Five months ago, Hytale was dead. Riot Games cancelled the ambitious sandbox game, shut down Hypixel Studios, and everyone assumed that was the end of one of gaming’s most hyped projects. The community mourned what could have been, developers moved on to new jobs, and the dream of a Minecraft competitor faded into memory.
Then on November 17, 2025, Simon Collins-Laflamme did something almost unheard of in the gaming industry. He bought it all back.
The Deal That Brought Hytale Back
Simon Collins-Laflamme, the original co-founder of Hypixel Studios, announced on the official Hytale website that he has successfully reacquired the game’s intellectual property and studio assets from Riot Games. He’s not just buying back his old project – he’s personally committing to fund its development for the next ten years.
This isn’t just talk either. Collins-Laflamme has already brought back over 30 former developers who worked on Hytale before the cancellation. These are people who know the game inside and out, who spent years building the systems and creating the world. And he’s planning to hire even more in the coming months.
The financial details haven’t been disclosed, but Collins-Laflamme previously stated he was willing to put down $25 million of his own money to make this happen. That’s roughly what he likely earned when he sold Hypixel Studios to Riot Games back in 2020. He’s essentially betting everything on bringing this game to life.
Fellow co-founder Philippe Touchette is also involved, co-funding the venture and handling the financial structure. Kevin Carstens returns as technical lead, while Patrick Derbic takes on the management lead role. It’s a small team compared to what Riot was running, but they’re independent and focused on a single goal – releasing Hytale.
Why Riot Cancelled It in the First Place
To understand why this comeback is so remarkable, you need to know what happened in June 2025. Riot Games announced they were cancelling Hytale development and closing Hypixel Studios after nearly ten years of work on the project.
The reasons were complex but familiar to anyone who follows game development. Technical challenges kept mounting as the team repeatedly rebuilt the game engine. The creative vision kept expanding beyond what was originally planned, transforming from a PC-focused sandbox game into an ambitious cross-platform live service title.
Mission creep became a serious problem. Every time they solved one technical hurdle, expectations rose and new features got added to the roadmap. The game that launched with a stunning trailer in 2018 that garnered 61 million views kept evolving into something bigger and more complicated than anyone initially envisioned.
Team burnout was another factor. Developers had been working on Hytale since 2015. That’s nearly a decade of crunch, delays, restarts, and mounting pressure from an increasingly impatient fanbase. When Riot acquired the studio in 2020, everyone expected a release soon after. Instead, delays continued piling up.
Eventually, Riot made the difficult decision that continuing development didn’t make strategic sense for their company. The resources and time required to finish Hytale in a way that met expectations just couldn’t be justified anymore. So they pulled the plug.
How the Community Kept Hope Alive
Here’s where the story gets interesting. Most cancelled games stay cancelled. Studios announce the bad news, fans get upset for a few weeks, and then everyone moves on. That’s not what happened with Hytale.
Within a week of the cancellation announcement, Collins-Laflamme posted on social media that he believed in Hytale so much he’d personally fund its completion. He committed to reaching out to Riot Games about potentially buying back the project. At the time, many people assumed this was wishful thinking or emotional reaction to bad news.
But he was serious. Throughout the summer and fall of 2025, Collins-Laflamme was in active negotiations with Riot. The community tracked every hint and rumor, noticing in mid-November that the Hytale website’s nameservers had been transferred to new holders associated with the original founders.
That speculation turned out to be accurate. Just days later, the official announcement dropped – Hytale was saved.
Going Back to the Original Vision
One of the most important things Collins-Laflamme emphasized in his announcement is that development will return to the original vision for Hytale. That 2018 trailer that got everyone excited – that’s what they’re making again.
The game will focus on deep world-building, creative freedom similar to Minecraft, robust modding tools that let players create their own content, and MMO-style adventure elements. It’s not trying to be a live service game or chase current trends. It’s going back to what made people fall in love with the concept in the first place.
This represents a fundamental shift from where things were heading under Riot’s ownership. When a massive company like Riot acquires a small studio, there’s inevitable pressure to think bigger, reach wider audiences, and generate more revenue. Features get added, scopes expand, and projects drift away from their core identity.
Now that Hypixel Studios is fully independent again, they can make decisions based purely on what’s best for the game rather than what fits into a larger corporate strategy. Collins-Laflamme has complete creative control and the personal financial backing to see it through without outside interference.
What To Actually Expect
Before everyone gets too excited, Collins-Laflamme was very clear about setting realistic expectations. Hytale in its current state is messy. It’s janky. There’s a lot of work to be done before it’s ready for any kind of public release.
The plan is to get the game into players’ hands as soon as possible, likely in some form of early access. It won’t be perfect on day one. There will be rough edges, bugs, missing features, and plenty of issues that need addressing.
But that’s actually part of the strategy. Rather than spending another five years trying to create a polished masterpiece, they’re aiming to release something playable and then work with the community to shape it into what it should be. Think of how games like Minecraft, Terraria, and Valheim evolved through early access with constant player feedback.
Content at launch will feature Exploration mode for adventuring through the procedurally generated world, Creative mode for building without restrictions, and crucially, modding support. That last element is huge because Hypixel’s roots come from running the most popular Minecraft server, which thrived on custom game modes and community creativity.
