Over the weekend, the MMORPG Reddit fostered a discussion about the perils of beta testing, specifically with New World. “New World’s endless betas have ruined the feeling of a fresh launch,” the OP of one thread opined. He argued that the game has already been “solved,” with full guides on literally everything interesting, and you can choose to ignore them – but then you’ll lag behind competitively.
I don’t really think this is a new problem, personally; I remember people picking apart EverQuest before launch and publishing guides and maps in similar ways all the way back then. But even if it’s not a new problem, it’s still a conversation worth having as the issue still confronts us all these years later.
Did you play any of New World’s betas? Did you use them to decide whether to buy the game, to plan out your first moves when the game is live, or for something else? Have they ruined your launch experience, or do you think they’ll enhance it?
Every morning, the Massively Overpowered writers team up with mascot Mo to ask MMORPG players pointed questions about the massively multiplayer online roleplaying genre. Grab a mug of your preferred beverage and take a stab at answering the question posed in today’s Daily Grind!
