The MMO New World focuses on an open world and sandbox content. Special features are also intended to attract Twitch streamers. The developers at Amazon hope for a similar hype at the release in 2021 as is currently the case with Rust.
What’s going on with Rust? The survival MMO Rust is currently very popular after 50 streamers launched a server together. Rust is currently number 1 on Twitch because streamers from Spain and Germany have also jumped on the bandwagon.
This significant attention has led to Rust setting a new player record on Steam. With 243,988 concurrent players, almost twice as many people were logged in at the same time as during the previous record from April 2020 (125,415 concurrent players).
The survival MMO from 2013 is more popular today than ever before.
Rust is successful with the formula that New World also had in mind
Why is Rust so popular? The core features of Rust are PvP, crafting, and naked survival – everything that makes a good survival game. Each player fights for their survival and does what is necessary. Often, this ends up with only one player surviving in an encounter.
This combination holds great potential for conflicts and dramas between players. Combined with a new trend of packaging everything into a role-playing game, it serves as entertainment for thousands of viewers on Twitch.
At the same time, these dramas create a bond between the viewer and the streamer. Those who are active in the chat often have “their favorite” and are even willing to report others just to give “their streamer” an advantage.
How does New World plan to implement this? New World originally wanted to become a hit through exactly the elements that Rust is currently using. It started as a sandbox MMO focused entirely on PvP and even had survival elements.
It has become more linear through quests, but crafting, spontaneous events in the open world, and battles in PvE and PvP still remain the focus.
New World continues to rely on the connection between MMO and Twitch, but in a different way.
Viewers serve more as helpers for the streamer
What will the Twitch integration look like? To allow streamers and viewers to collaborate even better, there will be a button in New World that allows joining the streamer’s group directly. This is particularly useful for events in the open world that can be completed with many players.
Regular instanced PvE battles, the invasions, and also PvP wars take place. Here, streamers and their communities can fight together or against each other in 50v50 matches. Each of the 3 factions can conquer, expand, and defend fortresses.
In addition, there is an in-game feature that allows signaling to others that one is currently live. Whoever is defeated or overcomes a streamer can watch it again on Twitch in “Replay”.
Indeed, New World already caused a stir on Twitch in August, but with a completely different feature: the voice chat that also brought so many exciting moments in Rust.
Has New World made a mistake with its PvE shift?
This is the crux: When thinking of successful games on Twitch, one probably has Fortnite, Call of Duty, or Escape from Tarkov in mind. These are all games with a focus on PvP.
However, New World turned away from PvP at the end of 2019 with a rework. The compulsion to fight against other players is gone, and instead, more emphasis is to be placed on PvE. Only the 50v50 battles and optional fights in the open world remain.
It is questionable whether these contents, coupled with events in PvE, are enough to motivate streamers and viewers in the long run. Initial concerns even arose during the short one-week test of New World:
- There was criticism that the optional PvP is not worth it. Besides 10% more XP, there was nothing to fight for.
- Even though the wars were held more frequently for testing purposes than originally planned, many players still felt it was too infrequent.
The reorientation towards PvE could thus harm the desire for attention on Twitch.
What argues against losses on Twitch? Especially with the current hype around Rust, there is an interesting development. Although the survival MMO is primarily a PvP game, many streamers engaged in role-playing when the new server started and were more “PvE-oriented”.
The streamers played peacefully, until xQc came and caused unrest and fights.
Furthermore, the shift towards PvE is also supported by the fact that many MMORPG fans are turning more towards PvE. In a survey about PvP here on MeinMMO, 78% of the participants said they only or mostly play PvE content. PvP played a small role for many. Although New World currently refers to itself as “only” an MMO, many contents resemble an MMORPG.
Whether New World can generally establish itself depends heavily on the adjustments currently being made in the alpha. Because in August 2020, while the MMO had good approaches, much still felt unpolished and needed urgent refinement:
Despite some flaws: Why Amazon’s New World is a real MMO gem
