Hytale Announcement Trailer Has Seen Huge Success in Just One Month
Just last month Hypixel Studios, the company behind the Hipixel Minecraft server, announced their very first game called Hytale. Along with the announcement, they released a reveal trailer that has seen massive success already.
If you haven’t heard much about the game, it’s a sandbox role-playing game influenced by the box style graphics of Minecraft. What’s crazy though is that in less than one month, the trailer for Hytale has amassed over 31 million views on YouTube.
Just to put that into perspective, Fortnite’s Season 5 Trailer, the most watched video gaming trailer in 2018, earned a whopping 48 million views in 6 months and the Red Dead Redemption 2 announcement trailer has earned 17 million views in over 2 years. Now this very first video from the small studio has already earned over half the amount of the Fortnite video in a fraction of the time and that’s pretty insane. You can check the video that’s getting all the attention below.
If you want to know more, here’s the official description straight from the game’s website: “Embark on a journey of adventure and creativity. Hytale combines the scope of a sandbox with the depth of a roleplaying game, immersing players in a procedurally generated world where teetering towers and deep dungeons promise rich rewards. Hytale supports everything from block-by-block construction to scripting and minigame creation, delivered using easy to use and powerful tools.”
If the views are anything to go by, Hytale is looking like it might be a serious Minecraft competitor, especially if it continues to gain traction in the industry. Given that Minecraft is one of the best-selling video games of all time, only time will tell just how well Hytale will do once released on PC. As it stands right now though, there is no release date set, nor has the team decided whether this will be free-to-play. You can check out the official website for all the current known details.
Are you one of these 31 million views? What do you think about what you’ve seen of Hytale so far? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below and don’t forget to keep it locked for updates!
Fans of Nintendo games have awesome ways of showing their devotion to their favorite company, whether it’s with a collection filled with SNES and Nintendo 64 titles; or collecting a number of stuffed Mario dolls (or, dare we suggest, Tingle from the Legend of Zelda series). But one particular fan decided to go all out, essentially turning his television into a giant Nintendo Switch.
The Germany-based user managed to put together the Joy-Cons by hand, which also serve as a storage unit that can hold up to 40 Nintendo Switch games right there next to the TV. So while the games may not be on display, the rest of the unit still looks cool enough that you can’t help but gaze in awe.
But that’s not all. For good measure, Logbies also managed to put together a table that resembles a Nintendo Switch, right down to having a video screen. Again, it’s not playable, but it looks so cool that we can’t help but want one in our living room anyway. And those that try to prop their feet up on it will get a very stern warning, if not a full brush-off with our favorite Mario hat. Off, off!
You can see the video of the Nintendo table above, on the Switch_Dreamer YouTube channel. It doesn’t appear that there’s a video yet that documents the creation of the large Joy-Cons for the television, but hopefully we’ll get one soon. In the meantime, here’s a cool behind-the-scenes photo.
(Photo: Reddit)
We can’t help but wonder what Logbies might build next. Whatever it is, though, the users over on Reddit seem to be ready for it, providing a healthy amount of feedback on his post.
Some noted things like “This is really cool” and “Nice work. I guarantee someone will repost this in /r/gaming with a title like ‘this tv’ and get 10k upvotes.” Others, however, got constructive with their words, with one user suggesting that this is the new Nintendo Switch XL that Nintendo might release later this year, and another wondering if it supports Bluetooth. It’s all in good fun, though.0COMMENTS
Back in December, Hypixel Studios announced its debut game, Hytale, a sandbox role-playing game that wears its Minecraft influence on its blocky sleeve.
A month later, and the announcement trailer for the game has exploded to 31 million views, suggesting there may soon be a new Minecraft competitor.
To put 31 million views into perspective, Fortnite’s Season 5 trailer — the most viewed gaming trailer in 2018 — racked up 48 million views in six months. Hytale has 31 million views in less than a month. That’s pretty damn impressive.
So, what the heck is all the hooplah about? Well, for one, the game looks pretty darn good. Two, Minecraft is one of the biggest games of all-time and is still very popular, and so when a game comes around evoking it, there’s a massive potential audience to come clicking. And lastly, because of who is developing the game.
Hypixel Studios isn’t just a random development team out of nowhere. It’s a team that created the huge Minecraft Hypixel server. And as you would expect, the massive following it created with that has followed the team over to Hytale.
Oh, and the team has the support of Riot Games — the makers of League of Legends — which doesn’t hurt.
“Embark on a journey of adventure and creativity,” reads an official description for the game. “Hytale combines the scope of a sandbox with the depth of a roleplaying game, immersing players in a procedurally generated world where teetering towers and deep dungeons promise rich rewards. Hytale supports everything from block-by-block construction to scripting and minigame creation, delivered using easy to use and powerful tools.”