Why This Almost Never Happens
Collins-Laflamme himself acknowledged how rare this type of transaction is in the gaming industry. Large publishers don’t usually sell cancelled projects back to their original creators. It’s messy legally, complicated financially, and goes against normal business practices.
When a game gets cancelled, the IP typically just sits in a vault somewhere. The publisher might use individual assets or concepts in future projects, but the actual game stays dead. That’s what everyone expected to happen with Hytale.
The fact that Riot agreed to this sale speaks to a few things. First, they genuinely did want what’s best for players rather than just protecting their investment. Second, they probably evaluated multiple offers and determined that selling to Collins-Laflamme gave the community the best chance of actually playing the game someday.
There’s also the reality that Riot wasn’t going to do anything with Hytale otherwise. The project didn’t fit their portfolio or strategic direction. Selling it back cleared an asset off their books, recouped some of their investment, and generated positive PR by giving the game a second chance.
For Collins-Laflamme, this represents an extraordinary personal and financial commitment. He’s betting his own money and reputation on being able to finish what he started. That level of dedication is rare in an industry where most executives and founders are looking to cash out rather than buy back in.
What About Noxy and the Others
One notable absence from the revival announcement is Noxy (Aaron Donaghey), who was CEO of Hypixel Studios under Riot’s ownership and delivered the original cancellation message. While he publicly expressed gratitude that players will eventually get to play Hytale and thanked Collins-Laflamme for bringing it back, it’s clear he won’t be returning to the development team.
This makes sense given the circumstances. The project is going back to its roots with a much smaller, more focused team. Not everyone who worked on Hytale during the Riot years will be coming back. The 30+ developers who have been rehired are specifically those who align with the revised scope and vision.
Collins-Laflamme thanked Noxy for all his work over the years and for helping facilitate the deal that made this acquisition possible. It seems like things ended professionally even if they’re moving in different directions.
Timeline and Next Steps
So when can people actually play Hytale? The honest answer is nobody knows for sure, but Collins-Laflamme emphasized getting something playable out as soon as possible rather than perfectionism paralysis.
Given that over 30 experienced developers are already back on the team and they’re working from an existing codebase rather than starting from scratch, an early access release within the next year isn’t unrealistic. Don’t expect a polished 1.0 launch anytime soon, but some form of public testing could happen relatively quickly.
The commitment to funding development for ten years shows this isn’t a rush job. They have time to iterate, improve, and respond to feedback without external pressure to hit arbitrary deadlines or revenue targets. This patient approach might actually work better than the previous strategy of trying to launch a complete experience all at once.
FAQs
Who reacquired Hytale from Riot Games?
Simon Collins-Laflamme, the original co-founder of Hypixel Studios, reacquired Hytale’s intellectual property and studio assets on November 17, 2025. He’s co-funding the project with fellow co-founder Philippe Touchette.
Why was Hytale cancelled in the first place?
Riot Games cancelled Hytale in June 2025 due to mounting technical challenges, mission creep that expanded the scope beyond original plans, team burnout after nearly a decade of development, and the determination that continuing didn’t align with Riot’s strategic direction.
How much did it cost to buy back Hytale?
The exact financial details weren’t disclosed, but Collins-Laflamme previously stated he was willing to invest $25 million of his own money. This likely represents a significant portion of what he earned when selling Hypixel Studios to Riot in 2020.
When will Hytale release now?
No specific date has been announced, but Collins-Laflamme committed to releasing it in early access form as soon as possible rather than waiting for perfection. Based on the team size and existing progress, sometime in 2026 seems plausible.
How many developers are working on Hytale now?
Over 30 former Hypixel Studios developers who worked on Hytale before the cancellation have been rehired, with more hires expected soon. This is a smaller team than what Riot had, focused on the game’s core vision.
Will Hytale be the same game announced in 2018?
Yes, Collins-Laflamme emphasized returning to the original vision featuring deep world-building, creative freedom, modding tools, and MMO-style adventure. They’re moving away from the expanded cross-platform live service direction it took under Riot.
Is the Hypixel Minecraft server affected by any of this?
No, the Hypixel Minecraft server operates separately and was never impacted by either the Hytale cancellation or the reacquisition. It continues running normally.
Will Noxy return to work on Hytale?
No, Noxy (Aaron Donaghey), who was CEO under Riot’s ownership, will not be joining the revived development team. He expressed support for the project but is moving in a different direction professionally.
Conclusion
This is one of the most unusual stories in modern gaming. A founder buying back his cancelled project from the massive publisher who acquired it isn’t something you see happen. It required Collins-Laflamme to put his money where his mouth is, Riot to be flexible enough to make the deal, and a community passionate enough to keep hope alive during the darkest months.
Whether Hytale ultimately succeeds or fails is still an open question. The challenges that led to its cancellation haven’t disappeared just because ownership changed hands. Technical complexity, feature creep, and sky-high expectations remain serious obstacles that a smaller independent team will need to navigate.
But now there’s at least a chance. Fans who watched that 2018 trailer and dreamed about exploring those blocky worlds might actually get to play the game someday. Developers who poured years of their lives into this project get another opportunity to see it through to completion. And the gaming industry gets a reminder that passion and determination sometimes matter more than corporate strategy.
Collins-Laflamme closed his announcement by acknowledging it won’t be perfect at first. He’s asking the community to come along for the journey and help shape Hytale into something special together. After everything this project has been through, that humble collaborative approach might be exactly what it needs to finally cross the finish line.