Following a long list of delays in development, Richard Garriots Tabula Rasa is approaching its release date with fans coutning down the days. The game is currently available only as a closed beta version, so those who have managed to play the 12 hour version will have gone through the games alien zones, from imaginative creator of WoW omes new alien zones ranging from “Wilderness” to “Divide”.

Once you have completed the in-game tutorial you find yourself at a forward base bustling with activity and attatched to a friendly alien complex.From here one you get the first few quests that steadily introduce you to the game, with the traditional arsenal of nohing but a rifle and a certain ability to throw lightening as showni n the tutorial. The basic mechanics of the match match those of a MMORPG completely, so fans of the genre will find themselves hooked, be it onto a beta version. You are to go out on youer quests into the wilderness, hunt and relatively gain experience, money and useful items for future use in the game.

Combat mechanics are simpler then those in WoW, giving the game a feel of a first-person shooter then an RPG. Pressing numbers one to five changes your selected weapon, six to 10 your selected ability–and you can reorder them by simply dragging and dropping, either within the selection tray or your inventory. Attacking your opponent is not far away: left for your weapon, right for ability. Basic command is to hover your cursor over an enemy to acquire them,hence using the information bar that pops up displaying their health, shield levels, and other useful information effectively; you are allowed to either fire manually or press tab to lock on, then open fire with either your weapons or an offensive ability. The target information window also includes a precise range indicator which incorporates graphical representation of the optimum range for your selected weapon.

Your secondary skills allow u to have both the ability to sprint as well as a long-range lightning attack, but further along the game you gather more as you specialise and level up. The secondary ability tray is also used to keep useful items in the heat of battle, such as grenades and medical kits, so when you’ve crunching down the buttons thye’re the right ones.The beta version has provided enough feedback for the developers to,atleast, have the game finished and released soon enough so that eagerly awaiting fans will get their chance to play this MMORPG soon