“As you traverse each generated landscape, you’ll piece together the history of the world through handcrafted adventure scenarios. You might encounter a mage’s tower overrun with monsters, descend into an underground cavern, or take on a colossal boss monster. With a wide variety of scenarios available at launch, no two adventures will be the same.”
Hytale is in development for PC. At the moment of publishing, there’s no word of a release date or console ports.
For more information and media on the game, be sure to peep its official website. And of course, feel free to leave a comment letting us know what you think. How does the game look? Will Hytale takedown Minecraft?
The Minecraft Marketplace continues to draw in more people than ever with free content. That led to yet another huge spikes in downloads for the month to 2,255,888. That’s up from 1,351,438 in September. While many people are downloading the free promotional worlds and experiences, that should get people used to the idea of using the store. And creators could see even more sales in the future as a result.
As with September, a lot of the free content in October came from The Minecraft Team’s MineCon Earth fan event. That’s where the developer introduced its Grid Runners mode. It’s also where Jigarbov launched the free MineCon Earth version of Abstraction. On top of those, The Minecraft Team also launched the Purple Parrot Party Palace, which is also free.
So the download numbers continue to climb for the Marketplace. We’ll have to see if that increases spending.
The Minecraft Team officially has broken the seal on wide-scale use of its Minecraft Marketplace. Downloads for November were 4,566,013. That’s double the 2,255,888 downloads from October. Once again, free content was a major driver for that growth. But that huge influx of players to the store could spill over into real purchases — especially considering what is launching in Minecraft just in time for the year-end holidays.
Beginning today, December 20, The Minecraft Team is launching the Season of Giving event. Only it is Microsoft, Mojang, and its creator partners doing the giving. As part of this celebration, you will get a bunch of in-game content for free.
Holiday events are turning into a bigger tradition in video games. A big reason for that is that developers that run games as services want to engage with players who are spending Christmas playing on their new consoles, laptops, smartphones, and TVs. For years now, mobile games have capitalized on that by releasing content just in time for December 25. And now Minecraft and Fortnite are doing the same on console and PC.
Did you say free?
The Season of Giving freebies include a new adventure map from the creation team Gamemode One called Catastrophic Pandamonium. While that might sound like a disaster, I encourage you to notice the puns. CATastrophic PANDAmonium is indeed a showcase for the cat and panda animal creatures that got an update (cats) or debuted (pandas) in the latest patch.
But Catastrophic Pandamonium isn’t the only gift The Minecraft Team has in store for you. You can also get special discounts as part of a holiday deals promotion that is running through January 3.
Above: Gifts are only available for a limited time.Image Credit: The Minecraft Team
Finally, on Christmas Day, the Minecraft Marketplace is getting a free Winter Gifts Bundle with plenty of extra goods.
Inspiration Island by Minecraft: “Visit Inspiration Island, a floating theme park world filled with creative challenges. Whether you are new to Creative Mode or just need a little extra inspiration, a visit here sets you on the path to craft your own groundbreaking worlds.”
Purple Parrot Party Place by Minecraft: “A celebration of all things purple parrot party and palace! Master the mechanics of fireworks, armor stands, jukeboxes, and banners. Traverse a jungle island to find a massive parrot temple.”
Legacy Skin Pack by Minecraft: “Get cracking with these starter skins and old favorites brought over from Minecraft editions of yore.”
Grid Runners by Noxcrew: “Take on Noxcrew’s Grid Runners: a minigame map made up of classic Minecraft challenges where you can craft, mine and jump your way to victory. Compete against the clock for the fastest times and team up with all of your friends to find out who is the ultimate Minecraft champion! This is a free map, created exclusively for Minecon Earth 2018.”
ABSTRACTION: Minecon Earth by Jigarbov Productions: “Featuring the logos that were just begging to be played on, MINECON EARTH has floating landmasses with a surprising amount of hidden secrets and challenges.”
Luxury Life by PixelHeads: “Luxury Life is a world where you role-play life as a billionaire. Cruise the streets in a sports car or any of the 10 other vehicles, explore luxurious mansions and decorate with furniture!”
Aquatic Life by Cyclone Designs: “Get ready for a realistic aquarium experience with Aquatic Life! Dive into large tanks and swim with whale sharks! Discover dangerous shark species and hop on a boat and feed the Piranhas!”
Anime Day School by Sil3ntWxlf and TeamVisionary: “Experience going to school in style with Anime Day School.”
