Over the weekend, Amazon Games opened the gates to try out New World Aeternum. I decided to jump in for an hour to see how it felt. Having played the original release of New World for the first month or so after its launch, I was already fairly familiar with how the game worked. New World is an action MMO, opting for a more streamlined combat system rather than the “traditional” approach with numerous hotkeys. Unfortunately, New World Aeternum falls flat for me in one very specific area: impact.

The sticking point for most action-oriented RPGs has always been the sense of impact. Does it feel like your weapon is actually hitting the target, or does it seem like your actions are just floating through the enemy and simply dealing damage? New World suffers from the latter. Despite numerous combat scenarios and trying out different weapons, my quest to find weighty, satisfying combat was fruitless. This is a real shame because the game does everything else fairly well. It opens with a great cutscene to set the mood. The world is vibrant and interesting to explore. The enemies look threatening. Questing is straightforward and easy to navigate. The inventory and skills menus are streamlined. The rest of the New World package is polished, but combat is in a rough state.

Abilities like “Flamethrower” and “Meteor Strike” feel weak. The “Wrecking Ball” ability, which uses a giant anchor I found, feels like nothing more than swinging a pillow. Dodging feels floaty at best, and downright disorienting at worst. The strange part is that I remember enjoying New World’s combat at launch. I recall it feeling weighty and satisfying as I cut down would-be soldiers left and right. I can’t pinpoint exactly what has changed, but rest assured, something has been adjusted.

All in all, I didn’t regret my time in the beta. It was cool to walk around and see what had changed. The characters were engaging, and the environments were visually interesting. Sadly, I don’t think I’ll be returning to the island when New World Aeternum releases on October 15th.