Riot Games shut down Hypixel Studios before their first game, Hytale, ever hit the market. The news was confirmed today by the studio’s co-founder, Aaron Donaghey, also known as “Noxy” through a lengthy post on social media titled ‘A Difficult Update About Hytale’.
“Today, I shared some incredibly tough news with the Hypixel Studios team: we’re ending development on Hytale and beginning the process of winding down Hypixel Studios over the next few months,” began the message.
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“This is not the outcome any of us – at Hypixel or at Riot – wanted. 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.”
Noxy went ahead to talk about how game development is “brutally hard”, especially when trying to bring something new to life. From the post, we learned that Hytale was rebooted at some point, but it still wasn’t enough to save the game.
“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,” Noxy said. “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.”
Noxy highlighted the different ways the studio tried to keep Hytale going, including adjusting timelines, reducing scope, or finding new angles to keep the project going. However, all of the available options “meant compromising on what made Hytale special in the first place”.
“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 Studios was founded in 2018 and had over 70 members globally. The goal was to apply years of collective experience in the modding and minigame server scenes to independent game development. In 2020, Riot Games acquired the studio, but it continued to operate as an independent studio.
How many people were affected by the Hypixel Studios shutdown?
While the message from Noxy gave clear context on why the Hytale was shut down, which eventually led to the winding down of Hypixel Studios. Noxy also thanked Riot for assisting the team during the transition. However, what was not mentioned is how many employees would be affected by this decision.
However, Amanda Goodall, the CEO of Workforce Intelligence, confirmed through a LinkedIn post that around 150 people would be impacted, adding that Riot was offering those affected a generous severance and resources to help them find new homes—a sentiment that was corroborated by Noxy’s post.
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At the time of writing, several posts have started to surface from former employees of Hypixel Studios. Steve Santarpia, a QA and release management leader, confirmed that Hypixel Studios was shutting down.
“Along with many other extremely talented individuals at Hypixel Studios, I am now looking for new opportunities,” wrote Colten Murphy, a competitive multiplayer and combat designer.
Lead technical writer, Chana Zolty, also mentioned how they were impacted by the studio closure while using the opportunity to highlight their work experience.
“After nearly four incredible years at Hypixel Studios, the project has unfortunately been cancelled,” wrote game designer Tom Su. While it’s bittersweet to say goodbye to something so meaningful, I’m now beginning the search for my next opportunity as a UX Designer.”
“Hi everyone, I am currently back on the job market due to Hypixel Studios shutting down development,” wrote executive assistant Gloria Kum. “The past 8 months have been filled with so much thrill and engagement while working with the team that I am so grateful to have worked on such a project like Hytale that’s fueled with so much passion.”
According to a 2018 press release, Hytale was supposed to be an open-world adventure featuring combat, crafting, and construction for both solo players and groups. It was supposed to have a wide variety of online minigames, including giving players the power to create and share their own.
How do you feel about the cancellation of Hytale and the sunsetting of Hypixel? Share with us in the comment box below.
