New World has been out for a few weeks, and the early signs are that it could be a real hit among MMORPG fans. Despite heavy competition from some of the MMORPG genre’s biggest titles, New World has managed to carve out a large player base. Players have been struggling to get into the game because of its success, with server queue’s proving to be a real issue. On balance, New World’s launch has been positive, but there have been a number of lessons learned from its release. Another upcoming MMORPG in The Day Before could look to learn from New World.
The open-world MMO survival game is coming to PC in June of next year, with PS5 and Xbox Series X versions in development. The Day Before is an entirely new IP, and as such, it is in a similar boat to that of New World's pre-launch. The lessons learned from New World’s launch, both negative and positive, could come in handy for The Day Before ahead of its own launch.
The Positives of New World’s Launch
As is the case with any new video game’s release, New World has had its fair share of hiccups. That being said, overall, it has been a positive launch. So much so that Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has commented on New World’s success, saying "After many failures and setbacks in gaming, we have a success”. New World is a big success story following the disappointing launch of Crucible, the cancelled free-to-play shooter by Amazon Game Studios.
Gamers will now be eagerly anticipating the launch of future projects, as well as the remainder of New World. There are a number of positives fellow upcoming MMORPG games like The Day Before could learn from the launch of New World, making New World’s launch a great learning experience.
A key element that has made New World so appealing to fans at launch is the game’s PvP. New World's PvP is completely optional, but for the more combative multiplayer gamers, there’s plenty to do. Much of the game’s PvP can be done in aid of its factions mechanic, with gamers being given PvP quests to ultimately spark an all-out war.
The Day Before could be the perfect game for a factions-based PvP element, allowing survivors to team up and compete for dominance of The Day Before’s open world. It’s already known that The Day Before will allow players to join groups, interact with other players, and build bases, so it is possible that a New World-style factions mechanic could be present in The Day Before.
New World Mistakes The Day Before Should Avoid
New World’s positives are plain to see for anyone paying attention, but unfortunately for some gamers, issues have been noticed. First of all, New World’s maintenance times have proven to be problematic for EU-based gamers, as they have often fallen during popular times for gaming. New World’s maintenance has been frequent since launch and renders the game unplayable while in progress. This hasn’t been much of an issue for players in NA, as it has often fallen very early morning when most are asleep. However, this has meant players in Europe have seen the game being unplayable in the middle of the day.
The game’s popularity has also proven to be an issue for some, with Twitch streamer Asmongold waiting in New World queues of over 10,000 players. Obviously, this is far from ideal, and while it does speak to the game's success, if gamers aren’t able to play it, the success won’t last. Connection issues are common for multiplayer games at launch, but they can be a major deterrent. The Day Before should learn from New World’s missteps, making sure it’s as accessible as possible to gamers at launch. While New World’s success has shown the MMORPG space is open to new titles, The Day Before will still face a challenge in carving out its own fanbase.
The Day Before releases on June 21, 2022 for PC, with PS5 and Xbox Series X/S versions in development.