Released on PC back in 2021, New World proved to be a massive smash hit. Not only did it manage to reach a concurrent player count of almost a million players during launch, but it was also the talk of the town in the RPG community largely thanks to its clever blend of MMO and single-player. Yes, while New World is billed as a massively multiplayer online action-RPG, it also features a clear focus on satisfying single-player enthusiasts as well. Enter: New World Aeternum, a revamped experience that features the base game, the Rise of the Angry Earth expansion, a retooled approach to storytelling, enhanced dialogue, a new PvP zone, improved cinematics, some new solo trials, and last but not least: a fully-fledged console port for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S.
During Summer Game Fest 2024, I had the opportunity to sit down and go hands-on with New World Aeternum for The Nerd Stash, and make no mistake: I had an absolute blast with it. To be clear, however, I’m one of the rare folk who missed out on New World at launch, so checking it out on console was an entirely new experience for me. In short, New World Aeternum has definitely grabbed my attention, zipping up to the top echelons of my most-anticipated games at the show.
The demo I played kicked things off with the character creation screen. Players select from a diverse pool of faces, body types, skin tones, hair styles, and facial hair to craft a protagonist they’re happy with before embarking on their adventure on the titular island of Aeternum. Soon after, your quest gets under way, and you’re quickly thrown onto the deck of a creaky old sailing ship during a turbulent storm. The opening cinematic serves as a tutorial as the game drip-feeds some basic control inputs to the player, such as how to attack, block, and roll.
Once you’ve defeated your first handful of pesky pirates, things soon take a turn for the worse as your ship runs aground and you find yourself ship-wrecked on the mysterious island. After making your way through dimly lit caves, your journey truly begins as the game transforms into more of an open-world. After chatting with a few locals, completing several rudimentary quests, and dispatching some of the dangerous local flora and fauna, you’ll suddenly begin getting the lay of the land.
The initial adversaries New World Aeternum threw at me comprised of a lair of wild boar. Mixing up strong and quick attacks with my longsword hastily put the bloodthirsty beasts six feet under. Outside of combat, however, the game also boasted plenty of RPG progression systems under the hood that kept me glued to the screen. Not only were there an assortment of active and passive skills to unlock from a laundry list of skill trees, but there was a continuous sense of progression that went hand-in-hand with the way I played, much akin to, say, Skyrim and Oblivion. Essentially, whether you assume the role of a mage, archer, or a melee fighter build, you’ll level up each specific skill as you play, which is a welcome, flexible system.
What really struck me, however, was how much New World Aeternum feels like a wholly single-player experience, which is unusual considering it’s ostensibly an MMO. Sure, while you’re out exploring Aeternum, you’ll often bump into other online players dutifully carrying out their own personal quests and missions. But interacting with them is not something you need to necessarily do, which I honestly appreciate. In other words, the choice of teaming up with other online players is always on offer. Though, if you’re more interested in a solely single-player experience, that’s a totally viable way to play as well.
My time with the demo culminated in a slew of smaller-scale boss fights with larger enemies, and these were a lot of fun to contend with. Combat is real-time and incredibly satisfying, as you mix up your powerful active skills — like a Shield Bashes that stun enemies — with passive skills that help augment your attacks. On top of combat, however, there also seems to be a deep array of survival elements such as crafting and cooking, to name but a few.
Before my time with the New World Aeternum demo, I must admit that I wasn’t expecting to be as smitten with the game as I ended up being. But honestly, it’s managed to shoot up to the top of my most-anticipated list thanks to its wonderfully crafted fantasy RPG world, its clever focus on both the single-player and multiplayer experience, as well as some very deep and thoughtful progression systems to boot. Sure, it may not be as exciting and newfangled for those who’ve already embarked on its adventure on PC. But for RPG enthusiasts — like me — who’ve yet to play the epic MMO, you’ll undoubtedly want to check this one out when it hits console and PC later this year.
New World Aeternum launches on PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and PC on October 15.
