Amazon Games has outlined a content roadmap for its MMORPG New World, and it includes a major new zone, the greatsword weapon, additional expeditions, and a long list of changes intended to further reduce player friction.
The announcements come as part of the latest New World developer update, where members of the New World team dive deep into the game’s upcoming March update and future plans.
Chief among those future plans is the addition of a new, desert-themed endgame zone called Brimstone Sands. That zone will also introduce a new Roman-inspired faction and a new endgame expedition, The Ennead. All of that will be coming this fall, alongside the new greatsword weapon.
This summer will see a new Pirate-themed expedition, Barnacles & Black Powder, as well as the inclusion of an expedition group-finding tool. There will also be a major in-game summer event, though Amazon did not elaborate on specifics.
Much of the latest developer update is dedicated to changes the team is currently working on to further reduce player friction, something the previous developer update also touched on. In addition to existing changes like reduced fast travel costs and changes to in-game taxes, further changes coming in the March update will include the ability for players to view and manage their inventory while moving, sign-up for Wars and Invasions from the map (rather than having to go to the site of the War or Invasion in-person), and the ability to sell back houses.
Perhaps the two biggest changes are to storage and ammo for ranged weapons. Storage across the game’s various towns can now be moved between towns for free, with no coin cost or faction requirement. It’s the first step in what Amazon describes as a more global storage system for the MMO. The March update will also include a major change for players who love ranged weapons–having to craft or buy large amounts of ammo is now a thing of the past. All ranged weapons, like the bow, musket, and upcoming blunderbuss weapon, will soon have an infinite supply of Tier 2 ammo. In addition to those quality of life changes, there is a previously undisclosed new feature coming as part of the March update–3v3 PvP arenas, complete with their own PvP reward track.
While they won’t be coming in the March update, additional changes are in the works for salvaging in order to make it more rewarding, as well as changes to territory standing bonuses and the ability for players to reselect those territory-wide buffs. Many territory bonuses, like XP gained while in a territory, are completely useless at max level, so this seems to be a step in remedying that situation.
Cross-region server transfers are coming “very soon,” according to Amazon, as is a double XP weekend designed to help players returning to the game reach max level. That double XP buff will also extend to weapon XP, allowing players who are already at max player level to level up additional weapons, like the blunderbuss.
Amazon recently announced it would not be moving forward with reducing the player counts of the game’s 50v50 War mode, citing player feedback. New World’s March update is currently being tested on the game’s public test realm and is expected to come to the live version of the game soon.
Source: Gamespot
