course talk about their upcoming games. CVG recently had a chance to sit down with Richard 'Lord Garriot' British to talk about a few things, like hey, where'd you get that cool name, man?!

So, first things first - where did the moniker Lord British come from?

Richard Garriott: I was actually born in England. When I was first playing D&D; I needed to find a nickname, and earlier that year I'd moved to Texas, and all the locals thought I had a British accent. The nickname stuck, and when I started writing games I'd always include my character Lord British.

My very first publishers said that Richard Garriott wasn't a very memorable name, and dumped me from the credits and left only Lord British as the author of the early Ultima games. Most people don't know this, but Lord British's first name is Canterbridgian.

Read more here.

Two classes I certainly haven't heard much of, and have piqued my interest for quite some while are put through the paces at IGN today. These two are the Spy and Sniper, the Snipers of course all about ranged combat and precise shots, the Spy, well, he gets to wield swords. Nuff said.

The Spy uses weapons and abilities that rely heavily on LOGOS power to help deceive, misdirect, influence or avoid enemies. The spy prefers sneaking in sight unseen to achieve their goals rather than taking the direct approach.

You will begin your training as a soldier, and advance to the rank of Ranger before being accepted into the Spy Division. Some of the LOGOS abilities you will learn as a Spy are:

Polymorph
In order to infiltrate sensitive locations, a Spy will learn the art of disguise. Using the power of LOGOS, you will be able to take on the appearance of an enemy unit and will be seen as "friendly" by enemy forces.

Traitor
A Spy is also trained to turn an enemy against his own allies through LOGOS. This obviously creates a certain amount of chaos, as the enemy forces shift their attention to eliminating the "traitor."

Cloak Wave
This is a Spy's Signature Ability. You will learn to harness LOGOS powers to set up a zone at you're location that will grant any allies within the zone a 75% Stealth bonus.

Check it out here.

With the release of Tabula Rasa nearing many outlets are getting hands-on time with the upcoming sci-fi RPG. In this latest preview TTGamer takes Richard Garriot's new pride and joy for a spin and talks about their impressions.

Starting off as a measly recruit, you must first pass a few training missions and tests before you make your way into the real battlefields as the game introduces you to its 'WASD' control system with its third person camera perspective, feeling much like any other third person action shooter. It is here where you also start to understand the depth of the game and its features, including the purpose and usage of the Logos powers. There is quite a lot to take in at first so slacking off and skipping description texts is not a great idea, although anyone reasonably familiar with the MMORPG genre shouldn't have any trouble getting the basics down in the first few minutes - Tabula Rasa is very much a traditional MMORPG in the way it feels and functions, from its XP level system, to its back pack inventory system.

Check out the full piece here.

With all of the talk about the Logos Academy from various sites around the 'net, it is little wonder that player would be a bit curious to see some footage in action. Luckily, there's a new trailer up to help with that.

Amanda McKay and her team from Gametrailers had a chance to spend some time in Austin, Texas and attend the Logos Academy Event. They have put together a video recap of their experiences to share with everyone. Watch as they explore Britannia Manor and see what its like to travel in space on the Zero-G flight. This special feature video is awesome, so be sure to head over to Gametrailers

Head over to Gametrailers to check out the footage.

MMO Gamer has posted their impression of the first 10 levels of Tabula Rasa. What is their impression you might ask? Well it's not good. The reviewer has some real issues with the game.

It was the heady days of last week, and I had just finished installing the client, fresh-faced and eager to slaughter every living thing that moved. Upon reaching level 5, I picked Soldier as my second tier profession (the tier system is something we'll go over in the proper review of the game), dropped some training points into Machine Guns and purchased one from the vendor, as I've always been a fan of them in FPS games past.

Laying eyes on my new acquisition, a friend of mine, who had been playing the game longer than I had, asked, bluntly, "Why did you buy that thing?"

"They looked like fun."

"You shouldn't have specced machine guns," they scolded me.

I couldn't see how dispensing hot lead more expediently in a game that revolved around killing things could be a bad thing, and asked for clarification, "Why not?"

"It's two credits per shot. You'll go broke trying to keep it reloaded."

"Are you trying to tell me that I can't afford to have fun?"

"Pretty much."

You can read the rest of the impression over at MMO Gamer.

The folks at RPGVault sat down with NCSofts Victor Meinert and John Mueller to discuss the various aspects of Tabula Rasa art direction and implementation.

Jonric: In total, how many people make up the complete art team, and has the number changed during development?

Victor Meinert: The Tabula Rasa team is definitely an international effort, especially art production. We literally have teams all over the world. We've got people in Seoul, Beijing, LA, San Francisco, and of course, our core team here in Austin. John and I have gotten to see parts of the world we normally would never have seen in making Tabula Rasa. Worldwide, the total numbers fluctuate depending on what phase of production we're in. Overall, the art department averages around 40, but we've peaked near a high of 70 during this last push for launch. Our core team here in Austin is around 20 to 25 and growing.

You can check it out in it's entirety here.