New World’s latest Balance of Power dev video is here, with the team discussing combat changes coming up in May, along with some other changes.
This episode featured J.R. (Pex Design Lead) and Josh Hurley (Combat Designer) talking about some of what’s coming in New World, but they begin by thanking the community for feedback, which is driving the changes to come.
One of the major reasons for season five’s delay involved the major overhaul by introducing the new scripting system. They're still looking at reports and fixes, and are already planning more fixes and tweaks to help smooth things out, with the understanding that there are still issues stemming from the fact that they made major changes.
When it comes to upcoming updates, and fixes, they start with siege weaponry, which has been on the back burner since launch. Expect a power bump across almost all siege weapons to start, along with making ammo resupplies a bit cheaper, and a second of or so of extra time on damaging AoEs for more damage output. To balance this a bit, down the line, they may look at shields or another way to make being the person who is using the siege weapon not at immediate risk of a quick headshot.
Other topics they talked about included boosting taunts, following damage increased starting in Season 3. The value of a taunt has gone down, so they're looking to make those a little more powerful too, and add taunts to melee heavy attacks. Equip load came up, as the New World team is addressing some changes they made with some revisions to come. Things like adjusting the CC duration status effects are going to be reverted, along with more considerations for what they might do with this in the future.
Artifacts, too, got a mention, since some of the least used are also getting improvements to add functionality. Since the team added Artifacts, they’ve committed to them, so more balance isn’t surprising as the collection grows with new seasons, new reward tracks, and more change.
Finally, there are some broader mentions of perks and weapon functionalities that need some balance passes. The full video is worth a watch if you're curious about which weapons they’re looking to tweak, along with ideas on balance to prepare for May.
