First things first, love the game, has great potential. It is heartwarming to see that the devs are really trying to bring something new, something fresh, something valuable.
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This post is not about PVP,
and not about crafting, and not about dungeons.
This post is about your general daily gameplay routine in the world of Aeternum.
See, the problem is, that PVE in New World is very repetitive. It makes the world dull and meaningless.
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Most of the quests are the very same, sometimes even in the very same area.
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The world is very, very, very predictable. The enemy AIs are the very same in different models.
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Thus, exploration and playing becomes pointless in a world of copied mechanics and content.
MMORPGs have two parts of gameplay. The first part is the journey. How do you get to max level and what do you experience on the way. The second part is the endgame, where you can pursue your hardcore goals after you explored most of the world and the mechanics.
The problem is, New World’s PVE right now is one big placeholder. Currently, it looks like a tech demo. Every single zone and town and quest and enemy AI feels like a big bunch of CTRL +C, CTRL +V.
Where are the escort quests? The dynamic events? The cinematics? The decision making? The quest chains? Where are the NPCs out in the wilderness? Where are the secret quests in deep caverns and mountain tops? Where are the rewarding open world bosses? The wanted quests?
This is not fun.
I say it again guys, this is not fun. It is not interesting. Not at all. Players massively leaving the game after level 30 as soon as they realize it has nothing to offer anymore which you haven’t already experienced.
I was also got the promise of coping players like “omg you are too low, just get to X.Y zone it is totally awesome you didn’t see the game yet, lol”, like… No. That is not true. Not at all. Because I’ve seen it all. I’m far from level 60 but I literally do the same things over and over and over and over again.
And no, not every MMO is like this. That is just not true. And no, I don’t want New World to be the next WoW or the next GW. No. But it needs value because right now it lacks of it.
The world should feel welcoming and dangerous at the same time. Too bad that after a while you get the hang of the patterns you realize there is absolutely no point to walk up to that hill or go inside to that cave because there is nothing there apart from zombies and crates which contains valueless items which you already saw dozens of times because every quest you picked up brought you here before.
As Aeternum is literally a “New World”, it should really feel like one, but right now, after a few dozens of hours of gameplay I feel like nothing new I can see here anymore. Yes the environment is breathtaking, yes the visuals are stunning, yes the audio is top notch. But these things are just the outfit, not the meaning, not the value of the game.
The main gameplay mechanic of an MMO should be to feel the valuable promise of the future by advancing in the game, which New World totally lacks.
You see an awesome landmark on the distance. A huge bright obelisk, it looks like even time has frozen around it. You go there like “Wow… What is this place… I wonder what has happened here…” And it is the very same like every frickin’ landmark everywhere else. Beautiful environment, very same enemies, very same chests. No secrets to discover, no mystery to unfold, no epic bosses to suck on and eventually get valuable loot from, no special gathering resources, no interesting recipe, no new game mechanic, no new quest, no new NPC, no new portal, no new town entrance, no new enemy AI.
The very same content copied over and over and over and over. This. Is. Not. Fun.
Amazon’s first and top priority should be to overhaul PVE, otherwise the game has no future.
If you like the game, I’m happy for you. But if you just keep repeating the same buzzwords over and over and over just because you are too much emotionally and financially invested in this game, please, think for a while. It is our duty and responsibility to give valuable feedback back to the devs so they can make a game which will thrive and eventually would give us thousands of hours of lovely time spent with our friends in a wonderful world where we can escape and relax the everyday struggle of life.
Thank you for reading.