Politics and PvP in Tabula Rasa

Lead designer Paul Sage gives us a closer look into the world of Tabula Rasa. With the latest entry in his Developer Diary, Sage addresses the politics of Tabula Rasa‘s clans, particularly why clans would battle each other while they are faced with the threat of an alien invasion. He also lets us take a peek into their Player vs Player system.

Vague yet concise at the same time, making sure he leaves more goodies for us to ponder on later, Sage explains that, with all the beliefs and prejudices shared among varying races, the people from different cultures and religions. have always been squabbling over each other.

So although things would be better if everyone was nice to each other and came togather in order to kick alien butt (or whatever their equivalent anatomy part is), it just won’t be realistic to believe that humans can let go of the past that quickly. The humans of Tabula Rasa have to cooperate to survive, but “that doesn’t mean they all have to like one another to do so.”

PvP in Tabula Rasa will go two ways: War Games and Clan Wars. In War Games, individual players or squads can challenge each other until one side wins or surrenders. Players will have to fight in the battlefield though, meaning an alien can easily join in the fun and win a wargame it didn’t join in in the first place. All’s fair in love and war.

In Clan Wars, the dynamics are more oriented for the Tabula Rasa story. Players will join clans permanently in conflict with each other, and so can be challenged at any time, even while on the battlefield. Them’s the breaks in an alien infested world, as they say. One can always quit a clan though. Sage also hints on possible PvP additions in the future like “Capture the Flag” games.

To Sage, what’s unique about Tabula Rasa is that a player is more free to choose what he wants to do. He ends his journal:

There is truly something for every level of player in Tabula Rasa in regards to PvP, whether you are looking for a one on one challenge or to be a part of a full epic battle between rival clans. Or you can choose not to participate in PvP at all. As we developed our PvP in Tabula Rasa, the key focus was choice; creating a system that allows players to choose how to play the game so it is most enjoyable for them, and to engage in PvP the way they want to.

Lead designer Paul Sage gives us a closer look into the world of Tabula Rasa. With the latest entry in his Developer Diary, Sage addresses the politics of Tabula Rasa‘s clans, particularly why clans would battle each other while they are faced with the threat of an alien invasion. He also lets us take a peek into their Player vs Player system.

Vague yet concise at the same time, making sure he leaves more goodies for us to ponder on later, Sage explains that, with all the beliefs and prejudices shared among varying races, the people from different cultures and religions. have always been squabbling over each other.

So although things would be better if everyone was nice to each other and came togather in order to kick alien butt (or whatever their equivalent anatomy part is), it just won’t be realistic to believe that humans can let go of the past that quickly. The humans of Tabula Rasa have to cooperate to survive, but “that doesn’t mean they all have to like one another to do so.”

PvP in Tabula Rasa will go two ways: War Games and Clan Wars. In War Games, individual players or squads can challenge each other until one side wins or surrenders. Players will have to fight in the battlefield though, meaning an alien can easily join in the fun and win a wargame it didn’t join in in the first place. All’s fair in love and war.

In Clan Wars, the dynamics are more oriented for the Tabula Rasa story. Players will join clans permanently in conflict with each other, and so can be challenged at any time, even while on the battlefield. Them’s the breaks in an alien infested world, as they say. One can always quit a clan though. Sage also hints on possible PvP additions in the future like “Capture the Flag” games.

To Sage, what’s unique about Tabula Rasa is that a player is more free to choose what he wants to do. He ends his journal:

There is truly something for every level of player in Tabula Rasa in regards to PvP, whether you are looking for a one on one challenge or to be a part of a full epic battle between rival clans. Or you can choose not to participate in PvP at all. As we developed our PvP in Tabula Rasa, the key focus was choice; creating a system that allows players to choose how to play the game so it is most enjoyable for them, and to engage in PvP the way they want to.