At RuneFest this weekend, RuneScape developers Jagex announced that the marathon running MMO series has a major new installment in the works. As revealed in an animated teaser, a fourth RuneScape is now in development, the first in the mainline series to take advantage of the load bearing Unreal Engine. And speaking of animation, the news came in tandem with Jagex’s entry into the cross-media sphere, tapping popular streamer MoistCr1tikal to bring Gielinor to life.
“We could have kept it behind closed doors for much longer,” writes Jagex, “but ultimately, that didn’t feel very RuneScape, or very us… We want to build on the best of the tech development we’ve learned on Dragonwilds, and the best of the community co-development we’ve learned through RuneScape and Old School, and apply those principles to something new. And of course, as a RuneScape game, integrity and permanent progression will be central to our design principles.”
Jagex says the new game is “still a few years away,” but opted to give a peek during its in-person festival in Birmingham. While the spin-off Dragonwilds runs on Unreal Engine 5, the mainline games have used the in-house RuneTek engine, signalling a major upgrade for the charmingly low resolution world. It isn’t specified if this new entry, final title pending, will be using Unreal 5 or 6, the latter of which is slated to debut late next year.
The studio also emphasizes that the new game will also run in tandem with its current iterations. For most online games that would read like a fib. But RuneScape is the rare instance of multiple concurrent games with regular support from developers and fans alike. The throwback Old School RuneScape, based on a 2007 build of the 2001 game, taking most of the spotlight among the three current titles. The bigger question is if players want a modern looking version, since the antiquity seems to be part of the appeal.
The new game wasn’t the only announcement from Jagex, who signaled their intention to enter the popular cross-media space with an animated adaptation of RuneScape. The cartoon will be handled by Lyrical, the same studio behind How To Blow Up A Pipeline, Onslaught and the upcoming Bloodborne film. Like Bloodborne, Lyrical will be tapping some YouTube energy, hiring Charlie White, better known as drama chronicler MoistCr1tikal, for the project.
