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Tabula Rasa crafting: What didn't work then, and what works now
Several times I've wanted to just sit myself down and write an in-depth article explaining the original crafting system in Tabula Rasa (before it was announced to close), but it's just one of those things where the explanation would not make much sense unless you've frustrated yourself with it firsthand. It was complicated, time consuming and you would only need to kill 3 or 4 more Bane to get a better item anyway. Yet in Deployment 13, the crafting system was completely overhauled, simplified, and caused players to actually craft again. But was it just too late?Over at Van Hemlock's blog, he takes a practical look at the past and present of TR crafting, explaining what we once dealt with versus the new and improved system. For anyone who has simply ignored the crafting in TR based on previous bad experiences, this post if worth a read.
The week in Massively Features
The Digital Continuum: Moria or Wrath?tanding in the tiny store, I found myself at a crossroads. I'd put a lot of thought into this, but now that the decision was starting back at me, it seemed much more daunting. The question kept repeating in my head, "Do I buy Wrath, or Moria?" NCsoft clarifies its rationale for closing Tabula RasaLast week we spoke very briefly with NCsoft's Director of Public Relations David Swofford about the company's decision to close Tabula Rasa. He reiterated the basic statement we heard from several sources surrounding the call: this was all about the bottom line. Anti-Aliased: You've been Auto-AssaultedI saw the warning signs, and I tried to bring it up nicely. I kept seeing the constant staff shake-ups, and continued to grin and hope for the best. I even saw Richard Garriott himself walk away from the development, a very bad omen in hindsight, and the lot of us gamers just nodded along and thought that TR was going to continue along smoothly. Know Your LotRO Lore: The Rings of PowerYou may realize that the essential plot for the Lord of the Rings books has something to do with a ring, or at least we'd hope you do. Perhaps you know that there is this one ring that keeps making Hobbits invisible, and a bunch of Orcs want it really, really badly. But other than that, you're lost to the origins and impact that this ring has in relation to the grand scheme of things. Massively Speaking Podcast Episode 34Massively Speaking Episode 34 is all about Lord of the Rings Online and the game's first expansion, Mines of Moria. Shawn and Michael are joined by Jeffrey Steefel, Producer at Turbine, to talk about the new classes, content, and dungeon-crawling goodness added in this gigantic expansion. They even talk about the future of the game a bit! Well worth checking out.
Tabula Rasa introduces Epic instances
As announced in today's Feedback Friday, the Tabula Rasa team has been working on a way to present low-level instances in what could be considered a "hard mode" of sorts. The first of these is the Caves of Donn instance which now has an Epic version, accessible through the CELLAR Arena.This Epic Caves of Donn instance has Epic versions of the Caretakers, Technicians, Soldiers and the brand new Ravagers and Seekers created for the Back-to-Earth campaign. This instance is repeatable, allowing players to eventually gain all rewards in addition to the XP, Prestige and Mimeomech. Admittedly, the developers report that the instance doesn't have as much polish as they'd like, but considering the circumstances, we understand.
Player Consequences: Closing Time
If you look into the history of modern MMOs, you will notice that most games in the genre are still up and running. In over ten years only a handful have failed and been taken offline by their publishers. That's not to say every MMO has had outstanding success. It's just that the minimum cost to keep these game worlds running is actually quite small. As long as current subscriptions can maintain the servers and minimal support staff, there is no real reason to take a MMO offline. In fact, most game publishers realize that shuttering a MMO is a little bit of a public relations nightmare. It's much better to keep a game running as long as there are any players willing to pay for it.This doesn't seem to apply in cases where a publisher is worried about a MMO negatively affecting the reputation of another product or license. One particular example of this was The Sims Online, which had been slowly losing subscribers since its launch in 2002. How EA managed to make an under-performing MMO out of one of the bestselling video game franchises in history, I will never know. EA eventually attempted to revive the game by renaming it to EA-land earlier this year. However, it seemed that the renaming was just an attempt to dissociate the MMO from the Sims brand name since they canceled it a few weeks later.
Tabula Rasa's weekend activites still going strong
As a testament to the fact that Tabula Rasa players aren't throwing down their rifles and giving up that easily, the community events are carrying on stronger than ever. Thanks to fansites such as PlanetTR and Gangrel's Forums, this weekend is chocked full of contests and special events to keep away those end-of-the-game-in-two-months blues.First, there's the EU Centaurus AFS Boxing Tournament, which is basically the EU server's answer to Friday Night Fights. Speaking of which, this week's FNF will be held on the Orion server at 10pm EST. Finally, we have this month's installment of the Server vs. Server War on the PTS for all to enjoy. You can find out more information on this SvS War through our previous coverage or at PlanetTR's forums. Hope to see you there!
