Disappointed fans of “Hytale” have launched a petition in an effort to see the procedurally generated sandbox RPG released in some form. The petition has already gathered nearly 1,600 signatures. It mentions the publisher Riot Games, developer Hypixel Studios, and Hypixel founder Simon Collins-Laflamme, but no response has been received from any party so far.
“Hytale” was created by a group of successful “Minecraft” mod developers and announced at the end of 2018. The game aimed to adopt a blocky visual style reminiscent of “Minecraft,” showing great potential by placing role-playing elements above survival mechanics and promising creative tools for players to design custom content, which excited many.
However, fans faced major disappointment when Hypixel announced the cancellation of “Hytale” and the gradual shutdown of the emerging studio earlier this week. Shortly after the announcement, a player started a petition on Change.org requesting Hypixel or Riot Games to provide any playable version of the canceled game to the loyal fanbase. The petition has since gained 1,582 signatures and continues to grow, though no official response has been made.
The long development cycle of “Hytale” ended in this unfortunate way, prompting many potential players to voice their feelings through the petition site. One fan who had followed the game since its announcement said they found inspiration and motivation in anticipating the release, but the cancellation left them devastated. Another online content creator, who had produced and shared “Hytale” content for years, expressed sadness more for the community’s demise than the game itself. However, releasing an unfinished version seems contrary to the team’s wishes expressed in the cancellation statement, which said scaling down the game or adjusting timelines would result in a product that does not meet the team’s vision and “would not be the game you deserve.”
Even if the petition succeeds in giving players access to an unfinished version, the chances of officially restarting development are very slim. The initial release window for “Hytale” was postponed at the end of 2019 after developers realized the scope was “massive.” In a recent message to players, Hypixel co-founder NoxyD described the development as “extremely difficult” and noted that after a long development period, the game still fell short of the team’s ambitious goals.
