Simon Collins-Laflamme

Simon Collins-Laflamme
Other nameHypixel
OccupationsVideo game developer, businessman
Known forCo-founding Hypixel and Hypixel Studios; Hytale

Simon Collins-Laflamme is a Canadian video game developer and businessman. He co-founded the Hypixel server network for Minecraft, recognised by Guinness World Records in 2017 as the most popular Minecraft server network, and Hypixel Studios, the developer of the sandbox game Hytale. After Riot Games cancelled Hytale in June 2025, Collins-Laflamme bought the game back from the company and returned to lead its development, releasing it in early access in January 2026.

Career

Hypixel

Collins-Laflamme, known online by his Minecraft username "hypixel", created Minecraft adventure maps with Philippe Touchette before the pair launched the Hypixel server in 2013 to host their maps and minigames.[1][2][3] The server grew into one of the largest Minecraft communities, and in 2017 Guinness World Records recognised it as the most popular Minecraft server network, with 64,533 people playing concurrently that July, as well as the most popular independently operated server for any video game.[1][4] By August 2017 nearly twelve million unique accounts had logged into the server, which at the time ran 43 separate games, including Bed Wars and SkyWars.[5][6] In April 2020, Collins-Laflamme said the server had passed 18 million unique players.[3]

Hypixel Studios and Hytale

In 2015, Collins-Laflamme and members of the Hypixel server team began developing Hytale, a sandbox game combining block-based building with role-playing elements.[7] The work was spun off into Hypixel Studios, a separate company from Hypixel Inc., and the game was announced publicly on 13 December 2018 alongside an investment of several million dollars led by Riot Games, with an advisory group that included Dennis Fong, Rob Pardo and Peter Levin.[7][8] Collins-Laflamme later said he had turned down "way more money" from a different company before partnering with Riot, and that the studio had been spending up to US$400,000 a month on development before its sale.[9]

Riot Games acquired Hypixel Studios outright in April 2020, around the time the studio established a permanent office in Derry, Northern Ireland.[10][3][11] More than 2.5 million people had signed up for the game's beta by the time of the acquisition.[3] Development of Hytale under Riot was led by Aaron Donaghey, and Collins-Laflamme was not involved with the studio in its later years; the company later stated that its original founders had not been involved with the project since 2020.[12][13][14]

Reacquisition of Hytale

Riot cancelled Hytale on 23 June 2025 after ten years of development and began shutting down Hypixel Studios.[15][16] Within a week, Collins-Laflamme said he would approach Riot about buying the game back.[17] The following month he outlined plans to release a "barebones" version of the game quickly and fund further development from early access sales, saying he was prepared to spend "one or two mil max" of his own money before release.[13] In August 2025 he said he was in active negotiations with Riot, after offering what he called "10x what the true market value is",[18][19] and on 17 November 2025 he announced that he had reacquired the game.[20][21][22] The revived studio rehired more than 30 developers, with more planned.[21] Collins-Laflamme and co-founder Philippe Touchette fund the studio personally, with a stated ten-year funding commitment and no external investors.[23]

Collins-Laflamme priced the early access release at US$20, saying that charging more "didn't feel right" because the game was not yet good,[24][25] declined to launch it on Steam in its unfinished state,[26] and told players not to pre-order if they were uncomfortable doing so.[27] Hytale entered early access on 13 January 2026 and passed one million players shortly after launch,[28][29] and Collins-Laflamme said shortly before launch that pre-orders alone had funded the studio's roughly 50-person team for the next two years of development.[30] He later described salvaging the game as "a damn miracle", saying it had been "barely playable" when recovered and that the team got it into a playable state within weeks.[31] Riot Games publicly congratulated the studio on the launch.[32] When Minecraft's creative lead Jens Bergensten said after playing the release that he would rather keep playing Minecraft, Collins-Laflamme replied that Bergensten was "probably right to feel this way".[33] He said he had no regrets about buying the game back, calling the effort "the most challenging but rewarding experience of my life".[34] In July 2026 he previewed the game's first major content expansion, Chapter 1, estimating a release within two to three months.[35][36]

