NCsoft's MMO Tabula Rasa is shutting down for good tomorrow, but unlike some sad MMOs that fizzle out in the night, Richard Garriott's failed dreamworld isn't going quietly.

The latest (and last?) Friday news post on the game's website details a powerful alien race called the Neph, which along with the evil Bane have discovered wormhole technology, ensuring "wave after wave of Bane troops without rest or respite."

Reads the urgent communique:

We request that all military personnel begin fortifying defenses at every AFS base in preparation for a massive Bane assault. If enemy troop movements are as large as we fear, and the Neph are truly prepared to lead all out war against us, this may be our last stand. Penumbra has been informed of the situation and is standing by on the use of their last resort weapon. We can not afford to be complacent or uncertain, but if it is truly our destiny to be destroyed, we are taking them all with us.

With Tabula Rasa shutting down for good on February 28, 2009, the doomed sci-fi MMO is now entirely free to play. Originally, the game was slated to go free on January 10.

Former players can reactivate their accounts by logging in at PlayNC, while new players will need to first create a PlayNC account and then request a serial code through the Support page. The 2.92 GB game client can be found at FileShack.

"You'll need to activate your new account with a credit card number, but don't worry--that's just so we know who you are," explained developer NCsoft on the game's official site. "We will not charge your card for Tabula Rasa gameplay."

Along with being free, the formerly subscription-based MMO has recently seen several new content additions, including Earth, PvP Wargames, and Epic Caves of Donn.

Tabula Rasa (PC), the MMO designed by industry pioneer Richard Garriott, will shut down on February 28, 2009.

"Unfortunately, the fact is that the game hasn't performed as expected. The development team has worked hard to improve the game since launch, but the game never achieved the player population we hoped for," reads a letter on the Tabula Rasa website.

The team added that the game will become free to play starting January 10 before the game sees the plug pulled at the end of February.

In closing the game, NCsoft will lay off an undetermined number of employees. "We're going to be scaling down the TR team in preparation for the end of live service," said spokesman David Swofford to Kotaku. He added, "We currently don't know how many people will be affected by that."

NCsoft plans to reward the loyalty of remaining players with free ... Read more

Game industry veteran and Tabula Rasa designer Richard "Lord British" Garriott has announced his departure from publisher NCsoft in order to pursue "new interests" after his return from space.

"Many of you probably wonder what my plans are, now that I have achieved the lifelong dream of going to space," wrote Garriott--now going by "General British"--in an open letter on the Tabula Rasa site.

"Well, that unforgettable experience has sparked some new interests that I would like to devote my time and resources to. As such, I am leaving NCsoft to pursue those interests."

"It has been quite an unforgettable journey, one that I will treasure for the rest of my life," wrote Garriott, in reference to Tabula Rasa. The MMO was announced in 2001 and finally launched in 2007 to, in the designer's words, "what I think we can all honestly say was a rough launch."

The son of an astronaut, Garriott went to space as a tourist earlier this year, taking with him the encoded DNA of a number of gaming celebrities and others.

Garriott did not specify what his new interests are in his farewell letter, although the possibility exists that those interests may lay outside the video games industry. His full letter is reproduced below... Read more

Tabula Rasa and Ultima series creator Richard "Lord British" Garriott sent a salute to gamers from space this week.

As the first game developer to head to space, Garriott brought along more than the DNA of select gamers and Stephen Colbert. He also brought along a little game, which GameCulture bills as "the first intergalactic mini-ARG," referring to alternate reality games often used to promote games.

According to the report, Garriott carried into space a card with a coded message using the hieroglyphics of Tabula Rasa, the MMO which launched in November of 2007. Video of Garriott holding the card was broadcast back down to Earth, where a more legible version of the card was posted.

It wasn't long before fans at PlanetTR decoded the message, a translation of Soviet rocket scientist Konstantin E. Tsiolkovsky: "Earth is the cradle of humanity but mankind will not be in the cradle forever."

