The Tabula Rasa team announced today they are preparing to shut down servers after celebrating the game's one-year anniversary this month. Live service will end Feb. 28, 2009 and the game will be free to play starting Jan. 10. This news follows Richard Garriott's announcement on Nov. 11 that he was leaving NCsoft.

Last November we launched what we hoped would be a ground breaking sci-fi MMO. In many ways, we think we've achieved that goal. Tabula Rasa has some unique features that make it fun and very different from every other MMO out there. 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.

It's always a shame to see an MMO come to an end, but the Tabula Rasa team seems to be putting the players first as they plan some fun things in-game in the coming months to go out with a bang. Also, current subscribers will have access to some parting gifts, including three free months of City of Heroes and Lineage II, and Aion beta access.

Keep reading after the jump for the full farewell letter and how this will affect subscribers.

Here's the full farewell letter:

To the Tabula Rasa Community,

Last November we launched what we hoped would be a ground breaking sci-fi MMO. In many ways, we think we've achieved that goal. Tabula Rasa has some unique features that make it fun and very different from every other MMO out there. 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.

So it is with regret that we must announce that Tabula Rasa will end live service on February 28, 2009.

Before we end the service, we'll make Tabula Rasa servers free to play starting on January 10, 2009.

We can assure you that through the next couple of months we'll be doing some really fun things in Tabula Rasa , and we plan to make staying on a little longer worth your while. For more details about what we are doing for Tabula Rasa players, please click here.

Stay tuned for more information. We thank you for your loyal support of the game and encourage you to take us up on the benefits we're offering Tabula Rasa players.

The Tabula Rasa Team

And here's how this announcement will affect customers:

On February 28, 2009, Tabula Rasa will be shutting down its servers, and as of January 10, 2009, the game will be free to play.

To thank our loyal Tabula Rasa fans we've prepared a little closing down gift. Any active paying player as of 10:00 AM Pacific Time on November 21st, 2008 will be eligible for all of the following:

• 3 free months of City of Heroes including digital client
• 3 free months of Lineage II including digital client
• Aion beta access (coming soon)
• Aion pre-order access (available in 2009)
• 1 free month of Aion including digital client (available in 2009)

These offers are limited to active paying players. Subscribers who join or reactivate canceled accounts after 10:00 AM Pacific Time on November 21st, 2008 will not be eligible.

If you are an eligible Tabula Rasa player, you'll be receiving notification directly from NCsoft in the near future with information on how to collect these thank you gifts.

If you are a player that has pre-paid for Tabula Rasa subscription time beyond January 10, 2009, you will be refunded for that pre-paid time by February 28, 2009.

Should you have further questions please don't hesitate to contact our customer support team at http://www.plaync.com/us/help/.

From everyone at NCsoft, we'd like to thank you for the support and enthusiasm you've dedicated to Tabula Rasa over the last year.