Read Hytale's official blog post here.
Yeah, I think I'm getting better at naming my blog posts. Keeping my life organized is VERY comforting at the end.
This one jumped out of nowhere a while after my late-night English classes. I expected Hytale to continue on the weekly postcard train on Twitter until maybe early November 2021 while I carried on my daily grind, teaching Japanese students and beating up hilichurls in the same darn Daily Commissions. All of a sudden, a new OST track, "Adventure and Chill", appeared on my YouTube feed, and along with that, a new blog post on my Facebook News Feed.
Release Date?
Let's get the most important (and disappointing) news out of the way: Hypixel Studios officially stated, "...we no longer expect to be ready to launch Hytale before 2023 at the earliest, and it could very well take longer."
I have mixed emotions about this: 70% relief, 30% disappointment.
Relief
Not Ready to Do YouTube
I still don't know how to edit videos. I know jump cuts are simple, but as with any skill, I'm not used to it yet, so I'd do them slowly.
I also haven't thought of a proper outro. I want to break away from the norm of "Thanks for watching! Like, comment, and subscribe!" and think of something that would sell LunaticTactician as a unique brand.
Edit: I settled with "LunaticTactician, out." kinda like in military communication. I've built a unique persona among my subscribers as basically Zhongli but a soldier.
Teaching English is Copium
Aside from gaming, I'm using teaching English as a coping mechanism to distract myself from my studies. Teaching comes very naturally to me, after all, and this is currently my only source of income--I don't earn anything from my store or my blog.
I told myself, once I graduate college, I'll take YouTube practice seriously.
Disappointment
I built up loads of mental preparation (as with anything I'm super dedicated to) for a possible early 2021 release, so having the release date postponed felt to my brain like wasted potential.
But, to be honest, it's not that bad. I've already prepared a lot of Hytale stuff in written form, i.e. many of my blog posts.
Now with my feelings out of the way, let's get into the actual blog post.
Multi-Platform Support
Honestly, I thought Hytale was gonna be initially released as a PC and Mac (I'll lazily use "PC" to refer to these two 'cause I've never used a Mac) game, just like Minecraft, given their vague answer at EGX. No official screenshot or video so far implies mobile or console support; screenshots that do show UIs use small font sizes (not suitable for mobile), mouse pointers, and/or letters indicating keyboard keys.
Crossplay Concerns
According to Legacy Gaming, this statement implies crossplay:
"...we were heading for a scenario where our community would ultimately find itself split across versions and devices. We think it is enormously important to avoid this—to create an ecosystem where as many players as possible can play together and share their creations."
While drafting this post, the Genshin Impact Version 2.0 livestream hadn't gone live yet. The problem with Genshin Impact's older versions is that save data isn't shared between PlayStation Network and miHoYo accounts (used for non-PlayStation platforms).
But, despite me not owning a PS4 or PS5, I was blown away when I saw that PSN and miHoYo accounts can now be linked, allowing players to continue the game on any platform.
Still, I wouldn't hold my breath just in case Sony specifically wants restrictions on Hytale, considering this article.
Not to mention, again in Genshin Impact, the web event Slime Paradise was PC- and mobile-exclusive, likely due to technical difficulties. It arrived on the PS4 a few months later.
Avatar Lore
Oh, boy. They dropped a nerve-wracking lore bomb alongside the new character customization showcase.
What does "the Alterverse" mean in this context? This word has been used before to refer to the individual planet- or dimension-like areas like Orbis, Numdrassl, Nexus, etc. Maybe this time, "the Alterverse" is basically the universe and they'll change the original "alterverse" name.
Avatars are the living embodiment of creativity, given their ability to take many forms and manipulate the Alterverse to their will to some extent. They were "drawn to Orbis by a mysterious cosmic event", which gives me Aether/Lumine vibes.
But I'm generally not interested in horns or alternate ears--I'm playing a human 'cause I want to portray myself as a Badass Normal for most of my playthrough.
If I roleplay my Author Avatar's evil dragon form, though, I might add draconic features and change his skin to purple.
Hopefully, I can also switch from normal stats to custom stats and abilities in just one click. His evil dragon form's physical damage is greatly increased and he can breathe darkness, but he becomes slower.
Combat
They dropped an even bigger bomb with this one. We finally get official confirmations of movesets!
TL; DR: Weapon Tier List (OUTDATED)
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| Tier list template by @TaylorStrykerYT |
Edit: In my winter 2021 development update commentary, I moved the dagger to A-tier and the sword and shield to S-tier. The sword and shield, in my imagination, can stop the dagger's head-on rushing tactics, especially near hazardous terrain like cliffs.
