Tabula Rasa deploys October 19

In 2001, Richard Garriott revealed the first details for his newly founded studio Destination Games' first project. Titled Tabula Rasa, the not-quite-fantasy, not-quite-sci-fi-epic massively multiplayer online game that signaled a fresh start for Garriott was initially planned to redefine the genre after its two-and-a-half year development cycle. Six years, one major reorganization, and a few "noteworthy modifications" later, and Tabula Rasa is now poised to attempt its original objective.

NCsoft announced today that Tabula Rasa will go live in North America and Europe as of October 19. Those who preorder the game will be able to jump into the fray three days earlier on October 16. The game began its closed beta in May, and GameSpot is currently hosting keys for testing. The game is rated T for Teen.

Tabula Rasa's standard edition will retail for $49.99. A collector's edition for the game that includes several in-game extras, as well as a special message from Garriott, bonus maps and survival guides, Tabula Rasa dog tags, a commemorative coin, a poster, and a making-of DVD, will be available for $69.99. Both editions include the first month of play free. Afterward, the game requires a recurring monthly subscription fee of $14.99.

Mixing role-playing strategy with fast-paced action combat, Tabula Rasa is a sci-fi epic that follows humanity's struggle against an invading alien race. As detailed in GameSpot's previous coverage, Tabula Rasa looks to introduce several new features to the massively multiplayer online space, including a character cloning system that lets players better explore the various classes in the game, as well as a dynamic and interactive environment.