Ever since Amazon Game Studios joined the video game industry, it has undergone one disappointment after the other. The developer and publisher has yet to release a successful title, as the servers for its team shooter Crucible has been shut down already due to the fact that it didn’t find an audience. Well, to be more specific, after an unsuccessful launch, Amazon Game Studios put Crucible back into closed beta, but decided to just shut down the game completely a few months after.
Despite this, the gaming community hasn’t lost all hope for Amazon Game Studios just yet. The company is currently working on a brand-new MMO called New World, and this upcoming online RPG could either make or break the studio.
New World will be set in the 17th century, in a fantasy island known as Aeternum, where players are free to explore everything that the game has to offer. The MMO was supposed to be released last year in August, but because of the COVID-19 pandemic, the title was hit with several delays since the developers had no choice but to work from home.
After announcing its delay, Amazon Game Studios essentially went silent about the game’s development and progress—until now, that is. Recently, the company has finally offered its fans with news about New World, however, it’s not the kind of news that they were hoping for or expecting.
Amazon recently dropped a new developer update video on New World’s official website, which featured director Scot Lane. In the video, the director announces that the highly anticipated MMO will once again be pushed back and won’t be ready for its current Spring 2021 release window. Instead, New World will be delayed until August 31, 2021 in order for the development team to keep working and polishing the online title, while also ensuring that the important end-game features will be ready upon launch.
That being said, the update video didn’t unleash only bad news. When Amazon Game Studios had the Preview Event from August 2020, the feedback from interested players were a tremendous help to the developer. Thanks to them, the team was able to implement several necessary changes and improvements to the game, such as improved combat, a revamped crafting system, and more variety in terms of armor and weapon choice.
Not only that, the feedback caused Amazon Game Studios to include more content to New World’s mid and late game. A new region called Reekwater was also introduced to the game, as well as the ability to fish. In other news, fans who pre-ordered New World can look forward to a closed beta test beginning this July 20.
This closed beta will include a plethora of features for players to test out, including 20v20 battles otherwise known as Outpost Rush and adventures known as Expeditions. Players will also be able to experience and explore Ebonscale Reach, which is a new end-game zone.
Given the fact that Amazon is a massive company with access to a lot of resources, its struggles concerning video game development have been confusing for many in the community. However, things may be looking up for the studio, what with CEO Andy Jassy taking over. An email from Jassy was recently leaked, which essentially suggests that the new CEO is more than ready to support Amazon Game Studios.