Diamond Sword = Sword
Knife = Dagger
Waraxe = Battleaxe
I put the sword and shield in the same tier because they're designed to be used together. On their own, they might be B-tier weapons.
Ranged weapons are unknown, but if I had to tier them based on my wild guesses, bows and crossbows would be B-tier, thrown weapons would be C-tier, and magic would be S-tier.
Aesthetics
I REALLY love the sword hit sound effects, especially how they ramp up in power. There's that proper balance of hard steel and sliced flesh.
The mace sounds are somewhat underwhelming, though. There's little difference between basic attacks and the special attack. The signature move is definitely different, but it could use more power because of its weight and the Death From Above style of attack.
Skallagrim isn't gonna like the sword animations, though. Stop swinging the shield away when attacking with a sword, dang it! The sword is already telegraphed enough!
Core Mechanics
A stamina mechanic is officially confirmed. Stamina is consumed while blocking with a shield or attacking with a mace, it seems.
I think even basic attacks consume stamina. This is designed to support PvP, after all, otherwise, we'd have a basic attack meta. Have you ever seen Razor and Yoimiya mains constantly mashing left-click?
There are four known attack types.
Basic attacks are quick and simple attacks similar to Normal Attacks in other hack-and-slash games.
Alternate attacks are attacks with different effects from basic attacks. Only the mace is explicitly stated to have this type of attack so far. Perhaps its closest equivalent is the alternate fire from VALORANT, a first-person shooter by Riot Games where, for example, the Classic pistol can normal-fire one bullet at a time like a typical pistol or alt-fire three bullets like a shotgun.
Special attacks (Charged Attacks in other games) are attacks that are more powerful than basic attacks and often have additional effects. Some are simply more powerful versions of a weapon's basic attacks (mace) while others are completely different attacks (sword).
Signature moves (equivalent to the MOBA fan term "ultimate" or "ult") are the weapons' strongest attacks. They have to be charged up before they can be performed. In the sword's case, it can be charged by landing hits and successfully blocking with a shield, but the mace's charging mechanic is unknown.
Swing direction is a unique core mechanic in Hytale combat. Although I have seen a similar mechanic in the Soulcalibur games which have horizontal and vertical attacks, Hytale is different in that swinging left and right matters, especially with high-knockback weapons like maces. How you swing your weapon determines the direction your foe will be knocked towards.
However, I'm not sure how much this mechanic will affect weapon types with less knockback like swords. Can it exploit holes in enemy defenses, kinda like in real-life martial arts?
Also, it's unknown if swing direction is determined by the individual attacks in a combo or can be manually adjusted by the player. Ideally, players would want to swing in only one direction at a time if they want to knock an enemy towards a dangerous spot or swing seemingly randomly to confuse an overly defensive opponent.
Combat Subtleties
Most player attacks, even the otherwise quick sword attacks, are telegraphed to some degree. This allows PvP players to time shield blocks and similar defensive moves...if we'll get any.
The mace alternate attack seems strangely quick, though, for a weapon that is otherwise slow. I didn't see it coming, despite me being a quick fighter in real life.
But I guess the distant overhead shot made it more difficult to see, unlike a real fight where your opponent occupies most of your field of vision.
Edit: This attack was performed again in the winter 2021 development update and I also didn't see it coming as it hit the opposing dagger player.
Like in Minecraft, entities that take damage now flash red. This didn't happen in the graphics update, the first combat showcase since the trailer.
Sword
The sword has a simple three-hit combo for its basic attack. They inflict much less knockback than in Minecraft, allowing for sustained hits.
Though it's not directly stated to have an alternate attack, the AI test clip showed an overhead slash with a blue trail, just like the mace's special attack. It appears to have no additional effect other than being a slower but more powerful attack.
The sword's special attack is a forward lunge, similar to Sword Kirby's Drill Stab and the polearm Charged Attack in Genshin Impact.
I've been looking forward (no pun intended) to Dash Attacks for a long time because they allow me to quickly close the distance between me and my foe.
The sword's signature move is an interesting combination: a Spin Attack followed by a forward lunge.
I wonder if the player can adjust the direction of this lunge before it triggers. This is great for countering players that dodge outside of the Spin Attack's range, and I really appreciate Hypixel Studios for brainstorming this unique combo.
The sword, overall, looks like a simple weapon to play with; it's fairly fast and has simple moves that don't require a lot of thought.
It seems to work best against single targets thanks to the alternate and special attacks. It has a little crowd control too with the Spin Attack and the basic attack, but I wouldn't rely on that too much.
