Hytale mods - how they work and what we want to see

How do Hytale mods work? The Minecraft mod community is perhaps one of the biggest around, with new mods still arriving on a daily basis, over ten years since the blocky sandbox game's initial release. From subtle aesthetic changes to full-on gameplay mods, you can find it all, so of course, the question of how Hytale mods work surrounds the release of the unofficial Minecraft spin-off.

Hytale comes from the creators of the immensely popular Hypixel Minecraft server, and maintains the block-game look and style the team is already used to working with. As such, the comparisons to games like Minecraft, and Minecraft itself, are natural. When it comes to modding, then, there's a lot to live up to, but Hypixel has been very forthcoming on the subject, and we know modding is available from day one of early access. Here's what we know so far.

Hytale modding details

Developer Hypixel has been extremely open about its plans for Hytale modding and what can be done, across both single-player and multiplayer servers.

On the official website, the modding strategy, both for the early access launch and future updates, has been communicated. The main focus seems to be safety and security, which we love to see, as well as simplicity, since only one client is being used.

The most important part, though, is what can be edited? How much freedom is the mod community going to have? Well, the answer seems to be: a lot. The modding strategy post states that the team's "goal is that anything we do, you can do as well." The post continues, "Most of what you see in the game can be changed, extended, or removed entirely. Blocks, Items, NPCs, World Generation, UIs, systems, and behaviours are all driven by data and code that you can influence."

As for how and where to get mods once the game hits early access, Curseforge has confirmed that it has partnered with Hytale as the primary mod platform.

Hytale mod wishlist

Taking inspiration from the best Minecraft mods, there are plenty of things we'd like to see in Hytale.

Aesthetic changes

Many of the most popular Minecraft mods turned the vanilla aesthetic into a grittier, more medieval style for RPG playthroughs and mods like RLCraft. That's probably why Hytale already adopts that look and feel.

While this means there's no real need for similar mods, there will likely be some small aesthetic tweaks, including UI updates, alongside some much more dramatic style changes. Expect mob reworks, block retextures, probably pastel Hytale, plastic Hytale, and more, and maybe even a Minecraft-style Hytale overhaul?

New content

It's not just the look of the game that changes with mods. In fact, that's just the tip of the iceberg. As confirmed by Hypixel, almost everything can be changed. This means we can also expect new content as well as altered items.

One of the top requests in similar games tends to be new mobs, so we can definitely expect new enemies and monsters to be added to Hytale with mods. Structures also play a huge part in Hytale gameplay, so new explorable locations will probably also find a way in. And, of course, being a block-centric game, new blocks, items, and weapons are a dead cert.

New gameplay experiences

The biggest and most exciting Hytale mods we'd like to see are those that change the gameplay completely. Given that we already have plenty of Minecraft maps already catering to adventure, droppers, parkour, and more, there might not be that much desire for them in Hytale. However, we think the RPG aspects here are where Hytale mods are going to shine. We're fully expecting people to add deeper story elements, NPCs, questlines, and more.

That's everything you need to know about Hytale mods for now, and we'll be turning this guide into a list of the best mods once the sandbox game launches.