We finally have a release date for the early access build of Hytale. The fun starts on January 13. The game costs $20 and is available for PC players via Steam. Preorders go up on December 13.
This is a true early access build, so don't go in expecting a polished experience. Developer Hypixel Studios says it's "still very much unfinished and will be buggy for a while" but that the team is committed to perfecting the game over time. Studio co-founder Simon Collins-Laflamme recently said "I don't think the game is good yet," so make of that what you will.
For the uninitiated, Hytale is a nifty-looking open world adventure game that looks to be visually inspired by Minecraft. It's been on our radar for years and development goes all the way back to 2015 .
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It's been a long road getting to early access, with enough twists and turns to fuel a boardroom drama. Riot bought the studio in 2020 , ostensibly to continue work on Hytale. However, the company behind League of Legends soured on the concept after a few years. It shut down Hypixel Studios earlier this year and ended development of the game .
That should've been the end, but it wasn't. Hypixel managed to secure funding to buy the rights back from Riot and brought Hytale back from the dead . The company rehired a bunch of staffers that were impacted by Riot's decision and got to work. Hypixel showed off a bunch of new footage of the game just one day after it announced the acquisition. That's what the kids refer to as a "flex."
In any event, it's good to get a happy ending for once. Hytale may not be a polished product when the early access is released in January, but I have full confidence that it'll get there.