Amazon Ends New World: Aeternum Development Amid Layoffs

New World: Aeternum Discontinued, Servers Will Remain Active Through 2026

New World: Aeternum, the massive multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) from Amazon Games, has had all new content development officially terminated. The decision was made following a corporate-wide wave of layoffs at Amazon, which affected approximately 14,000 staff members and significantly impacted the company’s gaming division. The recently launched Season 10: Nighthaven will be the final major content release for the game on both PC and consoles.

The End of New Content Development

The announcement confirms that the game is effectively entering a “life support” phase. Amazon stated that continuing to produce new content for New World: Aeternum was “no longer sustainable,” a sentiment many attribute to the company’s ongoing focus on reducing operational costs and prioritizing Generative AI technology.

• Final Content Update: Season 10: Nighthaven marks the end of new story content, features, and major expansions for the title.
• Free Content Release: To thank the community for its support, Amazon has made the final Nighthaven update and the previous Rise of the Angry Earth expansion free for all existing PC players. The game remains available for download for PlayStation Plus Extra and Premium subscribers.
• Layoffs and Strategic Shift: The closure of the development team is part of a larger strategic pivot by Amazon, which appears to be scaling back its ambitions in large-scale, internal AAA game development, particularly within the competitive MMO market. Reports indicate that the company has also canceled its in-development Lord of the Rings MMO.

Server Status and “Surfing in 2026”

Despite the immediate cessation of new content, Amazon Games has committed to keeping the world of Aeternum accessible for players across the globe for an extended period.

• Servers Guaranteed Through 2026: Amazon has explicitly stated that its intention is to keep the game’s servers operating through the end of 2026. This gives the remaining player community over a year to continue their adventures, a period which some players are referring to as “surfing” the remaining content before the eventual shutdown.
• Continued Maintenance: During this final phase, the developers will still release minor patches, bug fixes, quality-of-life improvements, and essential maintenance like server merges.
• Limited Events: Existing seasonal events like Turkulon and world bosses will still return. However, large, resource-intensive seasonal holiday events like the Winter Convergence are not expected to return.

Amazon has promised to give players at least six months’ notice before any final termination of service takes place, ensuring players have ample time to say their final goodbyes to the world of Aeternum.

origin: New World