Because it's intended to synergize with a shield thanks to its unique charging mechanic, it's also a hard-to-master weapon type; you have to know when to attack and when to defend.
That said, I want a weapon or move that can easily pierce through a sword-and-shield user's defenses... I see this as an A-tier weapon, if not S-tier, so I gotta know how to counter the meta.
Mace
The mace's basic attack combo is a series of left and right swings that knock foes towards the swing's direction.
Its special attack is simply a more powerful swing to the left.
The mace's alternate attack is a hilt bash that knocks an enemy backward. This is the most similar to a Minecraft melee attack.
The most noticeable trait in my Genshin Impact eyes is its signature move which is basically a Plunging Attack.
Like the sword's signature move, the mace's must be charged, though its charging mechanic is unknown. The player then leaps high into the air and plunges down, dealing AoE damage upon impact. To use another Genshin analogy, this attack is performed by the player similar to Xiao's Elemental Burst, except it's a single attack and it does not drain the user's HP.
I think the mace will be a C-tier weapon.
It seems to perform well in its niche of knocking foes to hazardous places as stated in the blog post, but in solo fights in perfectly flat battlefields with no hazards, the mace is simply a Mighty Glacier weapon.
It might do better in team fights where mace wielders can knock foes away from their ranged-attacking teammates, but they can still get ganged up by sword and dagger wielders who can overwhelm mace wielders with their speed and defensive skills.
I'm not sure how to compensate for the mace's slowness and expensive stamina cost.
I thought of guard-breaking or stunning with the mace's special attack, but that's even slower.
I thought of interrupting incoming sword and dagger swings by attacking at the same time to encourage realism since heavy weapons can easily bash away lighter ones, but this encourages an Attack! Attack! Attack! style that is redundant with the battleaxe and makes maces a Game-Breaker by forcing opponents to be sitting ducks defending themselves until the mace wielder runs out of stamina.
I think modders will have a great template to make a Xiao-style Plunging Attack spamming mechanic. For those who don't know, while his Elemental Burst is active, Xiao can repeatedly high-jump then plunge.
Other Weapon Types
These weapon types only have one-sentence descriptions and no gameplay showcase.
Dagger
[Daggers] favor hit-and-run attacks and provide a ton of bonus mobility.
That's just my style as a thief.
Most thieves, I think, are selfish fighters (mechanically, not morally). Their DPS comes from steadily dealing damage then running around while the enemy is on offense.
While I imagine Hytale intends to encourage this kind of playstyle with the dagger, I like to use it defensively in co-op games because I'm a tactician. I'd Draw Aggro towards me and away from my allies.
I hope the dagger will be as fast as other video games make it, though, 'cause I rely heavily on element-infused daggers in my Genshin Impact x Hytale posts to quickly spread elemental reactions while remaining a Badass Normal. Permafreeze, anyone?
Edit: My predictions in this paragraph were mostly correct. Only a few attacks are telegraphed; unlike the sword, most dagger attacks are not telegraphed at all.
In many kinds of PvP, from Minecraft to fighting games to first-person shooters, speed is king. The Speed buff in Minecraft makes you harder to hit, hitting first in fighting games lets you interrupt your foe, and quick-scopers are often the best FPS gamers. Hence, I give the dagger, at least based on its text description, an S tier.
Because of the hit-and-run fighting style, the dagger might be great for annoying enemies in PvP. Enjoy the rage of your enemies as they call you a "runner" (in other words, coward).
There's no mention of stealth, though.
Battleaxe
[Battleaxes] build up powerful damage boosts by landing successive hits, encouraging all-in aggression.
I have a feeling this will be considered a B-tier weapon type because, in a game with an intricate combat system like Hytale, defense is often just as important as offense.
The Fire Emblem characters in Super Smash Bros. have powerful counterattacks. Many of them, like Chrom and Ike, are considered high-tier.
Defense is why Zhongli is freakin' broken in Genshin Impact--his shield is almost unbreakable and can only be pierced by a few things like Corrosion (a Damage Over Time status effect). Additionally, much of a player's stamina will be spent evading enemy attacks in this game.
Similarly, my defenses in real life are sturdy for a lightweight person. It's why I sometimes don't flinch when I take a critical hit. My coach can only hit me cleanly if I'm sick.
I would only use a battleaxe either as part of training, for lazy fun, or against mobs with easy-to-dodge attacks.
To counter sword and dagger users, I imagine a rage mechanic where the battleaxe wielder gains a big strength and speed boost in exchange for quickly draining stamina over time (or maybe even a little HP).
