Although the studio is using RS4 as a working title for now, fans have already started referring to the project as RuneScape 4. It will be the first numbered successor to the mainline game since RuneScape 3 launched in 2013, marking a significant new direction for one of the industry’s longest-running MMORPG franchises.
The new game is being developed in Unreal Engine, although Jagex has not yet confirmed which version of the engine is being used. The studio has also kept quiet about its target platforms, suggesting that the project is still far enough from release that many technical and commercial decisions have yet to be finalized.
Most importantly, players should not expect to get their hands on RS4 anytime soon.
Jagex says the project remains in early development and is still several years away.
A First Look at RS4
Jagex introduced the project with a CGI teaser rather than actual gameplay footage.
The brief presentation offered a glimpse of a fantasy world featuring a settlement surrounded by a lush green valley, enormous floating islands and a dragon rider caught in an attack by a three-headed dragon.
While the footage does not reveal how the game will actually play, it provides an early indication of the visual direction Jagex is pursuing.
The company has established a dedicated development team for RS4, indicating that the project is being treated as a substantial standalone MMO rather than a minor update to the existing RuneScape games.
Still, the lack of gameplay footage means many important questions remain unanswered.
Jagex has not yet shown the game’s combat system, user interface, character progression, multiplayer systems or the scale of its world. Details about monetization, launch platforms and other core features are also being kept under wraps.
RS4 Wasn’t Originally Planned as a New MMO
Perhaps the most interesting part of the announcement is how the project came about.
RS4 did not begin as a completely new RuneScape MMO.
Instead, the concept reportedly started life as an expansion for RuneScape: Dragonwilds, Jagex’s survival game built using Unreal Engine 5.
Dragonwilds takes the RuneScape universe in a different direction, combining the franchise’s fantasy setting with survival-game mechanics. The expansion was reportedly planned for 2027.
During development and playtesting, however, Jagex discovered that players were interested in something different.
According to the studio, feedback from playtesters helped push the project toward a more traditional MMO experience. Rather than remaining an expansion, the idea gradually developed into a separate RuneScape game with a much larger scope.
That evolution ultimately produced RS4.
The decision is particularly interesting because it means the next mainline RuneScape MMO grew organically from an experiment within another game rather than being conceived from the beginning as RuneScape 4.
Returning to Ashenfall
The new MMO is expected to continue the story established in Dragonwilds.
RS4 is reportedly set years after the events of Dragonwilds and will initially return players to the same region, known as Ashenfall.
That gives Jagex an opportunity to build on an existing setting while taking the story and gameplay in a new direction.
For players who have spent time in Dragonwilds, the connection could make RS4 feel like an evolution of that world. At the same time, the decision to turn the expansion into a standalone MMO suggests that Jagex wants the new game to appeal to a much broader audience than survival-game fans alone.
It also gives the developer an opportunity to experiment with a modern interpretation of RuneScape without immediately replacing the existing games.
RuneScape 3 Isn’t Going Anywhere
One important point Jagex has made clear is that RS4 will not replace the existing RuneScape games.
RuneScape 3 will continue operating alongside the new MMO, while Old School RuneScape will also remain active.
Dragonwilds is expected to continue as well.
That means Jagex will eventually have several RuneScape-related games operating simultaneously, each aimed at a somewhat different audience.
This approach could allow the company to experiment with new gameplay and technology without disrupting the communities that have developed around its established games.
For long-time RuneScape players, that is likely to be reassuring.
RuneScape 3 has been running for more than a decade, while Old School RuneScape has developed its own enormous and dedicated player base. A completely new MMO could have created concerns about whether Jagex intended to shift resources away from those games.
The current plan suggests otherwise.
A New Engine for a New Era
The move to Unreal Engine is another major change for the franchise.
RuneScape has historically been closely associated with its own technology and a distinctive visual style that evolved over many years.
Using Unreal gives Jagex access to a modern development environment capable of supporting more detailed environments, advanced visual effects and large-scale fantasy worlds.
The company has not said which version of Unreal Engine RS4 uses. Dragonwilds, however, was developed using Unreal Engine 5, providing Jagex with existing experience working with the technology.
The move could represent an important technical reset for the franchise.
Rather than continually modifying the technology behind an MMO that has evolved for decades, Jagex can build RS4 around a modern foundation from the beginning.
That could make it easier to introduce systems and visual features that would be difficult to implement in the existing game.
Plenty of Questions Remain
Despite the announcement, there is still a great deal that Jagex has not revealed.
Monetization is one of the biggest unanswered questions.
RuneScape has experimented with different subscription and free-to-play models over its history, and players will naturally want to know how RS4 will make money.
It is also unclear whether RS4 will use subscriptions, optional purchases, a free-to-play model or some combination of different approaches.
Another major question concerns progression.
There has been no confirmation that characters, items or progress from RuneScape 3 will carry over to RS4.
Given that the new MMO is being developed as a separate game with a new technical foundation, players should not assume that existing progression will transfer.
Jagex also hasn’t announced which platforms will receive the game.
PC seems like an obvious possibility given RuneScape’s history, but the studio has not officially committed to any platform yet.
Don’t Expect Gameplay Soon
For now, the CGI teaser is likely to be the most players see of RS4 for some time.
Jagex has emphasized that development is still in its early stages and that the game is a few years away from release.
That timeline means many of the details currently being discussed could change before launch.
The world, combat mechanics, monetization, supported platforms and even the game’s final name could all evolve as development continues.
For now, the announcement is less about revealing a finished product and more about telling RuneScape players that a new generation of the MMO is officially being built.
A New Chapter for RuneScape
RS4 represents an intriguing moment for Jagex.
The studio is not attempting to shut down RuneScape 3 or replace Old School RuneScape. Instead, it is developing a completely new MMO while allowing the existing games to continue.
The fact that the project emerged from a planned Dragonwilds expansion makes the announcement even more unusual.
An idea intended to expand a survival game became something much bigger after players expressed interest in a traditional MMO experience. Now, Jagex is building that concept into what could eventually become the next major evolution of RuneScape.
There is still a long road ahead.
RS4 has no confirmed release date, no announced platforms, no detailed gameplay footage and no disclosed monetization model.
But after more than a decade since RuneScape 3, Jagex has finally confirmed that the franchise is heading toward another numbered MMO.
For now, fans will have to settle for the teaser—and wait several more years to find out whether RuneScape 4 can deliver a genuinely new experience while preserving the world and community that made RuneScape one of gaming’s most enduring online franchises. Community Bank Group Sues Over Expansion of Crypto Into Banking | Maya
