Hypixel Studios

What does Hypixel Studios own?
Hypixel Studios owns the Hytale IP, a block-based sandbox game currently in development. The studio also owns the development tools and technology created for the game. The Hypixel Minecraft server, which the founders also created, is operated by Hypixel Inc., a separate entity from Hypixel Studios.

Is Hypixel Studios publicly traded?
No. Hypixel Studios is a privately held company. Following the November 2025 repurchase from Riot Games, the studio is owned entirely by the founding team with no external investors or publishers. The company has no plans for an IPO or public listing.

Who founded Hypixel Studios?
Hypixel Studios was founded in 2018 by Simon Collins-Laflamme and Philippe Touchette, who had previously created the Hypixel Minecraft server in 2013. The server became one of the most popular Minecraft servers in the world, and the founders established Hypixel Studios to develop a standalone game, Hytale, that was not constrained by Minecraft's platform.

Where is Hypixel Studios headquartered?
Hypixel Studios is headquartered in Derry, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom. The company also maintains operations in Canada. The Derry location provides access to talent from both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, while the Canadian office provides access to North American game development talent.

How many brands does Hypixel Studios own?
Hypixel Studios owns one brand: Hytale, a block-based sandbox game currently in development. The company is a single-project studio and does not operate a portfolio of multiple games. The Hypixel Minecraft server is operated by Hypixel Inc., a separate entity.

Who owns Hypixel Studios?
Hypixel Studios is owned entirely by its founding team, led by Simon Collins-Laflamme and Philippe Touchette. The founders repurchased the company and the Hytale IP from Riot Games in November 2025. The studio operates with a 10-year personal funding commitment from the founders, with no external investors, publishers, or corporate parent.

What is Hytale?
Hytale is a block-based sandbox game that combines building, exploration, combat, and adventure gameplay. It is being developed by the team behind the Hypixel Minecraft server. The game features a block-based construction system, procedurally generated worlds, multiplayer support, and modding tools. It is planned for release on PC, Mac, and Linux at a price of approximately $19.99, with console releases considered for later.

Why was Hytale cancelled and then revived?
Hytale was cancelled in June 2025 after over 10 years of development, with the team citing the project's overly ambitious scope. In November 2025, the original team repurchased the game from Riot Games with a 10-year personal funding commitment and resumed development independently. The team stated that the independent structure allows them to set their own pace and priorities without publisher pressure.

Hypixel Studios was founded on October 18, 2018, as a spin-off from Hypixel Inc., the company that operated the Hypixel Minecraft server. The Hypixel server, launched in 2013 by Simon Collins-Laflamme and Philippe Touchette, had grown to become one of the largest Minecraft servers in the world, at times hosting tens of thousands of concurrent players. The server's success demonstrated the founders' ability to build and manage large-scale multiplayer gaming communities.

The decision to create a standalone game came from a desire to build something that was not constrained by Minecraft's engine and platform limitations. Hytale was conceived as a block-based sandbox game with its own engine, art style, and gameplay systems, while retaining the creative building and multiplayer elements that made the Hypixel server popular. The announcement trailer for Hytale, released in December 2018, generated enormous community interest, accumulating millions of views on YouTube and building a large pre-launch community.

In April 2020, Riot Games acquired Hypixel Studios. Riot, the developer of League of Legends and a subsidiary of Tencent Holdings, provided the studio with resources to expand its team and development capabilities. The acquisition was part of Riot's broader strategy of investing in game studios with strong community-building expertise. Financial terms of the acquisition were not publicly disclosed.

Under Riot's ownership, Hypixel Studios expanded to over 65 employees and continued development on Hytale. However, the project faced significant technical challenges. The team decided to migrate the game to a new engine, a process that was expected to be completed by the end of 2024. Engine migrations in game development are complex and time-consuming, often requiring substantial portions of the game to be rebuilt.

In June 2025, after more than 10 years of development (counting from the original concept work), Hypixel Studios announced the cancellation of Hytale. The team cited the project's overly ambitious scope as the primary reason. The cancellation was met with disappointment from the game's community, which had been following development for years. Riot Games began winding down the studio's operations.

In November 2025, the original Hypixel team announced that they had repurchased Hytale from Riot Games. The team secured a 10-year personal funding commitment, with no external investors or publishers involved. This gave the team 100% ownership of the game and complete creative control. The announcement was unusual in the game industry, where cancelled projects are rarely revived, particularly through founder repurchases from a major publisher.

As of 2026, the team has resumed development of Hytale as an independent studio. The game's release timeline has not been specified. The team has indicated that the independent structure allows them to set their own pace and priorities without publisher pressure, though the personal funding model means the team bears full financial risk if the game does not succeed commercially.

The most significant controversy surrounding Hypixel Studios is the cancellation and subsequent revival of Hytale. In June 2025, after more than 10 years of development, the team announced that Hytale was cancelled. The announcement cited the project's overly ambitious scope. This drew criticism from the game's community, who had been following development for years and felt let down by the cancellation after extended development cycles and engine migrations.

The November 2025 repurchase and revival was met with mixed reactions. Some community members were excited about the project's return under independent ownership. Others were skeptical, noting that the same team that had struggled to complete the game under Riot Games' resources would now attempt to finish it with personal funding. The unusual nature of the repurchase, with no investors or publishers, raised questions about whether the personal funding model would be sufficient to complete a project of Hytale's scope.

The extended development cycle has drawn comparisons to other notoriously long game development projects, such as Star Citizen (Cloud Imperium Games), which has been in development since 2012 and has faced similar scrutiny over scope and timeline. While Hytale's situation differs in its cancellation and revival, the parallel has been noted in gaming press coverage.

On regulatory matters, Hypixel Studios operates in the standard regulatory environment for game developers. The studio must comply with content rating systems (ESRB, PEGI) for game release, consumer protection regulations for digital sales, and data protection laws (GDPR in the UK/EU) for any player data collected. As a private company with no released products, the studio has not faced specific regulatory actions or investigations.

The studio's dual-location operations in the UK and Canada require compliance with employment laws in both jurisdictions. The UK's working time regulations and Canada's provincial employment standards apply to the respective offices. No labor disputes or employment-related controversies have been publicly reported.