Amazon Games has had a bit of a rough time over the last couple of years. Despite its talent and financial backing, multiple of its recent projects have been canceled. Its latest game Crucible was discontinued six months after release. With that in mind, both fans and investors are keeping a close eye on its upcoming exploration age MMO New World, to see if the company can recover.
There is reason to be optimistic. New World's combat looks engaging, and Amazon Games devised an opt-in PVP system to protect inexperienced New World players from griefing. Despite some controversy about its colonial setting, the game's well-rendered environments look worth exploring.
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Amazon Games has been taking its time with this one, and after multiple delays, New World will soon officially launch. But what platforms will it launch on? Will players have to worry about a split player-base? Will PS4 or PS5 owners embark on New World's maiden voyage?
Unfortunately, PlayStation players won't be able to join New World at launch. The game is only available on PC, and Amazon Games has not made any statements about plans to port it to other platforms. That doesn't mean it will never happen, but right now the team seems focused on making the PC launch as smooth as possible.
If New World does eventually get ported, then it's a toss-up on which consoles will get it. The game's high graphical fidelity and hardware straining player-count make the Nintendo Switch an unlikely candidate, but the PS5 and Xbox Series X/S still have a chance. Both Sony and Microsoft are offering cloud gaming services like Playstation Now, which could possibly alleviate hardware strain and better handle online play.
This is all assuming, however, that Amazon wants to share New World with more platforms. It's also developing a cloud gaming service with the upcoming Amazon Luna, and if New World does well, Amazon may want to hold onto the IP as a semi-exclusive title.
That's all hypothetical, however. Amazon Games has been tight-lipped about New World's post-launch plans, both in terms of platforms and gameplay, and players are unlikely to hear more until after the game releases. Hopefully, if the game is ported, it will allow for cross-saves and cross-play, so early PC adopters don't have to worry about losing their data or being separated from console players.
New World will release on August 31 for PC.