Greetings, Adventurers!
Aeternum is an ever-evolving world, and as such, we continue our efforts in providing our players with an assortment of ongoing new features, content, and changes. Similar to the activities leading up to our latest major update, we are approaching the release of our next large release and would like to once again invite you all to participate in the next cycle of our Public Test Realm (PTR)!
PTR
The Public Test Realm (PTR) is a limited-availability server-set that will give players an early look at upcoming features. These preview builds are snapshots of upcoming major releases and are not final versions — you may encounter bugs, crashes, missing text, or other issues. Between our internal testing efforts and your reports, we hope to catch and resolve all serious issues before they reach the live servers. However, not every bug or feedback piece will be actioned on before release — some changes need time to be investigated further, and may arrive in a subsequent patch or two. Nonetheless, hundreds of changes have already been made — with more to come — and the full release notes will be shared on release day.
The PTR will officially open tomorrow, September 1, at 10 AM PDT (5 PM UTC). To maximize world population and encourage group play, we will open with two worlds available (“US East PTR 1” and “EU PTR 1”) for this playtest cycle, with them located within US East and EU Central regional datacenters respectively. You may have to change your client regional selection from the main menu in order to discover your intended test world. Existing test characters have been wiped for this cycle, in order to ensure thorough testing of the early game experience changes and ensure feedback received is evaluated at the same difficulty benchmarks as we roll out new features across the next several weeks.
If you encounter a bug, exploit, or have suggestions to improve a feature or piece of content, we’d love to hear your feedback on our PTR sub-forum (you can also utilize our in-game feedback tool). We will do our best to address as much of your feedback as possible before the content update makes its way to our live servers. Your participation will help us to deliver awesome content and updates in the future!
Major Updates
During this iteration of the PTR, we look forward to hearing your playtest feedback on the following changes.
Revamped Starting Experience
We’ve completely redesigned the early levels of New World, so players who start the game or roll a new character will experience brand new stories and quests. Player feedback on quest variety, AI variety, more streamlined questlines with less running back and forth, and improved storytelling in those early stages of the game helped bring about the following changes:
Quest flow through zones has been optimized, with NPCs who move around and a central story thread that takes players through each region of the game, unlocking side content to pace out the experience.
We’ve added a variety of new quest dynamics, from wave events to tracking and traversal challenges, puzzles in the ruins, unique interactions with the world, and dynamic events players will encounter.
We’ve revised onboarding to stay focused on the central storyline, introducing the legacy of King Arthur in Monarch’s Bluffs and a curse and famine from the sorceress Medea in Windsward. Players will still converge on the Hermit Yonas to start on the path to becoming Soulwardens, but the Yonas quests have all been consolidated in Everfall. The Hermit himself is now more mobile, while the story and quest flow vastly improved.
We’ve also added a lot more character to the zones and settlements in Monarch’s Bluffs and Everfall, new enemies, new major locations, and new challenges in the quests and open world.
Greatsword Weapon
Get ready for a new weapon — the Greatsword. This two-handed blade utilizes stances to adapt to different situations. Learn the risks and rewards of each option to survive in battle. Both Weapon Skill Trees feature versatile tactics for varied playstyles:
The Onslaught tree embodies relentless offense and focuses on defeating enemies before they can take you out.
The Defiance tree excels at aggressive defense that can survive and deal damage against multiple opponents.
The Greatsword scales evenly with Strength and Dexterity, making it a good pair for many other martial weapons.
Of course, that’s not all! You can review all of the upcoming changes for this patch by checking out the full PTR release notes, shared within the PTR sub-forum.
PTR CLIENT ACCESS
This special preview client will be made available for download through the stand-alone Steam application, “New World Public Test Realm” (which should already be in your Steam library if you own the main game). When the test period is complete and the main New World game is updated with the previewed content, the PTR world will shut down and may be wiped clean. You will continue to see the New World PTR application in your Steam library, but there will not be an active server until the next time we announce a public test
PTR FAQ
HOW DO I ACCESS THE NEW PTR?
Everyone with a copy of New World will be automatically granted access to the secondary PTR app. The PTR is not compatible with the live game, so you will need to download a separate client (and have the hard drive space required to support it). From there, we will have special worlds available within supported regions. Not all regions will initially be supported. Access is on a first come, first served basis. There may be queues.
CAN I PLAY WITH OR TRANSFER MY LIVE CHARACTERS TO THE PTR
Unfortunately, no. These are separate ecosystems, so at this time it is not possible. However, to make testing easier, we will occasionally provide our play-testers with special accommodations such as instant levels, special gear, etc.
CAN I PROVIDE DESIGN FEEDBACK REGARDING WHAT’S INCLUDED ON THE PTR?
Preview game builds on the PTR are finished with their core development and are in their final phase of testing and bug fixing. Our main focus at this phase is improving quality, although we will appreciate any feedback you have to share.
I HAVE A PROBLEM; HOW CAN I CONTACT CUSTOMER SUPPORT?
Our policies and Code of Conduct cover the PTR, and in-game moderation will continue to be supported. Unfortunately, due to the temporary and potentially unstable nature of the PTR, general Customer Service assistance through both Live Chat and through the Support Website will not be available.
I DON’T WANT TO PARTICIPATE IN THE PTR, CAN I REMOVE THE APP FROM MY LIBRARY?
Don’t worry, no offense taken. Players can manage visibility of the New World Public Test Realm Steam Library entry. Opening up the game options (right-click > Manage) offers the “Hide Game” function.
Thanks for your support and participation! We'll see you in Aeternum.