NCsoft will close down the servers for sci-fi MMO Tabula Rasa on Feb. 28, 2009.

The news was posted on the game’s Web site, along with plans for the game to be free between Jan. 10, 2009 and the day of its closing. The post by the Tabula Rasa team promises “some really fun things” will happen in the game before it ends.

Designed by Ultima creator Richard Garriott who recently left NCsoft, Tabula Rasa did not attract enough subscribers to keep it going. The title, released in November 2007, accounted for only 2 percent of the South Korea-based publisher’s revenue in 2008’s third quarter, which saw the company’s profits fall by 50 percent.

Subscribers with accounts active as of 10 a.m. on Nov. 21, 2008 will receive three free months of play for both City of Heroes and Lineage II, plus beta access and one free month for NCsoft’s upcoming MMO Aion. Players who pre-paid for subscription time beyond Jan. 10, 2009 will have their money refunded.

The notice alerting players of the game’s demise said the team still believes Tabula Rasa was an innovative experience and are disappointed to see it end:

“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.”