If you’re wondering whether New World is worth playing in 2022, you’ve come to the right place. The answer depends on whether you’re a new or returning player, and how much you’ve progressed beforehand as a returning player.
If you haven’t experienced New World yet, then yes, it’s worth trying it out. Similarly, if you’re a returning player that quit before reaching max level, the answer is also yes. However, if you quit after reaching the end game, there’s not much content yet to justify a return. Let’s examine what makes the game great for newer players and what has changed since its launch in September 2021.
Is New World dead?
While its popularity and active users have dropped significantly since launch, New World still has a faithful player base of around 15.000 average players according to Steam Charts. When compared to some of the MMORPG giants, this doesn’t sound like a lot. However, the game recently merged servers to ensure the world of Aeternum is populated on each server.
New World’s Steam Chart for August 2022
Also, in August 2022, New World’s average number of monthly players increase by around 2.000. This is its largest increase in average players since launch. Could this be the start of an upwards trend?
New World’s Early-Game Progression
Leveling your character, weapons, and life skills are some of New World’s most satisfying elements. There’s a constant sense of progression and you’re free to take your time exploring however you like. Especially the gathering and crafting system in New World is one of the best and most satisfying systems among MMORPGs.
Gathering wood in New World
The only issue during launch was that leveling felt slow and slightly boring. Now the game has added multiple new story expeditions and events that make leveling easier. While there’s still a grind element to it (it’s an MMORPG after all), it’s much more enjoyable. The satisfying early-game progression is the main reason why New World is worth playing in 2022 for players who haven’t experienced it fully.
New World’s End-Game Content
The end-game in New World is focused on increasing the player’s gear score. Not much has changed over the past year and the ways to do so involve chest runs or dungeons. The major positive change here is that dungeons no longer require keys to enter. In addition, the gypsum and expertise systems limit the amount of luck required. Instead, it takes an average of 2-3 weeks to reach 600 gear score.
With the current summertime event, players can even buy recipes for 600 gear score items directly, which makes the grind even easier. The setback is in terms of methods. Other than dungeons and chest runs, there aren’t other efficient methods for progressing. With only a limited number of dungeons and chest runs available, end-game content can end up being repetitive and dull.
Player running in Everfall at night
If you’ve already experienced the end-game content during the game’s first few months, there’s not much new stuff to bring you back. If you haven’t, dungeons are fun and feel rewarding to complete. Each dungeon is unique and the first-time experience is well worth it.
Is New World Worth Playing in August 2022?
If you haven’t experienced New World’s end game content and are below level 60, New World is definitely worth playing in 2022. There’s a lot to experience in terms of PvE and PvP, especially for new players that buy the game during a sale (discounts on Steam happen often). However, if you’ve already experienced most of the game during the first few months, there’s not enough new content to make a return worth it.
Nevertheless, Amazon has been delivering small but consistent updates with new content, bug fixes, and QoL changes. If they can continue this pace, New World will eventually have enough end-game content to satisfy even the more hardcore players. This, combined with Amazon’s well-known, large-scale marketing campaigns, can bring players back to New World and give the game the chance to compete with other MMORPG giants. However, the first step is consistency in updates. Can Amazon keep up? Only time will tell.
