There’s something oddly comforting about the dull thunk of an axe hitting the bark of a tree and hearing distant thuds from other players in that same forest. Every so often, you’ll hear the faint clinks of metal striking rock, letting you know that you’re never alone.
Such is the magic of New World, an MMORPG developed and published by Amazon Games, and originally released back in 2021. To say that New World was an addiction — loathe as I am to use that word — would be an understatement. It released right in the middle of a global pandemic, when a bunch of friends and myself had absolutely nothing to do, which meant that was the perfect time to dive straight into Amazon’s latest immersive RPG.
That magic didn’t last all that long, though, as once the novelty had worn off and we’d all gotten to the endgame, it became abundantly clear that New World just didn’t have enough max-level content to keep players engaged. Not only that, but due to the prevalence of several economy-breaking exploits and glitches, even the lifestyle farming aspect of New World became extremely unappealing. After over 200 hours sunk into New World, I was out.
Three years later, Amazon is back with a relaunch of the game, titled New World: Aeternum. This time around, console players get to join in on the fun, and there’s been an overhaul in some aspects. Logging into New World: Aeternum, I started a new character, chose my class, and was back in the thick of it. The introductory sequence has been completely redone with new character models and animations, as well as brand-new cutscenes that make it easier to follow the story.
Within the first hour, I had learned to skin animals, craft new tools and resources, and made my way to the first town to start dealing with the Corruption threat. I had not even gotten to the good parts yet, and I could already feel New World: Aeternum sinking its hooks into me all over again.
The biggest appeal of New World has always been in its sound design and incredibly beautiful environments. These things come together to create a truly immersive RPG that feels alive, like you could waste hours upon hours in here without ever noticing. After finally crafting all of my required tools, I was back to doing what I did best during the original launch: mining ore and chopping down trees for wood. This was part of my plan to get ahead in the economy; I would spend hours gathering all the resources people might be too lazy to farm, use them to craft more efficient tools, and then sell them at a premium on the marketboard.
With enough Gold, I would eventually be able to buy a house in one of the main towns, then slowly work on crafting and buying furniture to kit it out. And, of course, I would also be a law-abiding citizen who paid her property taxes on time, because this is that kind of game. What more could I ask for? Coming back to New World, it’s been an absolute joy just getting to explore all the different regions again. There’s nothing more satisfying than finding a comfortable mining route that you can just loop around over and over again, filling your pockets with resources, and running back to town to craft everything you need to sell. I, for one, can’t wait to get back to Monarch’s Bluffs just so I can get my ore operation up and running again.
New World: Aeternum also comes with plenty of other exciting changes, such as removing gear durability, which was always one of the biggest pains from the original game. There’s also a new dedicated PvP zone near Cutlass Keys, and it looks like this is set to be one of the main endgame activities for Aeternum. How it works is that once you enter the zone, you’ll basically be in a free-for-all PvP mode where you can kill other players for their loot and a special currency used to craft the best endgame gear.
Dying in the PvP zone will spawn you right outside of it, where you’ll also lose half of whatever you’ve gathered inside. As someone who never really enjoyed New World PvP, it’s unlikely that I’ll spend much time here, but it’s good to know that there is now a dedicated zone for folks who do want that versus action.
It’s not all sunshine and roses, though, as Aeternum does come with a couple of big caveats, especially for returning players. For one, getting access to a mount will require you to purchase the Rise of the Angry Earth expansion even if you already own the base game. Further, while you can enjoy most of the updates with just the base game, you won’t be able to access the new 10-player raid or the repeatable trials without the expansion.
I can see this being a big point of contention for returning PC players. Having to shell out more money can be a hard pill to swallow, especially when you’re not quite sure whether New World: Aeternum will actually fix the game’s original problem: the lack of endgame content. While I did appreciate the new introductory sequences and overhauled graphics, I’m not entirely sure anyone ever had complaints about the tutorial or the way the game looked. At this point, it’s difficult to tell whether getting reinvested in New World: Aeternum will be worth it in the end, or if it’s destined to fail in the same way the original game did.
For console players, on the other hand, that choice is much more straightforward. If New World: Aeternum looks even remotely appealing or interesting to you, then I’d say go for it. Even if you never reach endgame, the 100+ hours you’ll spend getting there will undoubtedly end up being some of the most fun you’ve ever had in a console MMO.
As for me, I fall into the former camp where I’m not sure I’m going to end up sticking with New World: Aeternum for the long haul. I’d very much love for it to end up being my lifestyle MMO where I can just log in once every couple of weeks or so, make some money off other players, pay my taxes, and redecorate the house a little bit. Whether that’ll actually come to pass all depends on how Amazon handles this relaunch in the months going forward.
As grim as it might sound, this feels like Amazon’s last chance to really make things work for New World. Getting console players in on the fun was a good move, and it certainly gives the game the big shot in the arm that was so desperately needed, but can Amazon actually keep the momentum going? Well, that remains to be seen.
New World: Aeternum is available now.
Published: Oct 19, 2024 10:00 am