Garriott docked with the International Space Station today and will return to Earth on October 24.

Attention space cadets: we have an incoming communique from Lord Big Daddy General British. Put down your space keyboards and pay attention. The General never repeats himself, unless he's playing two characters at once.

Do you think you have what it takes to live forever? Do you have any idea what an honor it is to be immortalized by General British himself? Do you have any "spare DNA" he could put "into space"?

Of course you do. This is Operation Immortality. Begin transmission, bitches.

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When Ultima and Tabula Rasa creator Richard Garriott ventures into space this fall, he will deposit a "digital time capsule" on the International Space Station that packs the digital DNA of certain Tabula Rasa (PC) subscribers.

Dubbed Operation Immortality by publisher NCsoft, the capsule will contain "the digitized DNA of select video game players and space aficionados" along with copies of all active Tabula Rasa characters as of September 2, 2008.

"I've been able to do some very exciting things in the games business, but nothing of this magnitude," said Garriott. "A select few will have their DNA digitized and sent. And, theoretically, if anything happens to the human race, it could be their DNA that is used to resurrect humanity."

The promotional campaign extends to those who don't play Tabula Rasa, with OperationImmortality.com hosting online polls regarding humanity's greatest achievements, though only active Rasa players will have the "chance" of their DNA being sequenced, digitized and sent into space for all .

Despite disappointing sales, NCsoft's space-age MMO Tabula Rasa has been infused with some new blood by a 1.5 patch.

Check out this new trailer for a look at some of the creature changes included with the update.

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TenTonHammer has been updated with a Tabula Rasa Q&A, asking community manager April Burba about the game and reactions since launch.

GameZone has the latest Tabula Rasa Q&A, asking lead designer Paul Sage about the soon-to-be-launched sci-fi MMO Tabula Rasa.

New at GameSpot this evening is this Tabula Rasa Q&A. Designer Rebekah Tran answers questions about the mission design in the game.

MPOGD.com has the latest Tabula Rasa Q&A posted. April Burba is asked about the beta, player reaction, combat, clone system and more.

Tabula Rasa, the Richard Garriott-helmed, Destination Games-developed PC MMORPG, has been pushed back by a few weeks. Originally announced for an October 19 release, the game will now arrive November 2. Those who pre-order the game will gain access to the final servers on October 30.

"This short but critical amount of time will give us time to address several issues including stability and balance as well as allowing our players to test the continent of Ligo (L38+) and our major changes to crafting for a few weeks rather than a few days," producer Starr Long wrote on the offical community site. "Our entire development staff feels this extra time is needed as does our beta community. We feel confident that this extra time will make a difference on launch day."

In addition to putting the finishing touches on the mystical sci-fi MMO, Richard Garriott, the man behind the title, is busy preparing for his journey into space. For more on the game itself, check out Nick Breckon's hands-on impressions.

GameSpot has been updated with the fourth Tabula Rasa development diary. Lead designer Paul Sage talks about the character cloning system in this one.

The latest Tabula Rasa preview can be found at TweakTown, where they went hands-on with the game. Tabula Rasa launches next month.

There's a Tabula Rasa Q&A on Computer & Video Games today, asking Richard Garriott about his new online sci-fi RPG.

Over at RPG Land you can find a preview of Tabula Rasa. The article offers hands-on impressions.

At an Austin press event last night, NCSoft announced that the sci-fi MMORPG Tabula Rasa will launch October 19. People who pre-order will get to play the game three days earlier, on October 16.

Originally announced back in 2001, the Richard Garriott-helmed project underwent a radical change several years into development, transforming from a fantasy role playing game to the combat-focused sci-fi game it is today.

For more on Tabula Rasa, check out our recent preview.

The third Tabula Rasa designer diary is up at GameSpot. This one actually doesn't have any info on the game's development, instead covering the alien world of Foreas.

The people at WarCry had an opportunity to sit down with Tabula Rasa community manager April Burba at PAX, asking her some more about the upcoming sci-fi action MMO.