Riot Games announced Hytale as a revolution in the open world games, but officially canceled the project after years of development. The statement came from Riot Games itself, a company responsible for titles such as League of Legends and Valorant, and who had acquired developer Hypixel Studios in 2020. With this, in addition to the end of the project, the developer is also being closed.
Since his revelation in 2018, Hytale has awakened expectations for combining creative freedom of games like Minecraft with a deeper narrative and mechanical structure typical of RPGs. The proposal involved procedural generated worlds, unique enemies in each region, extended support to mods and creative tools accessible to the community.
A promising project that never materialized
The promise was to create an innovative experience, accessible to casual players and content creators. However, the long cycle of development, coupled with constant changes in scope and technical problems, eventually made the project unsustainable.
According to Aaron “Noxy” Donaghey, co -founder of Hypixel Studios, development has undergone several reformulations. However, at some point, the game had its engine replaced, requiring a new production cycle practically from scratch. Even so, the team concluded that Hytale was still far from reaching the desired quality level.
Noxy admitted that alternatives such as reducing the scope of the game or looking for external investors were considered, but none was viable without compromising the original view. Riot Games, which had been funding the studio from the beginning, has decided to definitely end the project, stating that it could no longer support such extensive production outside its main ecosystem.
Riot Games moves away from projects outside his main portfolio
In recent years, Riot had been trying to expand its performance beyond the universe of League of Legends. Hytale's cancellation, however, indicates a strategic change. Instead of maintaining large projects outside its main core, the company now seems to prioritize direct synergy titles with its established franchises.
This decision was directly consequence for the closure of Hypixel Studios. Although the number of impacted employees was not disclosed, it is estimated that more than 70 people were part of the team, according to LinkedIn records.
Hypixel legacy and community impact
Hypixel was initially known by its Minecraft server, created in 2013. With a solid base of fans and innovative experiences, the server served as the basis for the ambition to create a game of its own. It is still unclear whether the Hypixel server will remain active after the studio end, but it continues to operate until the moment of publication.
Hytale's cancellation frustrates a community that accompanied development for years, fed by trailers, update blogs, and promises from a game that would unite creativity, combat and narrative in one universe.
Despite the cancellation, Riot Games has ensured dismissal packages and support for impacted professionals. In his final message, Noxy thanked the team and the community for their support during the years of development.
