The latest update for New World is focused on fixes, as well as setting things up for a Steam free weekend.
Several of the fixes in this patch were for quests that players could just not complete, or which were giving the wrong rewards. The Depths, which has been closed for days pending a fix that will enable players to get quest credit from killing Commander Thorpe, should be fixed with the update. Taking him down in the Expedition should advance the quest which had been completely stuck. In turn, this should mean the Expedition will officially reopen soon.
Another fix addresses a bug in the Tempest’s Soul questline that wasn't awarding loot aligned with a player’s Expertise level. A Main Storyline Quest, “Answer the Call” was not letting players complete it either, with a bug preventing a key item from being granted. If you’re on this quest, resetting it and trying again should work
Repairs also came for a few other bugs. This includes storage chests, which weren’t increasing town storage levels as they should have. Player achievements that weren’t loading at the start of a new session. And the Blunderbuss was also seeing some incorrect placement under Muskets on the Trading Post.
To introduce more players to the game and try to increase active player levels, Amazon is holding a Steam free weekend. All of the game's content will be available to try out for free starting tomorrow, April 7th, at 10 a.m. Pacific time and running through April 11th at 10 a.m. Pacific time. Those that take part in the free weekend will be able to buy the game at a 40% discount through April 18th. If you start new characters during this time, your progress will be saved and you can continue playing if you buy the game.
In a FAQ regarding the free access time, they will “merge free servers after the Steam Free Weekend to ensure healthy world populations”, so it looks like the Steam Weekend won’t let you play directly with existing players during this access period.