Red 5 Studios interview: How to fail-proof your MMO
During a recent interview with Ten Ton Hammer, Red 5 Studios' Mark Kern described his views on why games like Tabula Rasa and Hellgate: London had recently failed, and how his colleagues at Red 5 are making sure an early game closure isn't in their future."I think the key is that you need to marry whatever your theme is to the nature of the gameplay," Kern advised. "I think that the issue comes in when you take a theme or a genre that doesn't fit with the style of gameplay that you're making. I think that's some of what you've seen with these failed games. If you just go out and try to make a WoW-type of game with a few tweaks, then try to place the sci-fi genre on top of it, I think you've got some big issues there." Ouch! We can only speculate as to which game he's referring, but we tend to agree with his point here. Shoot us your opinions on a topic that's probably not going to go away any time soon.
Massively week in Review
Joystiq's sister site Massively.com has all the news you'll need about MMOs. Here's the best, brightest, and most interesting stuff from the last week, all in one convenient place for your MMO minute. EA licenses Dungeon Keeper MMO, for ChinaElectronic Arts has licensed out the Dungeon Keeper property as an MMO to Chinese-based developer NetDragon Websoft with the intent to eventually bring it overseas. Warhammer Online 1.0.6 patch adds new classes, tidal wave of updatesToday, Mythic brings us Black Guards and Knights of the Blazing Sun! For those who didn't finish the full Heavy Metal event, don't worry, the classes will become available to everyone next week. DC Universe probably coming early 2010/late 2009, says comics writerMost intriguing was his up-front information on the game's launch window. According to Johns, the developers are aiming to release the game in "early 2010, it could be late 2009." Read on into the brief interview for the goods. Richard Bartle responds to "torture quest" issueA few days ago we ran a report on Richard Bartle's take on a torture quest in World of Warcraft, the Art of Persuasion. Since then, the discussion has exploded and some have taken Bartle's quotes out of context. Because of this, Bartle has created a follow-up post to clarify some of the points that may have been misinterpreted. NCsoft clarifies its rationale for closing Tabula RasaLast week we spoke very briefly with NCsoft's Director of Public Relations David Swofford about the company's decision to close Tabula Rasa. He reiterated the basic statement we heard from several sources surrounding the call: this was all about the bottom line.
Tabula Rasa's Deployment 15 hits the Public Test Server
For those players left to enjoy Tabula Rasa in its final months, NCsoft has remained diligent about keeping up with quality content. The most recent game update, Deployment 15, has now hit the Public Test Server and brings with it many features that players have been looking forward to for a while now.In addition to the new FPS camera view, we're treated to a new instance map entitled "The Empire Sector". This special map is restricted to level 50 players who must also meet certain Logos requirements. Plus, NCsoft's developers aren't letting the closure blues get to them as they break out with some holiday decorations throughout 16 different locations where holiday headgear and "Festive Footwear" await players. Check out the complete PTS patch notes for more information on this large update.
Anti-Aliased: You've been Auto-Assaulted
"Absolutely. [The restructuring] has no impact on Tabula Rasa. ... I don't know where the rumors are coming from, but with [marketing blitz] Operation Immortality in full swing, the team's very dedicated to that game, and they are still working on it," said David Swofford, Director of Public Relations of NCsoft to Edge Online on September 11th."Tabula Rasa is a triple-A MMO. It is a game that is very much in the wheelhouse of what NC West and NCsoft globally are all about," said David Reid, President of Publishing of NC West on September 24th. "...we see improvement happening in Tabula Rasa. We're encouraged by it."So, NCsoft, how does it feel to absolutely lie through your teeth to players and staff about Tabula Rasa?
