One of the most anticipated releases of 2021, New World — Amazon Games’ foray into the MMORPG genre — is giving players a chance to jump into the world of Aeternum a bit early via a closed beta test. Here’s how you can participate.
Despite a delay that’s dragged on for more than a year, and harsh criticism from the community over plans for its monetization systems, plenty of players are still excited about the release of New World — what has become the crown jewel of Amazon Games.
While the MMORPG isn’t slated for a full release until August 31, players will have a chance to jump into the exciting and unexplored fantasy world of Aeternum a bit early during a scheduled beta test being held by the developer.
The testing session is already set in stone, but it’s not available to just anyone, and there are a few ways you can either guarantee yourself a spot or just a chance to be selected for participation. Here’s everything you need to know about getting into New World’s closed beta.
Players who are eager for a chance to jump into Aeternum early can do so in the closed beta.
New World closed beta dates and platforms
The New World closed beta will begin on July 20 at 9:30 AM PDT/12:30 PM EDT/4:30 PM GMT/6:30 PM CET, and will end on August 2 at 11:59 PM PDT/2:59 AM EDT/6:59 AM GMT/8:59 AM CET.
Amazon’s MMO experience will be PC-only (as most veterans of the genre already expected), and will be playable via Steam (although you can purchase Steam keys directly from Amazon, so it might be time to break out any gift cards you have lying about).
Servers will available for players in North America, Europe, Australia and Brazil, so if you reside in one of those geographic areas, you’ll be able to jump into the beta if you receive access — and here’s every way you can put yourself on that list.
New World’s closed beta will run from July 20 to August 2.
How to access New World closed beta
There are two ways you can set yourself up with access to the New World closed beta: by signing up through a dedicated page for volunteer testers, or by pre-ordering a copy of the game from either the Steam storefront or Amazon itself.
Amazon has confirmed they will grant access to random groups of testers throughout the beta, so make sure to sign up (if you haven’t already) and keep an eye out for an email inviting you to participate at some point during the event.
If you purchased a copy of New World through Amazon prior to July 17, you’ll receive an invite to the beta on July 19, the day before it goes live. Keys purchased through Amazon at a later date guarantee access to the beta within 48 hours of your order confirmation.
Finally, if you’ve already preordered New World on Steam, or plan to do so after the beta kicks off, you’ll automatically receive access to the testing session via a “New World Closed Beta” program that will appear in your Steam library.
Here’s what you’ll need to run New World on your PC.
New World system requirements for PC
Before signing up as a New World tester, or pre-purchasing a copy of the game, you’ll want to make sure your hardware stacks up to the MMO’s minimum system requirements. These are all the components you’ll need to run New World’s beta (and the full game) on your PC:
Minimum System Requirements
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
- OS: Windows® 10 64-bit
- Processor: Intel® Core™ i5-2400 / AMD CPU with 4 physical cores @ 3Ghz
- Memory: 8 GB RAM
- Graphics: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 670 2GB / AMD Radeon R9 280 or better
- DirectX: Version 12
- Network: Broadband Internet connection
- Storage: 35 GB available space
- Additional Notes: Internet connection required to play, offers in-game purchases
Recommended System Requirements
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
- OS: Windows® 10 64-bit
- Processor: Intel® Core™ i7-2600K / AMD Ryzen 5 1400
- Memory: 16 GB RAM
- Graphics: NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 970 / AMD Radeon R9 390X or better
- DirectX: Version 12
- Network: Broadband Internet connection
- Storage: 35 GB available space
- Additional Notes: Internet connection required to play, offers in-game purchases
Thankfully, you don’t need a top-of-the-line PC in order to meet even the recommended system requirements for New World, so if your machine is a few years old, or just not that powerful, you should (hopefully) be able to run the game without issue.
That’s everything you need to know about reserving a spot in the beta (or a chance for one) and whether or not your system can run the game. This will be your last chance to experience Aeternum before New World’s full release, so make sure to jump in before the beta ends on August 2.