In this rage mode, I imagine the battleaxe wielder can guard-break shield users more easily and can chase down dagger and ranged weapon wielders with Dash Attacks and wide-ranged swings.
Ranged Weapons, Armor, and Trinkets
All they said is they want to "extend this depth and variety to ranged weapons".
However, it's vague what exactly they mean with "ranged weapons". When I think of ranged weapons, they're usually physical ones like bows, crossbows, and throwing weapons. However, most offensive magic spells in movies and video games are ranged attacks, so this may or may not also extend to magic.
An early inventory screenshot has shown four empty slots that resemble rings, so thanks to the use of the more general word "trinkets", we might be able to wear other accessories besides rings; for example, necklaces, armbands, and maybe emblems 'cause my Author Avatar wears a badge on his chest.
This also means that accessories can officially grant passive buffs to the player. Yeah, boiii!
AI Advancements
I have seen many enemy AIs that work differently depending on the player's moves and position, but Hytale's NPC AI is unique in that it takes the number of foes into consideration. This, again, ensures that enemies remain about as challenging in both single-player and co-op gameplay (unlike Genshin Impact which simply increases enemy HP and ATK).
I'm not sure how this will work outside of maybe deciding if an enemy will flee a battle, but I know that, in some hack-and-slash games, some characters or weapons are more effective against single targets than multiple targets and vice versa. Perhaps an enemy would favor a wide-swinging weapon like a mace against multiple players or a spear against a single player.
Outside of fighting games and chess, though, many AIs I've seen are predictable as heck. Hytale adds the fighting game unpredictability to its own AI, and boy do I enjoy fighting games.
But the biggest development, in my opinion, is the fact we now have AI-controlled Avatars! Apparently, it can even win against Hypixel Studios's skilled fighters in mirror matches! This'll be AMAZING for both roleplay and training, especially if we can adjust their difficulty.
I'd encourage Hypixel Studios to make the AI Avatar more player-like as the game gets updated after release, but I know they want to avoid scope creep, so I'll just look for a server that has a minigame for training against other players.
After all, I think the Hytale meta will constantly evolve, and so will players' playstyles.
"Adventure and Chill" Short Review
It's about freakin' time we got something new from Oscar Garvin!
First off, I REALLY like this title because I think it's funny. Has Oscar been watching too much Netflix? lololol
The description starts off by saying that this track "branches out from the main theme". Ooh, I wonder what this main theme will sound like? It better give me an earworm just like the main themes of Fire Emblem and Genshin Impact.
You know, now that I think about it, some tracks share similar musical notes, particularly from "Traveling Band"... Is "Traveling Band" the most similar to the main theme similar to how a lot of the Mondstadt exploration tracks sound like the Genshin Impact main theme?
As the name implies on a more serious note, this song is divided into an "adventure" part and a "chill" part.
The track opens up with a big long violin note that goes extremely well with starting a new world. I'm sure players who are new to Hytale will be absolutely awestruck by this.
The lute and violin combo remind me of "Traveling Band" and "A New Adventure", respectively. It's like feeling relaxed in your footsteps as your eyes roll from one wondrous thing to the other.
The track then hits me pretty hard again with the big violin note and snare drums at about 1:00, kinda like the end of "A World Below". Is this a hint of possibly seeing eye-catching prefabs within the first minute of a playthrough? But it's a little too early for my taste otherwise.
At about 2:10, the notes become quieter and calmer, representing busy moments in a playthrough. I imagine mundane tasks like building a house, organizing items in inventories and storage rooms, roleplaying a maid or a short discussion, and in my case, tactical planning.
Overall, this whole track meets its goal of being relaxed, though it's not up to my taste because I'm the kind of guy who enjoys consistently strong emotions in music.
But let's see what happens when I test this out in other games.
I give it an Alright (6/10).
Overall Thoughts on This Blog Post
I give this blog post an Amazing (9/10).
A long-awaited combat showcase that actually focuses on the combat mechanics rather than on, say, the graphics and sound effects really bumped this score up for me (and probably for a lot of other people too). In particular, I REALLY like the sword's fighting style and the AI Avatar.
I'm a sucker for video game music, so a new track is always appreciated. While I don't want new tracks to be mandatory for every major blog post, it'd be very nice to add variety to my playlist. After all, for adventurers like me, the thrill of adventure comes from experiencing new things. Bouken da, bouken!
I'm also really interested in how this extra chill track would affect my mood in various situations.
I admit that the only reason this isn't a 10/10 is the fact the Hytale release was delayed to 2023 at the earliest.
But, oh well, it's hard to get a perfect score from me outside of tests 'cause I'm a lunatic critic.
