The devs behind Hytale, the long-awaited spiritual successor to Minecraft, have just posted a new development update suggesting that the game is still in the prototyping and engine development phase of production. After 8 years in development, many fans aren't seeing this level of progress as a good sign.
You can read the full blog post from developer Hypixel Studios if you want to see all the nitty-gritty details for yourself, but in summary, the devs decided back in 2021 to build "a new custom engine and brought on a development partner to help us do so." Now, in 2023, they're staffing up, continuing to build that new engine, and using the old engine to prototype new gameplay ideas.
Beyond that, the blog doesn't offer a whole lot of concrete info. We see a new design for an NPC race, and get a few details on a central shared online space called the Capital, but if you're hoping for something as substantial as a trailer or even some new in-game screenshots, you're out of luck. The devs that, with the engine switch, the game is in a bit of an "awkward, self-conscious phase."
That hasn't really satisfied fans who've been looking forward to Hytale since its announcement years ago. "This blog post feels like submitting a last-minute school assignment with just the bare minimum to pass," as one Reddit user puts it.
"I don’t like being a doomer but are you serious?" another asks. "They don’t want to show anything because it doesn’t look good in the new engine? They haven’t even ported everything over and half the team isn’t even working with the new engine yet? That doesn’t make me very hopeful that this game is even going to come out. I was expecting a terrible blog post but this is even worse than I thought. Best to not follow this game anymore until it’s releasing."
"GTA 6 definitely coming out before Hytale," yet another jokes.
Hytale initially entered production in 2015, led by the developers behind the popular Hypixel Minecraft server. The studio wanted to take control of its own destiny - partly prompted by controversial changes to the Minecraft EULA in 2014 - and started building something that seemed poised to be a proper successor to the mega-popular block builder.
The 2018 reveal trailer for Hytale garnered over 60 million views, and Hytale continued to impress at every turn. The title even caught the eye of Riot Games, which invested heavily in Hypixel Studios before fully acquiring the developer in 2020. Since then, the game's scope has increased substantially - to the point where it's now been heavily delayed. Updates from the studio have been growing fewer and farther between, too.
"I'm happy to report that we're closing off the year on track for our milestones in the new engine and excited to move forward," the devs say in the new blog. "You can expect our updates to grow in frequency as we move into this next phase of Hytale's development, particularly when we're in a position to once again show off in-engine gameplay."
If you're looking for more games like Minecraft, you know where to click.
