New World how to play with friends and cross server play
It's dangerous to go alone
If you’re wondering how to play with friends in New World, you’re not alone.
An MMO is only as fun as the people you’re playing it with, but New World isn’t keen on making the process clear. Unlike other MMOs, you’re a bit limited on who you can play with as well.
New World how to play with friends
You can join up with friends as soon as you clear the initial tutorial, though some of your interactions with themdon’t unlock until later. Open the menu by pressing “Escape,” and you’ll see a small icon in the upper left corner. The icon is unlabeled, but it’s the social menu.
Clicking it opens a variety of options, but the search bar is what you want for adding friends. You’ll have to manually search for a friend using their New World name — not their Steam name — then click their name to send a friend request.
Below that is the group menu, where you can manage company matters and invite people to your company.
Once you hit level 10, you can instigate a PvP showdown with friends as well. Make sure you go in prepared with good armor and a decent build.
New World how to play with friends - New World co-op
New World is a bit tricky about letting you team up with friends for quests, at least initially. After finishing the tutorial on the haunted beach, you'll spawn at a random point on the regular beach. Speak with the quest-giver to start to finish your initial tutorial, but don't speak with him again just yet
Wait to meet up with your friend first, and then take on the quest to find the Mysterious Old Man. Otherwise, you'll have to wait until after that quest chain before you can start taking on missions with friends.
If you're not certain where your friends are, make sure to form a group first. Click the icon under the social menu icon, then add your friends to a group. You'll see their names appear in blue on the screen and a waypoint marker showing where they are.
New World how to play with friends - New World cross server play
The catch is you can only do this with friends playing in the same world. New World cross server play isn’t a thing as of the MMO’s launch, and neither is cross world play. If you’re still early in your adventure or don’t want to play alone, it’s worth coordinating which server and world you want to join before starting. You can also create an additional character on a new world.
Amazon is also letting players change worlds for free in the two weeks following launch to help deal with server issues.
If you're still getting your land legs in New World, check out our guides for finding some of Aeternum's rarer items and animals, including Churro Sheep, Saltpeter, and Flawed Freshwater Pearl