The New World dev team has launched a new video series, Forged in Aeternum. In the first episode, Game Director Scot Lane sits with other team members for a casual chat about playstyles.
When it comes to playstyles, the team's conversation is just like most of us would probably have. Our approach depends on what we like to do in our games, but also our personalities, what we get out of MMORPGs, and even how much time we have to play. These points are addressed, along with something as to how much structure do you put into designing your build and your style, and how much do you plan out what to do?
Lane describes not overdoing it on structure, since there’s always flexibility in having fun without feeling artificially limited. after Senior Product Manager Drew Higbee mentions that, with so much to do in New World, he uses a spreadsheet to organize. For Higbee, he says that it makes him feel like he’s making progress on his goals.
Creative Director David Verfaille says that his preference is for a mix of the two, and he mentions other ways some tailor their experiences, including someone who decided to do a run where there’s no use of the marketplace at all. A completely self-sufficient character, which does take some good organizing. The team goes into some related topics as well, including buying versus crafting.
These discussions probably feel familiar to many of us, and bring us back to discussions with friends or between guildmates on how to approach some content. Shaping your character is personal, and it also depends what the particular MMO has to offer to support that journey.
While the New World team’s usual dev discussions will be back soon, The Finding Aeternum series looks like it will be exploring some of these more general issues and how we play.