NCsoft clarifies its rationale for closing Tabula Rasa
Last week we spoke very briefly with NCsoft's Director of Public Relations David Swofford about the company's decision to close Tabula Rasa. He reiterated the basic statement we heard from several sources surrounding the call: this was all about the bottom line.David Swofford: We had to weigh Tabula Rasa against everything else that was out there. From our standpoint it was strictly a call ... it wasn't as successful as we needed it to be. We had to take this position.From our perspective, from the readers of Massively we just feel like there is a little bit of confusion. We spoke with Mr. Reid just two months ago, and the headline we used was 'Tabula Rasa is Triple-A and here to stay'. It just seems like it has been a quick turnaround in two months from 'we have every confidence in this game going forward' to 'we have to shut the game down.' Has something happened in the last two months that prompted this?Mr. Swofford: My reaction is that definitely at the time we thought we had something good going on ... we had the Operation Immortality promotion going, things were looking good, the team was working on the product. As David said, we considered it a Triple-A level product for the company. Things do change. I think he also said, and I'll reiterate, that we're constantly looking at projects. It's not like you have them out there and you let them go for a while, we're constantly monitoring them and weighing them against the success that they're having against the current market. I think things changed quite a bit since when you did that interview.Thank you for clarifying that – it's good to be able to get that explained, there was definitely a sense of confusion on the site.Mr. Swofford: No, no, we understand. This was not a popular thing and certainly not a pleasant thing to do on our end. When you look at it from a business sense it was really what we needed to do.
Ask Massively: Requiem for a Clean Slate
It's the holiday season, and time, once again, for Ask Massively to spread the cheer as far and wide as possible. It is a testament to the love and dedication that I have for each and every one of my readers that I am postponing the hyper-ingestion of tryptophan-laden goodness today in order to answer your questions so that you may enjoy your holiday weekend free from the burden of unsatiated curiosity. Dear Ask Massively,I'm sure that you've heard by now that Tabula Rasa is going to shut down early next year. What now? It seems like only last week that the game was making so much money that Richard Garriott was taking trips into space. What about those of us who still enjoy this game? Don't we count for something?-Ginny L.Yes, Virginia, Tabula Rasa is going the way of Auto Assault and Earth & Beyond. As a subscriber, I am a little disappointed but not terribly surprised. Having conducted a few "Post MMOrtem" sessions with fans at a certain convention in the past, I have heard some interesting ideas about MMOs that are shut down by their developers, ideas which could easily be applied to the brainchild of Richard Garriott.
Lord of the Rings Online producer 'not worried about World of Warcraft'
Everybody has worries, even Turbine's executive producer Jefferey Steefel. While we don't know what worries him, we do know what doesn't: World of Warcraft. In an interview with MTV Multiplayer, Steefel revealed that Lord of the Rings Online didn't see much of a dent from Age of Conan or Warhammer Online's launch. In fact, much like World of Warcraft, Steefel says most players who left eventually came back. This definitely explains why he's not worried about Wrath of the Lich King and it's launch a week prior to Mines of Moria -- he's got numbers to back it up.So what's the big secret? Is Turbine employing the power of the one ring? Well, according to Steefel there's a couple of reasons, "Somebody who's really looking for that heavy [Player vs. Player] or [Realm vs. Realm] experience, they're going to go play 'Warhammer.' But if they're looking for the best [Player vs. Environment] game, it's clearly 'LotRO.' Period. Plus, it's 'Lord of the Rings!'" Seems like a solid argument, although none of it would matter if Lord of the Rings Online wasn't an incredibly well-made game.Steefel even points to this fact when asked why games like Tabula Rasa fail while others succeed, saying, "Consumers aren't so forgiving anymore, and I think that's why [MMOs] are starting to have difficulty." Blizzard certainly played a role in that, although it was bound to happen with time, anyhow.
The Daily Grind: Should MMO companies offer severance packages?
As we're now aware, NCsoft has recently made the decision to shut down Tabula Rasa after the first of the year. As an attempt at goodwill - or more likely retaining at least some of the departing Tabula Rasa player-base - they've offered a 'severance package' of sorts to the players. This package includes two months of City of Heroes/City of Villains and two free months of Aion among other things. It's certainly causing some discussion here at the Massively virtual offices, to be sure. This morning we thought we'd come to you with the question we've been batting around behind the scenes recently. When a company decides to sunset an MMO, do you think it's a nice gesture for them to offer a package of free time in their other MMOs? Or do you think it seems more like an obvious grab, offering players of one sub-type of MMO (in this case an FPS sci-fi game) a completely different sub-type (super hero and fantasy)? If you're a Tabula Rasa player, will the offer they made entice you to at least try out City of Heroes or Aion, or have you decided to cut ties with NCsoft and head for other gaming pastures?
Tabula Rasa: Saving the game
Between desperate battles against the Bane, about all anyone can talk about in Tabula Rasa right now is the impending shutdown of the game service. Website efforts are being touted to solicit ideas for rescuing the game from shutdown, people are discussing the operating costs for the game, some are hoping that Richard Garriott might rescue the game from NCsoft, while others blame him personally for the game's shutdown. Some are hoping that a player consortium can raise enough capital to buy the game assets from NCsoft itself, much as was attempted with Ryzom (and very nearly worked, until they were outbid by another company which resurrected that game anyway). Low signup rates have largely been balanced out by attrition from a lack of ongoing endgame content. The focus on trying to improve early and midlevel experience, which caused uncertain, multiple rebalancings of the game six to eight months ago left top tier players, well, falling off the end a bit. "People had done it all," says level 50 player Paddy Oshea, "I know I was one of them."
