izigame.me

Okay, I thought it's time for a review of the game after pouring thousands of hours into it. I don't normally write reviews, but this game has earned one from me. (Skills grand master, every M3 & M10 Gold speed+score, War vet, Invasion Leaderboard, NW enjoyer)
My Game History: WoW (2006-2008), Guild Wars & Guild Wars 2, Star Wars: The Old Republic, Destiny & Destiny 2, a lot of Elder Scrolls & ESO, and several more. I've been around the block with MMO-styled games.
PvP: I've been in 15-20 wars, both defending and attacking, countless OPRs, and 3v3s. The races are also super fun. Initially, I felt like the PvP was unbalanced, but it has improved significantly. You can now run almost any build you want and make it work. The combat feels satisfying, but if you encounter a CC-heavy class, you might want to punch your moniter (especially when facing multiple CC-heavy classes). Overall, it's pretty good, and I enjoy running PvP content from time to time. Races are definitely my favorite. You can encounter massive open-world battles and have a lot of fun.
PvE: Dungeons (Expeditions) are engaging with cool visuals and mechanics. Higher levels and Mutated versions offer more challenging content as well as some baller rewards like leaderboard skins, valuable gear, and materials. Raids require teamwork and coordination, especially in 20-man mode. Overall, PvE is well-designed, very enjoyable, and is my favorite part of this game.
Harvesting&Crafting: Harvesting is amazing! The graphics on nodes, leveling progress, and world scenery are captivating. Crafting can be challenging. To craft max-level items, you need a 6-piece gear set, 3 max trophies, food buffs, and town buffs. It's difficult to obtain, but the payoff is selling your services and making a lot of gold.
My story:(skip to TLDR if you dont want to read)
1ST TIME IN GAME (0-100 hrs): My first hours were spent on the release date. I was drawn in by the harvesting system, but I gave up after a while because I couldn't reach max level. The PvP was fun and different from other games I'd played, but my brother stopped playing, and I had no one else to play with. Eventually, I stopped playing.
2ND TIME IN GAME (100-500 hrs): New World released the Fresh Start servers. After reading reviews and update notes, I decided to give it another try. The leveling and harvesting progress was much faster but still slow enough to enjoy the grind. I joined a company, made some friends, and was hooked. The dungeons were super fun with good mechanics. Eventually, the company died due to a server merge, and life got busy, so I stopped playing.
3RD TIME IN GAME(500-1400 hrs): I came back after a couple of months and started playing again. An old company member contacted me and asked if I wanted to join a new company they were starting. I said sure, and boy, was I in for a ride. I met so many cool people and good friends. We created a few different elite squads that reigned on the M10 leaderboards, topped invasion damage/heals, and sold carries from time to time. It was an amazing experience. We also took anyone who wanted and showed them our builds and how to run the dungeons perfectly. It was the peak MMO experience, in my opinion, and what the game is all about. I did runs for hours on end farming unique trophy materials, different gathering sets, and other cool items. The game really gives you a sense of accomplishment when you finally unlock skills grandmaster and can craft anything you want in the game.
3RD TIME IN GAME(1400-2550 hrs): Although we had created a great company and things were going well, there were some issues with people. Some company members didn't have the same vibe as others, and tensions were starting to rise. My close friends and I decided to leave and start our own company. It was the best decision we made. We had complete freedom to do exactly what we wanted, and it was great. We continued with our Mut runs and general grinding of the PvE content, and it was enjoyable. Even though the updates changed gear score and swapped M10 to M3 as the max, it was still fun. When the Sandwurm 20-man trail released, we gave it our best shot week after week. We never ended up beating it, but it was still fun. The 10-man trail was kind of a joke; it was really a walk in the park. The new dungeons were pretty cool, although Tarn felt a bit empty. It still looked cool and had a few new interesting mechanics. The addition of Mounts and the gear score change spiced things up too. It did make some people angry and even some quit, but endgame players needed something to strive for. Eventually, I burned out and got bored of the same dungeons, the same grind, and no more leveling. I enjoy the journey more than the destination, and boy oh boy, does NW take you on a trip to get there. The thing that ended up burning me out the most was the stress of keeping everyone in the company happy. I was the leader, and although there wasn't much drama, I could feel the strain of people reaching endgame and asking "what now?" It was hard to help people from level 10 to endgame just to see them quit over and over again. Eventually grinded through a few more weeks before telling everyone I would be taking a big break.
4TH TIME IN GAME(2550-now hrs): I decided to come back after hearing about the new updates for the console release. The servers feel very empty, and there's basically nothing going on unless you join a company and get members to run with you. If you queue in open queue as a tank, you can find groups, but it takes forever for other roles in my experience. The markets are super weird, pricing is bad, but people still buy. The game feels like it's on its last breath, and our only hope is console players breathing some life into it.
TLDR of Time in Game: Tried New World multiple times. Loved the community, dungeons, and endgame content, but faced challenges with burnout and IRL issues. While the game currently feels a bit empty, I'm hopeful that the console release will bring new life to it and revive the joyful experiences I had.
READ THIS IF YOU'RE NEW: The game has had its rough patches over the years. It made a lot of people angry and upset because the game wasn't tailored to their specific needs. There have been some things that have made me shake my head, but the game is still good. It has worked through its many, many bugs and bad things. If this game was released as it is today for the first time, you wouldn't have all these negative reviews and comments. A lot of these guys are just haters who have never given it another shot or are angry that their mom won't make them more chicken nuggets. They're raging at the game for no reason. Give this game a shot and don't let these neckbeards influence you; it's a great game. My suggestion is to get involved with a company (PvE or PvP), talk and ask questions, and don't be afraid to join voice channels. You'll find the most helpful people in the world, and if they aren't, just dip and find another company.
HOPES AND DREAMS: I hope that with the game coming out on console, it will be flooded with new players and old players giving the game another go. I really think that a lot of the negative reviews are coming from people who haven't really given the game a good try since the updates. If people would, they would see how it has grown and become a better game. I think this is by far the best MMO I've played recently; all the others don't compare to the NW experience.
PS: If you're new or a veteran in the NA WEST region mostly focused on PvE with a hint of PvP, let me know. A few friends and I are planning on rolling new characters and playing on the cross-platform servers. We will help you reach endgame and learn it to the best of our abilities. Not to brag, but I know pretty much everything in the game, and so do my friends. We would love to have you in our company and can't wait for the 15th!