In a survey, we wanted to know from MeinMMO readers how they feel about the beta of New World so far. A large part of you is excited about the game, but there is also criticism. Regarding two of the mentioned points of criticism, almost everyone agrees – even those who view the MMO positively.
Where do the numbers come from? Over the weekend, we launched a survey about the beta of New World. As of July 26 at 11:00 AM, 2,681 people had participated. Here are the results of the survey:
- 933 people rated the beta as “Good” (34.80 %)
- 838 participants even gave the beta a “Super” rating (31.26 %)
- At least 514 people chose the golden mean with “Okay” (19.17 %)
- 222 people found the beta “Not good” so far (8.28 %)
- Only 174 gave a “Terrible” as their conclusion (6.49 %)
Thus, a large majority considers the beta of New World to be quite good. However, despite the beta being well-received, there is still criticism. You shared your opinions with us in over 100 comments below the news, and we reveal what you liked and what you did not.
Character creation and servers are a problem for almost everyone
What points of criticism came up repeatedly? There are two things that were mentioned as negative aspects in almost every comment:
- On one hand, players are bothered by the weak character creation. There are hardly any customization options. The available faces and hairstyles are even too similar for some players. Some players fear that in the endgame, almost all players will look alike. This criticism was already voiced a few hours after the beta started.
- On the other hand, there is criticism of the servers. In addition to the problems with queues and frequent maintenance, people complain about the fact that the servers are not assigned to any particular language. This leads to repeated communication issues on European servers, which cannot even be solved through chat.
Our reader Daalung writes in his criticism of New World:
1. I just can’t wrap my head around why with 36 servers, none are assigned to specific nationalities. It makes no sense when everything is spammed in Polish, French, English, Spanish, and Italian. Hardly anybody writes something like “looking for a guild” in their own language without 100 other people doing the same. […].
4. Character creation… has already been discussed enough, so just briefly: Every MMORPG/Solo-RPG of the last 20 years has more and better customization options. […].
Finai is also very frustrated with the character creation:
I find this character creation the worst. I can live with pre-made faces and don’t need sliders or anything like that. But in New World, you get the feeling they deliberately made ugly faces. Honestly, who was responsible for that? Did someone hammer away at randomness until it couldn’t get any uglier? When you think about them wanting to make money with costumes and cosmetic items in the Item Shop…. it just doesn’t fit in my opinion. I don’t need cool clothes with such “faces”.
However, even players who view New World positively overall have problems with these specific points of criticism. Our reader Hisuinoi has compiled a lengthy list of positive and negative aspects, and also has a further solution regarding the language barrier:
I am very enthusiastic about New World and will definitely play it; I’ve already bought it on Steam for the preview. I will have months of fun with it, no doubt. But I have pros and cons that I will list right away […].
Cons:
– The chat system isn’t completely bad, but unfortunately, there are better systems. And the most important thing is that when more languages are active on a server, the option “English, German, etc. chat” must absolutely be included.
– As it looks, unfortunately, no DE servers are coming, which I find really disappointing.
The combat system greatly depends on personal taste
New World relies on a unique combat system that requires you to target the opponent and strike in their direction. However, combat is associated with long animations, making it more tactical than action-packed. Not everyone is pleased with the system of weapon switching and the few abilities.
What do fans of the combat system say? The positive voices praise the high skill required by the game, as well as the diverse weapons:
- Nico writes: “The combat system is indeed very diverse and skill-based; I also like the skill trees a lot.”
- Koshin especially praises aiming and dodging: “Finally, a skill-based combat system where you have to aim and dodge/block at the right moment.”
- Noru prefers the combat system of New World over games like Black Desert: “Even worse than tab-targeting are MMOs like BDO or Lost Ark. Every skill deals damage, everything is AoE, and you just fight through 10-20 mobs. Normal attacks stun for 0.5 seconds in Lost Ark, making it even easier and more boring. In New World, I appreciate that you really have to react to opponents, as certain hits genuinely hurt. Similar to Monster Hunter or Dark Souls.”
What do the critics say? The negative voices find the combat system rather dull and “unfinished”.
- GeT_R3kT writes: “For me, the combat system is rather boring! From a distance, 1-2 shots with the bow (possibly with one ability involved) then hit, hit with the axe, block, hit, hit, block, and use a skill every 15 seconds. Everything else is just slight variations.”
