Hytale fans are scrambling to decode the meaning behind a single emoji tweeted by its original co-founder, Simon Collins-Laflamme.
He's been saying he wants to buy back the IP of the Minecraft-inspired survival game from Riot after the League of Legends company cancelled it. Early this morning (or late last night, depending on your timezone), though, Collins-Laflamme tweeted a smiley face with sunglasses in response to his June 29 tweet, "no risk, no story." Now, fans are desperate to know what it means.
"This is either the biggest comeback in the gaming industry or the biggest troll ever. There's truly no in between," one redditor writes. "Simon already has Hytale back and he is preparing this massive reveal, but he is just as excited as us so he decided to foreshadow the comeback just a bit. Guys I'm not crazy please hear me out."
I think it's unlikely Collins-Laflamme already has the IP again, unless he has started talks with Riot unbelievably quickly. He did say an IP buy-back would be the quickest and easiest way to get control of the game again, but this still seems too soon.
Others are simply replying with memes about hopium, praying the emoji signifies good news. "If this somehow happens it will surpass even No Man's Sky as the biggest gaming comeback ever," writes one hopeful fan.
Everyone should temper their expectations. Collins-Laflamme has stated that if he does manage to get hold of the IP, "a lot of content will be getting cut early on" so that the game can first be launched in early access as quickly as possible.
Personally, I think the emoji just means things are going well. That or he's drumming up hype to better help him in negotiations with Riot. What do you think?
In the meantime, check out all the best games like Minecraft you can play while you wait for Hytale.
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