The long-awaited Season of the Guardian
by New World will finally start on April 2nd. Originally, the season was supposed to start earlier, but the development team decided to refine the update. Some servers will be merged.
What problem is being referred to? Currently, the MMORPG is struggling with declining player numbers and set a new negative record just a month ago. It doesn’t look better right now: In the last 24 hours, there were only 11,214 players on Steam, according to SteamDB. A year ago, there were still 32,988 players.
Each server has a capacity of 2,500 players online at the same time. All other players trying to log in end up in queues. But when only a fraction of that capacity is online, the game no longer radiates the charm of an MMORPG.
Are server merges the salvation for the MMORPG?
How does New World plan to solve this? Well, now that many players have stopped playing the MMORPG, the developers are once again merging several servers to solve the problem. The decision to merge the servers was announced on Discord and social media, including X.
This measure is intended to help ensure that servers are more populated again and players can enjoy a better gaming experience. It should, therefore, provide a larger selection of potential guild members, challenging PvP encounters, and more companions for quests.
When will the servers be merged? The merges are expected to take place on Wednesday, March 27th.
Which servers are affected?
The following EU servers will merge:
- Asgard (EU) and Aaru (EU)
- Canic (EU) and Aaru (EU)
- Barri (EU) and Nysa (EU)
- Abaton (EU) and Nysa (EU)
- Nyx (EU) and Kronos (EU)
We manage just fine on our own!
How does the community react to the merge? Some players are stating that they do not want to merge with another server and like their server just as it is. Others think the merge is good, while others fear that the server merges will ruin the game.
We have summarized a few comments for you:
- One wrote on X:
Abaton does not want to merge with anyone. We manage just fine on our own! #saveabaton
- Glass-Butterfly-8719 wrote on Reddit:
If they merge the servers right before a new season, they probably know that this season won’t bring the players back.
- RP912 wrote on Reddit:
Yep, this is the kiss of death [for the game]
- henryk_kwiatek is frustrated and wrote on Reddit:
Every time I return to this game, server merges happen within 2-4 weeks. And it’s always about my servers.
Some players also fear that if former players should return to New World, they will end up stuck in huge queues. The merges would split the communities, and according to the players, the community is the only thing keeping the MMORPG alive.
Some also see no point in server merges after they have already gotten cross-world OPR and expeditions.
What else does the new season bring? In addition to this change, the new season promises extensive additional innovations, including a revised combat and animation system, new artifacts, a new seasonal story, a 10-man trial, quests – and much more.
What do you think about the server merge in New World? Is your world affected? Feel free to let us know in the comments.
More about the changes to the combat system: New World: Combat in the MMORPG will soon be much better – fans already discover a highlight right now
