Closed beta coming in July.
Amazon Game Studios’ online multiplayer title, New World, received its third delay, with the game now due for release on August 31 – slightly later than this year’s previously announced “spring” launch window.
The New World was originally due to arrive last May, but saw its launch postponed to August 2020 as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Amazon then chose to postpone the game again in July, changing the release of the full game and its final beta for this year.
This additional development time so far, according to the latest development update from Amazon’s New World, has resulted in improvements in manufacturing and combat, as well as an increased variety of missions, weapons and armor. Fishing has also been added, the map has been expanded to include the new Reekwater region and work has been done to increase the amount of content in the middle of the game and at the end of the game.
New World: Aeternum Awaits – Official Trailer.
Despite all of this, Amazon says there is still work to be done, and the studio requires additional development time to polish, tweak and focus on “attractive end-of-game features that we believe are important to include in the release.”
“These features will not be ready for the spring time period we have communicated,” he explains in his update. “With that in mind, we will launch New World on August 31, 2021.”
As a result of these changes, the New World closed beta – which was also due to run this spring – will now take place on July 20. Those who order the game will have access to the beta and will have the opportunity to experience a new endgame zone known as Ebonscale Reach, along with instantaneous expeditions for five players and 20 vs. 20 Outpost Rush battles, where teams fight for control of strongholds and strategic resources.
Some additional details of the beta can be found in the Amazon blog post, and for more information on the problems plaguing Amazon’s first forays into the world of video games – who also saw his hero shooter Crucible canceled less than five months after the launch – a recent report by Bloomberg’s Jason Schreier is worth checking out.