New World players have been blasting through levels at an alarming rate. In just two days, some have gone from 0-44, with getting to level 65 taking only 15 hours.
For games like Lord of the Rings Online and other sandboxes, players should ideally take many months to hit max level as it’s the journey that counts.
For smaller-scale themeparks like New World, the ability for users to blitz through it doesn’t hurt the game.
Being able to speed up or slow down leveling at their leisure, something done in games such as LOTRO, would be great to implement more often.
MMOs let the journey take second place to endgames, devaluing the leveling, urging players to rush through zones and content.
MMOs need to make the journey, not the endgame, the real experience.
Instances like WoW Classic are preferred for providing a meaningful journey when compared to the zip-zip-now-you’re-80 retail edition.
There is a fine line between appreciated challenges and arbitrary slow leveling to extend it.
Different games call for different leveling models and there is no one size fits all solutions to leveling too quickly or too slow.
Non-traditional leveling models or systems where everything is relevant at all levels, such as in The Secret World or Elder Scrolls Online, allow for a faster leveling experience.