Disclaimer
These views are derived from my personal experiences only and much of my feedback reflects and concerns my experiences as a healer. Opinions may vary.
My understanding of the game is limited and my suggestions may not fully consider their potential global impact. Additionally, there may be instances where my comprehension of certain features is incorrect.
Finally, to avoid repetition, I will not discuss features that have been extensively covered, such as swimming or those that are confirmed to be coming, such as mounts and cross-server play. If I do mention some concerns which are known to AGS, I include them mainly for future reference as a way to track what was ultimately addressed, the method used, and the time frame involved.
Character
- Name: FLCN (Falcon)
- Start Date: Nov 28, 2021
- Server: Valhalla
- Main Role: Healer (625 GS)
- Experienced In: PvE, Crafting, Gathering, Healing
- Inexperienced In: PvP, Territorial Control, Servers (Fresh Start/Merges), DPS/Tank
World
Contrary to most players, I do not share the need for completely new content or zones but believe instead that improving the existing world should be the priority.
While the use of duplicated and modified assets to create new content is prevalent in the gaming industry, AGS appears to rely on this practice to a greater degree.
The noticeable repetition of assets, animations, layouts and numbers makes any supposed "new" experience often feel very familiar and unoriginal. Additionally, copied elements often lead to illogical outcomes in need of balance or fixing.
One example was the Barnacles and Black Powder expedition which had much of its content copied, disregarding the feedback provided at the time.
While recent updates from AGS show improvement in these practices, I believe that without originality, an appealing design and coherent functionality, new content will fail to bring real value.
More thoughtful planning and extensive testing of features is also needed to prevent issues or poor decisions from being released and taking a long time to fix afterwards.
Luck
Dissatisfaction with luck persists in New World, not due to how it functions but rather with how prevalent it is.
Read [Dev Blog] Luck FAQ - Developer Corner - New World Forums for a comprehensive explanation of luck.
Incidentally, I wish AGS would release more in-depth guides or even videos on similar game mechanics. A lot would be gained by helping players understand how damage, healing, resistances etc. are calculated. This would also answer common questions such as “does X stack?”, “is X capped” or “is X worth using?”.
Crafting
- Crafting Is Gambling
It seems there is still no consensus on whether crafting is worth it. The costliness and unreliability of crafting as a method to acquire end-game gear reduces it to a speculative venture with the potential for significant profit or loss.
Indeed, the reliance on luck for all things crafting (gear, mats, mods,
perks, GS) makes crafting very pricey and inaccessible to many players,
who turn to alternatives such as PvE drops or RMT.
Less reliance on RNG would make crafting less expensive, more accessible to both crafters and buyers, facilitate character customization and increase engagement in end-game content as a result.
In other words, the focus should not be on gambling for gear to do content but on actual content instead [1] .
Notice also that when it comes to armor, weapons or jewelry; crafting is purely an end game activity. In my experience, from 0-200, crafting was mainly done to level professions, not to acquire items. Should this be the case?
Chests
In update 1.8.2, AGS removed 28 chests from Brimstone Sands with no explanation. To mitigate frustrations and promote transparency, it would be beneficial if AGS provided detailed explanations in the release notes for changes like these in the future.
- Ammunition & Motes In Chests
Why do crates give the lowest tier of motes and ammunition regardless of the zone’s difficulty?
Essences are already expensive and over-farmed due to mutations. Making ammunition and essences scale with the area’s difficulty seems like a reasonable request and aligns with existing mechanisms for chests.
- Scrap Gear In Elite Chests
“Elite" chests should not have Tier 1 and Tier 2 gear found in regular, starting zone chests. Remove the junk items from the drop pool and increase the chances of getting truly "elite" items.
- [BUG] Empty Chests
This issue has persisted for over 2 years .
FYI: Solutions include waiting for any current loot notification to complete or opening then closing your inventory before looting the next chest (important for mutations where the bug is most prevalent).
Weapons & Armor
Named Gear
- Unequal Distribution Of Named Ward Gear
The allocation of named ward gear appears to be arbitrary, inconsistent, and unequal, with some attributes being given preference over others.
For example, why is STR favored in the only available set of named Lost ward gear, leaving other players with only the option to either purchase or craft their gear. Given that crafting is rarely an answer as it prioritizes combinations that are known to be in high demand and profitable, AGS should increase the availability of named ward gear to promote fairness and accommodate the diversity of playstyles among players.
I suggest in the faction section below adding ward gear to the faction shop, giving a broader use to faction tokens.
AGS could also let players alter the attributes of their bound gear (incl. named gear) either through the faction vendor, through PvP or using umbral shards. A significant change like this would require thorough evaluation and testing before implementation.
- Inconsistent Perk Distribution In Named Sets
Certain gear sets have a diverse selection of complementary perks (e.g. Sagacious set, Isabella's set) while others consist of repetitive, copied perks (e.g. Empress Zhou's set, Chardis set). Why not make those sets more appealing by incorporating different types of perks?
- Remove Locks On Gems For Named Jewelry
Why is this gem swappable but this one isn’t? Random inconsistencies create imbalances for players.
Perks
- Illogical Perk Buckets
Taking the
Orichalcum Life Staff
as an example:
The top 5 perks in terms of chance are: Vicious (17%), Keen (14%),
Blessed (7%), Enchanted (3%) and Ruinous (3%).
From the 5 perks listed, only one is useful on a life staff.
What’s more, the life staff is one of the few weapons with both enchanted and ruinous at 3% instead of 1%. The Orichalcum Rapier , for example, has Vicious, Keen and then weapon specific perks .
