In our sit-down with Amazon Games boss David Verfaille, we learned how New World 2023 will radically change the way it delivers content.
New World 2023 Roadmap: Amazon Games Introduces Seasonal Battle Pass Style Model
Last week, New World Creative Director David Verfaille sat down with us to bring big news from Aeturnum: New World 2023 is shifting to a seasonal model.
As the active playerbase slowly returns to its pre-expansion levels, it seems that Amazon Games is keen to replicate the renewed momentum ignited by Brimstone Sands at a much more regular cadence. Every three months, to be precise. Meaning new content will now always be just around the corner with New World Fellowship and Fire.
The first of the New World 2023 seasons, entitled Fellowship & Fire, is set to launch on March 28th. It will heavily feature fan-favorite Grace O'Malley as she enlists the players' help to build the "Silver Crows". Each subsequent season will then feature new stories and quests, with some set to expire with the closing of the season, and others persisting for longer - such as the Silver Crows arc.
With the new seasonal model comes two seasonal tracks: free and premium. All players will now be able to access a free rewards track comprising 100 levels, with rewards being unlocked at every level. These will include skins, pets for houses, marks of fortune, boost tokens, weapons and armor, and caches of materials for crafters.
The premium track, meanwhile, can be purchased for 15,000 Marks of Fortune, and will, of course, provide greater and more frequent rewards. Completing the track will earn back 7,500 marks of fortune, effectively halving the price of premium for anyone dedicated enough to reach level 100.
Climbing levels will involve going through the typical motions, including a set of challenges that appear on a bingo-esque "score card" with "lines" and "full houses" bestowing greater amounts of seasonal XP.
Needless to say, this is going to make some big waves among the playerbase. While many will welcome the opportunity to turn their New World 2023 playtime into helpful rewards, there will be those skeptical of the premium track's ability to keep things balanced. But Amazon Games are keen to attempt to assuage those concerns.
Short of giving players a shiny set of cosmetics pertaining to the season's overarching theme, AG have assured us that the same rewards are obtainable on both tracks, and in-game. Premium track members will instead give more opportunities to earn these rewards.
In addition, New World has just unveiled a roadmap, giving players a clear play-by-play of what content we can expect this year. All that remains is to see if the plethora of new New World 2023 content will have the desired effect of boosting, and then maintaining, the active players.