Amazon Games Responds To 'New World' Pay-To-Win Concerns

Players have expressed concern over Amazon Games’ reported intent to sell questionable in-game items in “New World,” the fledgling studio’s first entry in the MMO genre. Interested gamers were worried about such items possibly giving paying players an edge over the rest of the competition, but one developer has assured that this will not happen.

Creative director David Verfaillie spoke with Euro Gamer to clarify some of the community’s concerns over how “New World” is monetized. This came after alpha testers discovered that items such as EXP boosts for character levels and trade skills were available only in the premium in-game store during the closed beta test.

The exclusive EXP boosts to trade skills in particular had players worried over the fairness of progression, as much of “New World’s” best equipment at the time were locked behind the game’s crafting system. Players could purchase trade skill EXP boosts to gain access to top-tier gear faster than everyone.

Amazon Games previously reassured players that it will be balancing the in-game shop to keep premium items fair for everyone. This statement was reiterated by Verfaillie, who told the outlet that they do not want “New World” to be a pay-to-win experience.

“The emphasis is on cosmetics: that’s all we’ll be doing at launch,” Verfaillie said.

However, he mentioned that they want to add more than just cosmetic items to the game in the future.

“We believe there is room for quality of life improvements in this game without crossing into the pay-to-win territory – that is something we will not do. But we’re going to be listening to the players, making sure we are respecting them and not crossing that line,” he added.

When asked about the kind of QoL items they want to add to the game, Verfaillie said that they want to sell improvements like increased storage space and other items that are specifically meant to help time-starved players catch up to the rest of the community even after long periods of inactivity.

“New World” is set to release late in August, but its closed beta will officially start this Tuesday at 9:30 a.m. PT/11:30 a.m. ET. The closed beta test will run until Aug. 2.