Promising Minecraft-like sandbox adventure Hytale has been cancelled after a decade of development, and creator Hypixel Studios is “winding down” its operations.
Hytale began development in 2015, and was Hypixel’s attempt at combining the mini-games found on its hugely popular eponymous Minecraft server – which has been visited by more than 18m visitors since its inception in 2013 – with its own RPG-like, Minecraft-style sandbox experience, built from the ground up. And there’s been a lot of buzz around the project for a long time, with League of Legends developer Riot Games investing millions in Hytale prior to acquiring Hypixel in 2020. But now the plug has been pulled.
Hypixel announced the “incredibly tough news” in a lengthy statement on its website. “This is not the outcome any of us – at Hypixel or at Riot – wanted,” it wrote. “But after years of pushing forward, adapting, and exploring every possible path, it became clear we couldn’t bring Hytale to life in a way that truly delivered on its promise.”
“Game development is brutally hard – especially when you’re trying to build something original that speaks to a creative, passionate community,” it continued. “Over time, as our vision evolved and the genre matured around us, the bar kept rising. Our technical ambitions grew more complex, and even after a major reboot of the game engine, the team found that Hytale still wasn’t as far along as it needed to be. It became clear we’d need a lot more time to get it to a place where it could support the ambitious vision for the game.
“We looked at reducing scope, adjusting timelines, and finding new angles to keep moving forward. But each of those options would have meant compromising on what made Hytale special in the first place. It wouldn’t have been the game we set out to make. And it wouldn’t have been the game you deserve. This is a painful decision. We still believe in Hytale. We believe in the team, and are forever grateful to every member, past or present, who poured their love into the game. We’re also incredibly proud of the work we did: the world we imagined, the risks we took, and the heart we poured into this project. None of that can be taken away. And just to clarify – this doesn’t affect the Hypixel server on Minecraft. It’s run separately from Hypixel Studios and will continue to operate as usual.”
Hypixel’s statement suggests it had attempted to “see if there were investors or acquirers who could continue to help carry Hytale forward”, but with no more funding coming from Riot and the project now dead, employees – said to number “100+” on Hypixel’s website – are being “supported with generous severance and resources to help them find what’s next”. Hypixel itself is “beginning the process of winding down… over the next few months”.
“To our community: thank you,” the statement concludes. “Your belief in Hytale kept us going through thick and thin… Even though we’re closing this chapter, the spirit of Hytale and everything we hoped it could be will stay with us. We’re proud of what we built, and we’ll carry those lessons forward into whatever comes next.”