References

  1. ↑ Wiltshire, Alex (15 September 2015). "The Future Of Minecraft's Biggest Servers". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Archived from the original on 12 February 2019. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Riot Games acquires Hytale developer Hypixel Studios". PC Gamer. 16 April 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  3. ↑ "Most popular independent server for a videogame". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  4. ↑ "Most unique players logged into a Minecraft server". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  5. ↑ "Most games on a Minecraft server". Guinness World Records. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  6. 1 2 Phillips, Tom (13 December 2018). "Hytale is a brand new game from giants of the Minecraft community, backed by Riot". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 13 December 2018. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  7. ↑ Jarvey, Natalie (13 December 2018). "Riot Games Leads Investment in Hypixel Game Studio". The Hollywood Reporter. Archived from the original on 21 December 2018. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  8. ↑ Bailey, Dustin (27 June 2025). "Hytale studio founder says he was "burning" up to $400,000 a month on its development at one point, and turned down "way more money" before partnering with Riot". GamesRadar+. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  9. ↑ Webster, Andrew (16 April 2020). "Riot continues to expand beyond League by acquiring studio behind Minecraft-like game". The Verge. Archived from the original on 16 April 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  10. ↑ Cartmill, Claire (21 April 2020). "Videogame developer Hypixel Studios to set up NI headquarters". News Letter. Archived from the original on 14 January 2021. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  11. ↑ Simpkins, Jen (24 February 2020). "First Look: Hytale is putting adventure and creativity at the heart of its ambitious block-building sandbox". GamesRadar+. Archived from the original on 26 February 2020. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  12. 1 2 Allsop, Ken (25 July 2025). "Minecraft challenger Hytale hangs in the balance as ex founder plans roadmap". PCGamesN. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  13. ↑ "About Hypixel Studios". Hytale. Hypixel Studios. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  14. ↑ Gerblick, Jordan (23 June 2025). "6 years after an announcement trailer with 61 million views, Minecraft-inspired survival game Hytale is canceled and its developer is shutting down". GamesRadar+. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  15. ↑ "Why Riot Canceled Hytale And How It Came Back To Life". GameSpot. 14 January 2026. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  16. ↑ Warren, Mark (30 June 2025). "Hytale studio founder says he'll reach out to Riot in an effort to buy back and revive the game". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  17. ↑ "Original Hytale studio founder "in active discussions with Riot Games about acquiring" the Minecraft-inspired survival game after offering "10x what the true market value is"". GamesRadar+. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  18. ↑ Collins-Laflamme, Simon [@Simon_Hypixel] (13 August 2025). "I'm in active discussions with Riot Games about acquiring Hytale. Updates will be limited for now as we work through it. Thank you for believing in Hytale" (Tweet). Retrieved 19 July 2026 – via X (formerly Twitter).
  19. ↑ Collins-Laflamme, Simon [@Simon_Hypixel] (17 November 2025). "We did it. Hytale is saved. We have acquired Hytale from Riot Games" (Tweet). Retrieved 19 July 2026 – via X (formerly Twitter).
  20. 1 2 Chalk, Andy (17 November 2025). "'Hytale is saved': Riot sells cancelled game back to original co-founder, who promises to take it 'back to the original vision for Hytale'". PC Gamer. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  21. ↑ "Hypixel acquires Hytale back from Riot Games". Game Developer. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  22. ↑ "Hytale is saved!". Hytale. Hypixel Studios. 17 November 2025. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  23. ↑ Wagner, Justin (21 November 2025). "Hytale honcho says early access will be $20 because 'charging more didn't feel right': He doesn't think the game is good yet, but 'my team and I will push hard to make it good, then great'". PC Gamer. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  24. ↑ "Hytale will only cost $20 because it isn't good yet, its developer says". Engadget. 21 November 2025. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  25. ↑ Young, George (5 December 2025). "Hytale lead isn't putting his Minecraft competitor on Steam at launch because "everything is wrong" with it, and Palworld lead "totally" understands his hesitance". GamesRadar+. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  26. ↑ Wood, Austin (28 November 2025). "Hytale early access release date set for January 2026 just weeks after it's reacquired by original founders, following 5 years and cancellation at Riot: "If you don't feel comfortable pre-ordering, please don't"". GamesRadar+. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  27. ↑ "Hytale's Early Access surges past 1 million players as $19.99 sandbox RPG returns from the brink". Notebookcheck. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  28. ↑ "Hytale surges to the most-watched game on Twitch, attracting over 420,000 viewers with its long-awaited launch". PC Gamer. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  29. ↑ "With less than 24 hours to launch, Hytale lead says the sandbox game's 50-person dev team has been funded for the next 2 years through pre-orders alone". GamesRadar+. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  30. ↑ "Hytale lead says "it's a damn miracle we were able to salvage" the once-canceled Minecraft-like: "It should have taken years to fix, but within weeks, we got the game into a playable, fun state"". GamesRadar+. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  31. ↑ "After closing Hypixel Studios with nothing to show for 6 years of development, Riot congratulates the resurrected Hytale for its early access launch". PC Gamer. 14 January 2026. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  32. ↑ Wood, Austin (22 January 2026). "Minecraft creative lead plays Hytale and concludes "I'd rather just play Minecraft," and Hytale's lead says "he is probably right to feel this way"". GamesRadar+. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  33. ↑ "'I have no regrets saving Hytale,' says co-founder who purchased the game from Riot and released it just two months later: 'It's been the most challenging but rewarding experience of my life'". PC Gamer. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  34. ↑ Collins-Laflamme, Simon (16 July 2026). "First Look: Chapter 1 and More". Hytale. Hypixel Studios. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
  35. ↑ Allsop, Ken (18 July 2026). "Our first glimpse at Hytale Chapter 1 has me absolutely salivating". PCGamesN. Retrieved 19 July 2026.
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