The previews are mostly positive but some opinions are mixed. It sounds like Eternal where some people love it while others aren’t thrilled about the new changes.
I disagree, the start is the most obtuse part about Terraria. It’s not clear what you should be doing, where you should be going, how to build valid housing for NPCs, etc.
I started blind waaay back when it first released and hated it, then went back to it with a guide and had way more fun. There is NO way someone will figure out without guidance that you’re supposed to go down the holes in the corruption , TNT rocks, then smash orbs with a hammer to summon the 2nd boss.
Once you get into hard mode you can figure things out yourself , but at the start you either need to play with a friend that knows what’s up or follow a guide so you don’t suffer.
Every time I play Terraria I tell myself I’ll actually start building something good then end up making the boring rectangle hotel to stuff all my NPCs in one place. It’s just too good.
Honestly, Diablo 2. It’s a classic, it set the standard for the entire genre and it was a brilliant game. Playing it recently, it feels quite shallow compared to modern ARPGs and lacks a ton of quality-of-life features. Games like Grim Dawn, PoE, Torchlight 2 are way better.
TL;DR: Seems to be more of the same. If you hate AC you’ll hate this, but if you like the AC formula and want more this seems to be one of the better ones.