Why is it different for the life staff? Why prioritize perks which are of no use on a life staff before any weapon specific or mana-related perks?
- Ward Gear Should Not Have PvP Perks
Given the current scarcity of crafted or named ward gear, why would AGS further reduce our already limited opportunities by allowing PvP perks to overlap with ward gear?
- Indestructible Wastes A Perk Slot
Consider removing the durability system. Repair kits are more annoying than they are worth.
- Gathering Luck Wastes A Perk Slot
The inclusion of gathering luck perks on both PvE and PvP armor is redundant as there already exists unique gear sets for those skills. Increase the availability of gathering sets and remove the gathering perks from regular armor.
Cosmetics
- Recent Cosmetics Are Ugly
How did we go from this to this or this ? The cool, dark and gritty aesthetic of New World which the trailer teased is being lost with every new event/cosmetic.
I look forward to the upcoming Forged In Aeternum video on cosmetics and hope it will clarify the apparent confusion in cosmetic designs. I hope that in doing so it will openly address the reality of outsourced artwork and the challenges this can pose.
- Bows And Muskets Are Heavy
How can a bow or a musket be heavier than a greatsword?
- Running With Greatswords Looks Odd
Entirely subjective but the portrayal of greatswords in the game appears unrealistic and cartoonish. It lacks the sense of weight that is typically conveyed in other games by having the greatsword drag on the ground or be held at a diagonal angle, rather than being effortlessly held upright at a 90-degree angle.
Factions
- Faction Progression
For faction progression, I second the sentiment expressed here :
- What you can buy now should help you overcome the next promotion.
- What you can buy at the current promotion should be better than what you used to overcome the promotion challenge.
Faction progression needs an overhaul to match the pace with the available gear.
- Faction Rewards
- Make the end-gear 590+ (upgradeable to legendary)
- Add ward gear
- Consider adding timeless shards & craft mods to reduce the reliance on luck for crafting
Combat
- Larger Groups
Increasing group size to 10 or more players would help in raids or server-wide events by facilitating coordination, reducing the number of group-less players and increasing the chance for drops.
This would also simplify group coordination for invasions and wars.
- Healing Contributions
Consider the combined numbers of both damage dealt and healing provided when evaluating a healer's contribution. Healers already attract enemies in chest runs; not getting drops makes it doubly frustrating.
- Healing Generates Too Much Threat
While I don't mind the occasional enemies targeting me, when bosses or ranged enemies consistently attack the healer first, bypassing the tank and disregarding threat-increasing perks and gems, it undermines the purpose of having a tank and such abilities in the first place. Allow tanks to focus on maintaining threat and healers to concentrate on healing, without the need for such a big overlap in threat generation. This would result in a more seamless play experience for both roles and eliminate frustration in some expedition areas.
QOL
- Free Respec (Attributes & Weapon Skills)
The current fees serve no useful purpose other than penalizing players for playing the game as it was intended. The introduction of mutations should have eliminated this cost. This change needs to come with gear sets.
- Remote Upkeep & Trophy Management
How did AGS overlook the constant requirement to fast-travel to one's home as a significant inconvenience? Did the testers not find this system annoying?
- Limiting Active Trophies Is Unnecessary
A limit on active trophies serves no purpose other than forcing players to fast travel to their house. The limit does not impact gameplay in any meaningful way as most players already switch trophies to match the activity they’re performing.
- Group Finder Is Inadequate
Why did AGS not identify the limitations of the GF before it went on the PTR? It has been months since this post and players are still waiting for a better GF.
- Market Filters Are Inadequate
Things players can’t currently do:
- Exclude a perk from selection
- Filter for 2 attributes only. STR or CON or STR + CON without STR + ALL and CON + ALL.
- Select more than 3 perks
- Select weight classes from the filter section
- Have the option “any selected perk” off by default
- Add Inventory Filters
Same as TP filters but with additional “duplicates” and “BOP/BOE” options.
- Changing Name & Appearance
Some players may be dissatisfied with their character's name and appearance. Offer them the opportunity to re-create a character they are more invested in and eager to play.
- Add A Gypsum Kiln In Every Town
- “Mass Salvage” Button Post-Craft
- Save Item Links When Retrieving The Last Message With UP ARROW
- Craft Multiple Gypsum Casts Together
- When Respec’ing, Keep Existing Keybinds For Abilities Which Are Selected Again
- Fix Beards Clipping Through Headwear
- Death Recap/Tracker
- Remove The AFK Error Message And Go Directly Back To The Main Menu Instead
Positives
Though the game's direction diverged significantly from its original design and my own expectations, AGS still got many things right. The impressive graphics, sound design, combat and gathering still immerse me in a world which can sustain my enjoyment for extended periods of time.
While I empathize with players' frustrations towards the game, I recognize the community can be excessively harsh at times. As a developer, it must be challenging to confront such animosity, whether justified or not, from the very audience you aim to serve.
That being said, not all players are like this and many instead contribute greatly to the game. I would be remiss not to acknowledge Valhalla’s own Merk1n who, for over 6 months, has flawlessly organized daily WTs with prizes and brought the community together. It's individuals like this, whether making a big or small impact, that make this game enjoyable beyond its base content.
It's been interesting to see AGS grow and improve both their game and their relationship with players. I wish for their continued success and improvement in the future. I invite them as well as players with similar play times to participate in this post by sharing feedback and doing so in a respectful and succinct manner.
Cheers,
FLCN
[1] I found this phrasing in a comment on YouTube but lost the source. Since it closely aligns with my own thoughts, I've included it here
