What is New World Aeternum?

Looks like Amazon Games is trying to catch up with the competition in the MMO scene: New World: Aeternum is the next biggest thing in the studio’s flagship title, with tons of promotional trailers to show off the new and exciting features. 

The problem is that these cinematic trailers do very little to explain what Aeternum actually is or what it means for existing players. With the emphasis on solo RPG-like features in Aeternum’s preview at Summer Games Fest and the open beta, there’s been a ton of speculation on whether it’s a single-player reboot or remake of the game.

For prospective and existing players, here’s a breakdown of what’s actually going on with New World: Aeternum. 

Is New World Aeternum a DLC, update, or a new game? 

Aeternum is a free update that revamps all the game’s existing content. The radically different gameplay showcased in the trailers will be applied across the board to current servers. New World will still functionally be the same game that launches from the same place in your library—just with some slightly aggressive rebranding on all fronts and the option to crossplay with console players. 

While the new RPG-style gameplay and cinematic cutscene/dialogue revamp are the main featured new additions, there’s a lot more coming to the servers on Oct. 15. According to the official dev FAQ, the Aeternum update will include:

• Graphics update and introduction of DirectX 12;
• Bug fixes and optimizations that improves performance on minimum specs;
• A story revamp and new First-Time-User-Experience, a.k.a. the intro and tutorial sequence;
• Solo trials from the MSQ added as upleveled endgame content;
• Many other streamlined additions or fixes to the game.  

Additionally, existing PC players won’t have to start over at all. All your character progression will be retained on Aeternum’s release, and you can continue playing old and new endgame content. 

How does crossplay work in New World Aeternum? 

As of the time of writing, the devs have confirmed there will be full cross-platform support for New World: Aeternum. New console players will be able to join and fully participate in existing worlds with PC players, and PC players will be able to join the Fresh Start Worlds alongside console players. 

A small catch is that you can’t move legacy characters to Fresh Start Worlds—if you and a console friend want to make your mark on a completely new server, you’ll have to make a new character yourself. 

Additionally, there will be no cross-progression support between PC and console. While having the option to play from your couch every now and then might sound great, you won’t be able to access your PC account or characters from the console version of the game. 

Do you need to buy Rise of the Angry Earth DLC to play New World Aeternum? 

The official website FAQ claims that players who only have the base game without the DLC will need to purchase the expansion “to get access to all of the content in New World: Aeternum.” While technically true, this is somewhat misleading: You will need the RotAE DLC in order to access what Aeternum has added to RotAE itself. 

However, you will still be able to access all the Aeternum upgrades to the base game without the DLC. Base-game-only players will not lose access to—nor be barred from upgrades of—content they have already purchased.

This also includes the Azoth Stalker Wolf mount, the bonus offered to console preorders. Existing PC players can claim the new mount by simply logging in before Oct. 14, and this includes players who only have the base game. You just won’t have access to it until you unlock the mount system itself by purchasing the DLC at any point in the future. So long as you logged in before Aeternum’s release, it will be permanently tied to your account and retroactively rewarded.

With all the flashy new features, this overhaul definitely looks like it’s taking a page out of FFXIV’s book—but we’ll have to wait and see if it’ll become a miraculous recovery like A Realm Reborn, or just a tiny stopgap in New World’s steady hemorrhage of concurrent players.