Hypixel Studios is shutting down development of Hytale, its Minecraft-like sandbox creator game. The studio, a subsidiary of Riot Games, posted a blog post explaining that financial support wasn’t enough to buoy the long development time. The game will not be released to the public.
Hypixel Studios has long struggled with delivering on the initial vision for Hytale, and Riot Games’ investment in the developer couldn’t change the fact that the game had a troubled production.
A blog post from Hypixel Studios explains that the development team couldn’t keep up with the rising bar of contemporary sandbox gaming.
«Over time, as our vision evolved and the genre matured around us, the bar kept rising,» the post reads. «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.»
The Hypixel Studios team formed in 2016, taking its name from the wildly-popular Minecraft mod and server it created. An initial investment from Riot Games helped the team broaden its ambition from mod-making to full-fledged game development.
Riot Games bought the independent studio in 2020, furthering the gaming juggernaut’s investment in the completion of Hytale’s development cycle.
Hypixel spoke about development difficulties in its post announcing the shuttering of development on Hytale. It’s unclear what, if any, role Riot played in stopping work on the game, but Hypixel Studios’ blog post mentions that Riot Games helped the developer look for other investors before ultimately choosing to end development of Hytale.
«As we begin winding things down, [Riot is] ensuring our team is supported with generous severance and resources to help them find what’s next,» the post reads. «It’s not just thoughtful — it’s human. And it shows a genuine effort to take care of the people behind the work.»
The Hypixel Minecraft server currently runs completely independently from Hypixel Studios, and will not be affected by the studio closure.
The latest games industry layoffs continue a nasty trend, as the past several years have been rife with career instability. Over 10,500 games industry jobs were lost in 2023, with an additional 14,600 disappearing in 2024. The layoffs have continued at Hypixel Studios and elsewhere, with Microsoft rumored to be preparing for a sizable layoff next week, according to The Verge.
Representatives for Riot Games and Hypixel Studios did not immediately respond for comment.