- Daalung says about the combat: “The combat system is just trash, especially in ranged combat. It starts with the fact that you deal significantly less damage in ranged combat than with melee weapons (with the sword, I need 3-4 hits, with ranged weapons like muskets, bows, staves, I need 10-12 hits on the same enemy). Dodging is useless because the character always gets stuck on something and can hardly evade….”
In total, opinions about the combat system are divided, with overall positive impressions prevailing in our comments.
Along with the delays of New World, Hamurator likely refers to the problems with Amazon’s previous games:
- The studio’s first title – Breakaway – was completely cancelled just a few months after a test at gamescom 2017.
- The shooter Crucible, released in 2020, was also discontinued after just a few months.
Some readers also criticize that Amazon should be able to handle the servers better, as they should have the capacity to counteract the queues and crashes.
Our reader AlexMK, on the other hand, doubts whether the hype around New World is justified or if it exists only because Amazon is the developer. He sees Amazon’s success more with the upcoming Lost Ark:
“My question is also, what if Amazon wasn’t behind this? Then the hype wouldn’t exist, and the game would have probably sunk into obscurity at its current state, and you would never hear about it again. It’s not a truly bad game; it just seems completely unfinished and likely needed another year of development. Amazon likely will not succeed with their own game but with one that they are publishing from Korea.”
Your opinion: What do you think about New World and the praise and criticism voiced by our readers? Will you be playing at the release on August 31, or will you be skipping the MMO?
For anyone wanting to learn about all the changes since the testing in summer 2020, here’s an overview: New World has changed significantly in the last 11 months – now has dungeons and more open-world PvP.
Even the Twitch streamer shroud sees this unique combat system as a factor with which New World could be really successful:
New World convinces with crafting, exploration, and many freedoms
What is praised by many? One of the positive aspects of the game is the crafting system. Through collecting and crafting, you can not only acquire useful equipment but also level up. Moreover, the best equipment in the game can be crafted through handicrafts, which many perceive as a positive:
- Our reader Hisuinoi is very fond of crafting: “The crafting system is not just a mindless grind […]. You can achieve better stats through repeated crafting, akin to training. When higher-quality materials are used, the lowest stat is also higher. […]. If you don’t see that you can exert significant influence here, I must say you are somewhat blind. I have not experienced such a thing in any other MMO/MMORPG that interested me. It was always about pure randomness.”
- Nico writes: “Collecting resources is really good; you can do it nice and chill on the side. I find it better than in most other MMOs because you can level it up without searching for hours.”
- NESTA especially appreciates the quick crafting of many items: “Here are a few small things that I really like: the crafting. Making one item and making 100 items takes virtually the same time, no more hours of pointless, monotonous forging.”
Our reader Damian is generally fond of crafting and exploration: “I really enjoy the exploration, discovering, and crafting in New World.”
The topic of exploration has also been mentioned by several other readers as a positive aspect, as the beautiful and mysterious world of New World invites exploration.
Doubts about Amazon as a developer
What do our readers say about Amazon? It is notable in our comments that some readers have little confidence in the game solely because it comes from Amazon or blame Amazon alone for the hype:
For example, Hamurator is waiting to purchase because Amazon is the developer: “New World has some interesting elements, but Amazon’s development history and that of New World in particular is quite… turbulent. I don’t trust the process entirely and want to wait for the first impressions of other players before diving in myself.”
Along with the delays of New World, Hamurator likely refers to the problems with Amazon’s previous games:
- The studio’s first title – Breakaway – was completely cancelled just a few months after a test at gamescom 2017.
- The shooter Crucible, released in 2020, was also discontinued after just a few months.
Some readers also criticize that Amazon should be able to handle the servers better, as they should have the capacity to counteract the queues and crashes.
Our reader AlexMK, on the other hand, doubts whether the hype around New World is justified or if it exists only because Amazon is the developer. He sees Amazon’s success more with the upcoming Lost Ark:
“My question is also, what if Amazon wasn’t behind this? Then the hype wouldn’t exist, and the game would have probably sunk into obscurity at its current state, and you would never hear about it again. It’s not a truly bad game; it just seems completely unfinished and likely needed another year of development. Amazon likely will not succeed with their own game but with one that they are publishing from Korea.”
Your opinion: What do you think about New World and the praise and criticism voiced by our readers? Will you be playing at the release on August 31, or will you be skipping the MMO?
For anyone wanting to learn about all the changes since the testing in summer 2020, here’s an overview: New World has changed significantly in the last 11 months – now has dungeons and more open-world PvP.