The Digital Continuum: Why must MMOs die?
Sitting on my desk are copies of Earth and Beyond and Auto Assault. In fact, I've even got a CE box for Auto Assault (that thing cost me 80 bucks). Unfortunately, these games are just dust collectors now. I keep them to remind me of the possibility of sunset and how much it can suck. Even if you didn't play Tabula Rasa, there were thousands of people who did, and that's all that really matters
Behind the Curtain: This too shall pass
And so we mark the passing of another MMO. I was going to add an adjective to that sentence, maybe 'great', 'fine' or even just 'good'. I couldn't decide, as I didn't play Tabula Rasa beyond the Open Beta. That's clearly not my fault though, obviously it's something to do with the developers not making exactly the game I wanted, needed or deserved at the time. Cry, whine, QQ, etc.Don't worry, this won't be an obituary for TR. That would be silly; I'm not lying when I say I didn't play it beyond Open Beta. I liked it well enough, but it lacked the spark that drives me to log on, night after night. The news of TR's demise however, has got me thinking. Like it or not, nothing lasts forever. MMOs are subject to the same financial rules as any other business, and sometimes those rules mean you lose. Regardless of how long we've been playing any particular game, how many alts you've raised up or how much of a home you've made for yourself in the community there, there's a chance your MMO will die eventually. Some games last longer than others; gaining enough momentum to garner a fair-sized and dedicated fanbase before they're shut down. Others barely get out of Beta testing before things go South, and the doors are closed before momentum really gets going.
The Daily Grind: Penny for your Tabula Rasa thoughts?
The announcement that Tabula Rasa will close in February came suddenly, what with NCsoft employees saying there were "no current plans" to close the game only a couple of months ago. We're sad to see the game go, though we're not surprised in the wake of Richard Garriott's departure.Are you a current or former Tabula Rasa player, and if so, what's your take on all this? Did you see it coming? Is it a tragic early death, or an appropriate end to an era? And where do you plan to go next? NCsoft is offering a fair deal to refugees -- months of free playtime in City of Heroes, Lineage II, or the forthcoming Aion. Does that tempt you, or are you going to take your business elsewhere -- to Turbine, Blizzard, SOE, CCP, or Funcom, perhaps?
Tabula Rasa's subscriber rewards explained
As we're still digesting the sad news from earlier today of Tabula Rasa's demise, some may have overlooked, or simply become confused about the special rewards that NCsoft is offering their current TR subscribers. We thought it only fair for us to explain them a bit.First off, it's important to note that all of these goodies are only available to people who were subscribed to Tabula Rasa at the time of this announcement. That's right. There was no warning, or time to prepare. They are rewarding those who have stayed subscribed to the game, rightfully so.
Tabula Rasa shutting down on Feb. 28
We kind of knew that Tabula Rasa's run wasn't going to end all that well. And it will end ... on Feb. 28, 2009. This comes after months of reports concerning the NCsoft MMO's poor performance and, most recently, the departure of creator Richard Garriot. The news of Tabula Rasa's impending shuttering came today via the game's community site, with the team issuing a formal "Thank you and farewell" message to players. "The development team has worked hard to improve the game since launch, but the game never achieved the player population we hoped for," the statement reads. "So it is with regret that we must announce that Tabula Rasa will end live service on February 28, 2009." Tabula Rasa will be free-to-play beginning Jan. 10, 2009, through the day its servers power down. Subscribers to the game will be given a parting gift from NCsoft to the tune of three free months of City of Heroes, Lineage II, and access to the Aion beta when it becomes available (plus a free month of Aion once it's released). [Via Massively]
Tabula Rasa to shut down in February 2009
It's been a fairly good run for Tabula Rasa, but the inevitable has now been announced. As of February 28, 2009, Tabula Rasa will be shutting down its servers for good. We've feared an Auto-Assault-like fate for the game for a while now, but confirmation of this event truly saddens everyone in the MMO community.According to the announcement, the folks at TR plan on going out in style, though. Not only will they continue to pump out some new, quality content in the remaining months, but the game will actually go free-to-play for its final month and a half. You can check out more of their upcoming final plans with the game, as well as the official announcement at their website.
