Officially launched late last year, Richard Garriott's Tabula Rasa, developed by NCsoft's in-house Destination Games studio, thrusts players into a future where humanity has been virtually exterminated by a merciless alien force, the Bane, whose savage attack caught Earth totally unaware. Fortunately, the survivors of the initial assault discovered technology apparently left by a mysterious race called the Eloh. It permitted them to escape by creating wormholes that transported them to distant worlds where they were able to find and ally with various other species that had previously met the same fate at the hands of their vicious common enemy.

Each player's initial character starts as a human Recruit, receiving basic training in the use of weapons and armor. Early missions and exploration introduce mysterious Logos abilities tied into a pictographic language that unlocks powers as more symbols are learned. Before very long, two career paths open up; Soldiers are frontline combatants, while Specialists focus on support. The branches split twice more, ultimately offering eight specialized classes, and a cloning feature permits trying different choices without always beginning anew. The game also includes quite a variety of areas to explore. In this feature, we find out about one of them.