Tabula Rasa aka Richard Garriott lives!

Richard Garriott is the only man alive that can, and has got away with dressing up as a medieval king for the past ten years. Self styled, Lord British ruler of Britannia and the creator of the Ultima games.


The Ultima series made it explicit that you were actually playing yourself in the game. You weren't a towering, Nordic warrior or a feisty vixen but once you stepped through the moon portal you were the Avatar, a Jesus figure for the inhabitants of Britannia. A sword wielding, magic producing (miracles are magic, aren't they?) kick ass Jesus. None of this, 'turn the other cheek,' more, turn to the other boot, in your face.


Garriott arguably created online gaming or MMO, as we know it now. Ultima Online was the first proper stab at making a populated gaming world that was truly dynamic. Like in Superman IV, it was this trace online gaming DNA, that would go on to create bastard off spring with the likes of World of Warcraft, Everquest, Warhammer Online and others.



After years, possibly spent in seclusion in a castle with maidens and a court jester, Richard Garriott is back. No longer sporting his regal clothing, instead going for a slightly camp, space commander look. This all heralds the coming of his new online game, Tabula Rasa or clean slate. You'll be swapping broad swords for light sabers, bows for lasers, magic for psychic powers.


In brief: The human race has been too busy watching Big Brother, shopping at Tesco, going out and getting plastered to realise that our here to insignificant lives are about to come to an abrupt end. The Bane, badies from deep space, have come to wipe us out. It's not all bad; some people survive and are shipped off to the far ends of the galaxy to fight the Bane [insert now it's personal line]

If a bit eccentric Garriott is a clever man and he knows his stuff when it comes to making superb games. If he says this is the 'clean slate' that the online games industry needs, then I'll follow him and his stupid costume anywhere.

Here's the intro trailer. Ahhh, they're everywhere!