Riot Sells Cancelled Game Back to Co-Founder to Restore Original Vision

The announcement of the closure of the Hytale studio by Riot Games caused a somewhat surprising response within the gaming community, as it was seen as the long-awaited sandbox RPG which was, in fact, given up. The later examination showed that the termination of the development left a large segment of the fan base with no option to pursue the project. 

However, Riot later, in a series of unexpected events, sold Hytale back to its original co-founder, Simon Collins-Laflamme, which quickly returned the project to its preceding leadership format. 

The move has, in effect, revived the development process with Collins-Laflamme re-hiring more than thirty former developers, with some more anticipated to come on board soon. It seems that Hytale is finally feeling reinvigorated after several years.

Why Riot Let It Go?

As Riot put it, the further existence of Hytale would not be a strategically viable move by the corporation. The growing complexity of the project, including multiple delays, changes to the engine of the game, and alternating goals, had made the project resource-intensive. 

Riot informed that even though it could not continue working on the project, the company tried to enable a situation where the community could eventually access the game. The step to give up the project to the initial team was thus considered the most effective path to this end. 

The leadership recognised the incredible efforts undertaken over the years and hoped that one day the community of fans would finally be in a position to enjoy the product.

Coming back to the Original Vision

The constant scope expansion was one of the main reasons behind the poor performance of the project while it was under Riot. Gradually, the original vision was successively exaggerated, the genre categorisation changed, and the expectations were raised. The ambition internally to develop an ever-sophisticated product led to many delays. 

This time around, Collins-Laflamme claims that the next version will be a re-catering of the initial idea that Hytale was founded on. He insists that the initial blueprint of the project was the most crucial factor that triggered the excitement of the players, and going back to that initial direction is what the team is strategising now.

A Self‑Funded Future

According to Collins-Laflamme, the recompensed team will work in complete autonomy and is committed to funding Hytale over the next 10 years. He has personally pledged a significant amount of money to the project, and this is indicative of a strong faith in the project. 

This effort is not an isolated one; co-founder of Hypixel, Philippe Touchette, has also contributed to funding the project and is actively engaged in organising the financial structure of the project. 

This long-term funding model shows that the project is specifically taking into account the sustainability of the project in the future and an attempt to reduce the ongoing problems that have led to delays in projects in the past.

What Players Can Expect Next

This does not imply that the development has not resumed; Collins-Laflamme warns that the newest version is still in its infancy. He has described the current construction as haphazard and amateurish, and much has to be done to build it up. 

However, the team plans to launch the title in an almost-finished version, probably with an early-access model. Players ought to set their expectations at the right level, which means that they cannot expect the game to be released without any flaws on the first day of release. 

Instead, it aims at a joint reconstruction of the game together with the community and refining it gradually as time progresses.

The importance of this to the Hytale Community

To the fans that were eager to see the project once its debut in 2018, the news is the most positive in a long time. Numerous participants had expected the initiative to lose irreversibly after being cancelled. 

The reality that the founding founder has been able to reclaim the project, reacquire the very core development team, and commit to long-term support provides the community with a substantial resurgent opportunity. It is not that Hytale is out of trouble yet; the future of the gaming project looks brighter than ever before in a long time.