Amazon’s Dead MMO Has a Wild Chance for Revival

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Players of the online game New World received disappointing news earlier this month: Amazon Games announced the game will be shutting down. Amazon stated that continuing to update New World with new content is no longer viable, and the current update will be the last before the game is removed from sale early next year. New World once reached a peak of over 900,000 players at the same time, even surpassing popular games like Marvel Rivals.

Recently, the game has been losing players, and it seems like the end is near, even if players aren’t ready to stop playing. However, there’s a chance things might change. A comment from another game developer, initially made as a joke, has sparked hope that New World could be sold and continued by a different company. Although it’s not guaranteed, this single joke could lead to a revival of the game before it’s officially over, potentially altering its future.

Rust Developer Facepunch Might Be Interested In Saving New World

Amazon has been scaling back its gaming efforts, leading to the closure of several online multiplayer games, including those still in development and established titles. One of these is New World, which is shutting down less than five years after its release. In a humorous move, Alistair McFarlane, a director at Facepunch Studios, playfully offered to buy the game for $25 million on social media.

What started as a playful idea quickly turned into serious discussions. The creators of the Rust programming language reached out to current and former Amazon employees to explore the possibility of supporting New World. According to Facepunch developer McFarlane, he and his team are fans of the game and believe continued support could make it a long-lasting success. However, as of now, nothing is official, and this could simply be a temporary development as Amazon winds down support for New World.

There’s hope for New World, as we’ve seen similar situations succeed before. For example, Hypixel took over the abandoned game Hytale from Riot, and it thrived. Hytale’s success – and the number of people who pre-ordered it after it gained popularity – shows that a dedicated fanbase can revive a game even after it’s been cancelled. Facepunch’s journey with Rust also suggests that they could give New World the time and resources it needs to become a much bigger success.

New World Being Restored Could Open The Door For Other Revivals

The video game industry is facing some challenges right now. We’re seeing exciting new games like ARC Raiders appear, but established franchises are struggling. Call of Duty hasn’t been performing as well, and even long-running series like Prince of Persia have had projects canceled. It’s especially disappointing when online games, or MMOs, shut down – players who invested a lot of time and passion into games like New World and Anthem are left with nothing when the servers are turned off.

The fact that Facepunch is still supporting New World is good news for the gaming world. Games designed for long-term play, with ongoing updates, need a dedicated community to thrive. It seems the team behind Rust believes New World has strong potential, both in its story and how it plays, and they might be able to improve the game and attract players again.

Todd McFarlane seems to genuinely care about games, and his interest in potentially investing feels like a real desire to support a game he loves, not just make money. This kind of passion is what drives gaming culture and keeps games going. That’s why so many players were devastated when Anthem shut down—and why there’s still hope it might return. If Facepunch follows through and successfully revives New World, it could inspire similar efforts to save other beloved games. Given the often-unstable business side of gaming, this could also give players more confidence when trying out online games, knowing there’s a better chance they won’t suddenly disappear.

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2026-01-23 22:41