Hytale Skipping Steam Initially to Avoid Negative Reviews, Console Launch Planned

Hytale will not be available on Steam when it launches in January, Hypixel Studios confirmed, with the developers keen to avoid negative reviews during the early access stage.

After being axed by Riot Games, Hytale was saved by the initial founders of the game and will be released into early access on January 13, with an affordable price of $19.99 for the base version, and, while Steam won’t be available at launch and may never be required, there are plans for a console release.

Hytale Skipping Steam But Coming to Console in Future

Answering a series of frequently asked questions on the Hytale website, executive director Patrick ‘Lyall’ Derbic confirmed Hytale won’t be supported on Steam at launch, with the intention to avoid “overindexing on negative reviews from players that aren’t as well-informed yet about what we are doing.”

The intention is to spend time “working with the community and improving the game,” and, while “Steam is a great marketing tool,” it’s one that may not ever be required. However, the door hasn’t been closed on a Steam launch entirely.

There are plans for launches on console and other platforms in the future, though the early access period will be on PC only. Launching on console “requires a lot of work on backend systems,” and the initial desire is to “focus on making a good game first.”

A mobile version will also not be available during early access, and it remains to be seen whether it’s on the cards at all, as Hypixel Studios are “still evaluating what it would take to make this a feasible reality.”

Are you picking up Hytale immediately or waiting until later in development? Share your thoughts in the Insider Gaming Discord.

For more Hytale, read about the game’s modding strategy, and take a look at details of plans to add proximity chat and multiplayer ‘portals’.