New World‘s next major update is bringing a ton of content, and players will finally get the chance to test it before it goes live. Developers announced the MMO will get a Public Test Realm (PTR) tomorrow, letting players experiment with new features and provide feedback before they go live. The first test will let players try out a new weapon called the Void Gauntlet.
The New World Public Test Realm functions as a standalone application and will open at 2pm CT on Nov. 10. At the start, there will only be a world in US East and another in Central Europe, which means many players may not get the chance to try out the new content. To save time, players will be able to “instantly level to select level-ranges outfitted with appropriate gear and items,” according to the blog post.
The first iteration of the PTR will let players try the new weapon, the Void Gauntlet. This “DPS/support hybrid” weapon, as Amazon described it, scales off both Intelligence and Focus. One of its skill trees focuses on damage, while the other provides healing and debuffs.
The attributes will benefit magic classes in general and healers in particular. The Void Gauntlet will be the second weapon scaling off Focus, finally offering a decent backup weapon for healers without having to distribute their status or rely on Amber Gems, which are inconsistent due to bugs.
Additionally, developers also mentioned the unification of Trading Posts throughout each world, meaning players will have access to all goods regardless of where they are. Taxes and fees will be based on what settlement you’re buying from.
Last week, developers teased the linking of trading posts on a post about known issues. The post introduces the measure by showing the relationship between gold generated in a world and gold spent.
“Players are consistently generating a positive gold balance every day, but there is a downward trend,” the developers wrote. “If this trend continues and we get closer to a negative in-out, we will take action.”
After last week’s blog post, the idea of linking trading posts received vigorous backlash on the New World forums due to its possible impact on the (already struggling) economy in Aeternum. Amazon Games acknowledged surplus income is far lower in the endgame range than during the early levels but said the economy “is performing within acceptable levels” from a data standpoint. Linking commerce throughout a server aims to “strengthen the economies less traveled territories and ensure item availability in all territories,” according to Amazon Games, but the measure could tank item prices for several goods. Connecting all trading posts in a world is a radical change that will have a deep impact on the in-game economy regardless of which way it swings.
In addition to linking the trading posts, last week’s developer update hinted at upcoming changes that increase the gold gain from Expeditions and the cost for crafting Tuning Orbs. As ways to make more gold, Amazon Games recommends Outpost Rush, which has recently been re-enabled, and Corrupted Breaches, which generate “good gold per hour,” according to the post. Players should also take advantage of their three daily faction mission bonuses, which give 10 times more gold from the first three missions each day.
In addition to the Void Gauntlet and trading posts, the full announcement also shows a series of new features in the next update, including a new enemy type (between level 16 and 20), improvements to the main questline, and extra enemy variety. Enemy and objective variety is a common topic in New World, considering objectives and enemies change very little across maps and throughout the main story.
Published: Nov 9, 2021 07:57 pm