City Mash-Up by Everbloom Studios: “With over 1,000 hand-detailed rooms, there are stories, secrets, and mini-games around every corner. Build with the city’s full texture pack in your own worlds or take on any role you can imagine!”
Haunted Swamp Survival by Everbloom Studios: “Gnarly trees, a ghastly maze, and an abandoned mansion; these are just some of the things you’ll find as you explore this mysterious survival spawn.”
City Mash-Up by Everbloom Studios: “With over 1,000 hand-detailed rooms, there are stories, secrets, and mini-games around every corner. Build with the city’s full texture pack in your own worlds or take on any role you can imagine!”
Luxury Life by PixelHeads: “Luxury Life is a world where you role-play life as a billionaire. Cruise the streets in a sports car or any of the 10 other vehicles, explore luxurious mansions and decorate with furniture!”
Aquatic Life by Cyclone Designs: “Get ready for a realistic aquarium experience with Aquatic Life! Dive into large tanks and swim with whale sharks! Discover dangerous shark species and hop on a boat and feed the Piranhas!”
CampCraft by Blockworks: “A vast wilderness awaits you and your friends in CampCraft. Discover forest animals, ride camper vans, toast marshmallows, sit around the campfire and set up your own camp!”
Immersion: Chicago: “Immerse yourself in Chicago, the windy city. Visit the river with your friends, race through the streets and roleplay your daily life.”
Movie Star by Noxcrew: “Direct and star in your very own films with Noxcrew’s Movie Star Creative Toolbox! With dozens of scripts and pre-built scenes, this map is great for roleplay and learning to build.”
City Life by PixelHeads: “Cruise through the big city in City Life! Chase down a bandit in your police car, save the day as a firefighter or take your dog for a walk.”
Super Cute Texture Pack by Minecraft: “The Super Cute Texture Pack lets you create a cheerful world full of the cutest and cuddliest mobs! Bouncing bunnies, ultra-adorable unicorns, brilliant bumblebees and, er, burgers? Yes, burgers! This texture pack comes with 15 skins.”
Cruise Ship Roleplay by Everbloom Studios: “Welcome aboard! You’re the Assistant General Manager on this voyage across the sea. And it’s your job to lend a helping all around the ship, so our guests have the ultimate vacation!”
Zombie Apocalypse by PixelHeads: “Explore a run-down, overgrown city taken over by cyborg zombies. To survive, you must scavenge for food and weapons, and fight off the zombies!”
On the Marketplace, third-party Minecraft partners can sell their content. And thanks to Microsoft’s crossplatform Xbox Live support, these worlds and skins go live for players on Windows 10, mobile, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch. This has enabled several small studios to turn their support for the Minecraft ecosystem into full-time work. It has also empowered The Minecraft team with a new way to engage and excite its audience.
Microsoft has begun using its partner support and events as effective marketing tools. And that came together in a big way at the end of 2018.
Catastrophic Pandamonium
One of the best examples of The Minecraft Team’s strategy is Catastrophic Pandomonium from GameMode One. This is a map that introduces players to the new cat and panda creatures from Minecraft’s latest content patch. It gives fans a way to quickly see their new behaviors in what GameMode One managing director Sean Davidson calls a “Minecraft preserve.”
Above: A panda bear in Minecraft.
Microsoft worked with developer Gamemode One to create this world and offer it as a free download. Its release drove players into the Marketplace during one of its biggest sales of the year. And that’s something that Davidson is happy to participate in.
“We’ve worked hard to contribute Catastrophic Pandamonium to the winter sale,” Davidson explained to GamesBeat. “This product was thoroughly enjoyable to develop. It proved to be an interesting challenge and change of pace for my team. Releases weaved into a promotion are an exciting prospect for any partner.”
Building a strong Minecraft Marketplace together
Davidson sees Catastrophic Pandamonium as part of a larger effort to expose more players to the Marketplace. And that’s important to him (and The Minecraft Team) because it means more developers can succeed.
“The seasonal promos are a great opportunity to resurface older products, especially for some AAA pieces of content that may have been overlooked at launch,” Davidson wrote. “The winter promotion is no exception, with this sale focusing on bundles and free content. For the majority of Marketplace creators, the promo means creating festive new marketing assets for existing content.”
And while other devs updated their maps with holly and wreaths, GameMode One put most of its efforts into creating Catastrophic Pandamonium. But Davidson sees a synergy in this strategy that is paying off.
“The events and promos have provided players with great low-price — and occasionally free — content and have consistently driven steady traffic to the Marketplace,” Davidson told GamesBeat. “The Marketplace has opened up to an increasingly larger audience. And with that increase came more Marketplace partners. The Marketplace has been growing at a healthy rate and the future is promising.”
