Is there really hope for New World? Rust developers are apparently in talks with Amazon Games

It’s time for our MeinMMO format “MMORPG News in 5 Minutes.” We summarize the most important news surrounding the best genre in the world. You can expect lots of WoW, Sauercrowd, the rescue of New World (?), and the return of an MMO classic.

Highlights of the week:

The pre-event for World of Warcraft: Midnight is running. There are many rewards and a series of tasks to complete.
The latest cinematic for World of Warcraft Midnight is unusually humorous. At first glance, it reminds one more of WildStar.
Even more solo content in World of Warcraft. Soon there will be depths, but they are so vast that you won’t be able to complete them in one go.
The highlight of World of Warcraft Midnight is a complete flop. WoW demon Cortyn leaves no good horn on the new specialization.
The era of big video games at Amazon Games is coming to an end. After the fallout from New World and the likely halted developments on the “Lord of the Rings” MMORPG, the head of the company is now leaving as well.
We reported that the Rust developers would like to rescue the dying MMORPG New World. According to COO Alistair McFarlane, there are apparently now concrete talks with Amazon Games, source: X: “All discussions will now take place away from the public, that’s the standard and quite normal.”

What else has happened? Turbulent years lie behind Cryptic Studios and the demotion from developer of genre-defining MMORPGs to mere administrators. A new owner and the return of studio co-founder Jack Emmert should bring about the turnaround. MeinMMO spoke with the industry veteran: “I have a new MMO coming” – The failed game for Warhammer brings genre veteran Jack Emmert back to Cryptic

WoW: Housing-Cinematic in WildStar style

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Sauercrowd continues to dominate German Twitch

What happened with the major MMORPGs:

On January 29, Update 3.19.0 for Throne and Liberty was released. The big highlight: the Tower of Greed, a new PvE challenge with randomly generated floors. You can find the official German patch notes at playthroneandliberty.com.
The developers of The Elder Scrolls Online have released a roadmap for February on the official website. You can expect Heart Week and a bonus event for PvP battlegrounds. Additionally, you can try out the new Battle Pass on the test server. More information on that is available at elderscrollsonline.com.
New template features are coming for Guild Wars 2, allowing you to switch costumes more easily, save clothing setups better, and give your hero the best style for any occasion. A preview can be found at guildwars2.com.
In the latest episode of Eye on Arkesia on YouTube, the next patch of Lost Ark, which will be released next week, was discussed. Included: the 4th anniversary and the Guardian Knight.
Final Fantasy XIV received its first patch of the year with 7.41. Look forward to the debut of the area Oizys for cosmic exploration, the Kreszentia phantom weapons, and more. You can find the German patch notes at finalfantasyxiv.com.
On January 29, improvements were made for the Olvia Academy and guild content in Black Desert. The German patch notes can be found at playblackdesert.com revealing all the details.
Due to the ongoing enthusiasm for the Sauercrowd project, we have set up 2 new service articles for you this week, which we will update regularly: 1) All deaths of the last days and their levels at a glance / 2) The most important highlights of the last days at a glance.
A meeting also took place this week in the Sauercrowd Guild of the German Twitch scene to chat about the upcoming times in WoW Classic Hardcore. It was about the first raid and a reckless statement by Metashi.
A curious bug in World of Warcraft was the ultimate troll method. Characters were teleported without being able to defend themselves.
The undertakings in World of Warcraft started off a bit rocky. Blizzard helps out and ensures that you get even more XP.
One of the most popular interface modifications for World of Warcraft has survived the “battle against addons” – ElvUI has received a new version.
The new interface of World of Warcraft has some problems. So many that some create almost silly macros.
Housing is the new big feature in World of Warcraft. But is it really entirely new? No, because it was already planned back in Vanilla days…
In the latest “State of Azeroth” video on YouTube, the developers also presented the roadmap for 2026:

WoW: Roadmap 2026 — Roadmap 2026 for WoW

What happened with the minor MMORPGs:

Even during the early access phase, a small but fine MMORPG could earn very good ratings on Steam for many months. Now the final release is on the agenda. Next week, the game is supposed to receive a brand new server shard for those who want to be part of a completely new community.
A often requested improvement for Lord of the Rings Online went live this week with Patch 46.1. Many players are already announcing that they will return to the MMORPG after a long break just because of this.
The comedy sitcom The Big Bang Theory once raised the question of whether the theft of in-game content is really theft. A British court has now provided the answer based on Old School RuneScape.
According to an interview from forbes.com, Guild Wars Reforged is said to have been an enormous success. The number of players is said to have increased by five times, and revenue from Guild Wars has even risen by 16,000 percent.
With Hope Burns Bright, the 4th chapter of Light and Rain from DC Universe Online has been released. Information about the new content can be found in the patch notes at dcuniverseonline.com.
Tibia has received a new update through which you will now learn new spells automatically and free of charge. You can find the patch notes at tibia.com.
In a new post on playpaxdei.com, the developers of the sandbox MMORPG have given an outlook on upcoming improvements for crafting progression. The goal: progress should feel better and more rewarding.