Amazon Games’ announcement to end active development for the MMORPG New World has triggered an immediate and dramatic exodus of its player base. Following the decision to discontinue updates, the game saw its online player count plummet by about 80% in just a matter of days, spiraling from nearly 50,000 to below 10,000.

The majority of the remaining community abandoned the title after official support ceased, leaving the servers mostly deserted despite being scheduled to remain operational until at least the end of 2026. This decision forms part of a much larger restructuring at Amazon, including the reported layoff of 14,000 employees and a widespread reduction of efforts across its in-house game development.

As a direct consequence, Amazon’s highly anticipated Lord of the Rings MMO project has also been canceled and will never reach players. These sweeping changes shift Amazon Games’ focus away from major MMOs to smaller-scale or partnership projects, casting doubt over the company’s future in the MMO market.