When Amazon decided it wanted to start developing video games there was a little bit of concern from more traditional development companies out there. A company the size of Amazon should theoretically be able to make video games bigger than anyone else could even attempt thanks to the sheer amount of money they can put into their properties.
So far, however, Amazon has struggled to break into the gaming space the way it had hoped. With multiple cancellations, a release that was then pulled from sale, and a handful of mobile games, we have yet to see a breakout hit from Amazon. Despite these struggles, Amazon has been pushing forward with development and is finally close to having its first big AAA release
New World is an MMO that Amazon has had in development for quite some time and 2021 is when we should finally see all that work come to fruition. In July they hosted a first look at an Alpha and a closed Beta so players could get a look at it. And while there were some complaints about the game requiring really powerful hardware to run, there weren’t too many viral outcries about what players found. The problem is that not too many people raved about it either. It was just a beta so that doesn’t really mean much, but if they had the next Final Fantasy XIV on their hands we likely would have heard some more hype about it.
The game was let to officially launch on August 31, but Amazon announced with less than a month to go they’re pushing that to September 28.
https://twitter.com/playnewworld/status/1422969580394319877
The statement the New World team put out claimed that the delay was in response to feedback they received about the Beta. Considering the complaints about hardware and lack of buzz around the game, that might be why Amazon has decided to delay New World to a late September release date. It will give them time to polish up those issues and make the game the best it can be.
While nobody wants to see a game get delayed, allowing for an extra month of work will be worth it for the development team if it means that New World can have a stronger launch. Putting out an MMO is never easy, because if it doesn’t launch well then there will be no player base to build the game on. MMOs are a social experience above all else, and those kinds of games need a strong and dedicated player base to keep them going. Without that, New World will have no chance at launch.
There’s also a ton of pressure on Amazon Games to launch New World as ready as possible. Amazon’s last big release, Crucible, initially did make its way to stores. The game was extremely middling, however, and lacked a clear sense of direction. Eventually, it was pulled back into Beta before it was cancelled entirely. Reports from Bloomberg early in 2021 showed a development studio that was struggling to get any of its ideas to stick. It did not paint a pretty picture for New World, or really any title coming from an Amazon studio, but if that team can manage to make this a success then it might be the moment that Amazon finally breaks into video games for real.