When Jagex announced the development of RuneScape: Dragonwilds—a game combining elements of survival crafting with elements from their long-standing MMO—I found myself intrigued but cautiously optimistic. Would these elements mesh well in a cross-genre setup?

After sitting down with Rick Turek, the creative director, I delved into questions about the game’s premise especially why this genre was chosen, given its saturation in the market. Turek explained, “There’s always been talks of a survival crafting game because I think there’s a good overlap with MMOs. You find many survival crafting games sharing similar gameplay mechanics with MMOs. For instance, titles like Conan Exiles showcase a blend of both genres. It’s as if survival crafting was birthed from MMO roots.”
(Translation: There has always been interest in creating a survival crafting game because of the similarities it shares with MMOs.)

The decision to pursue this genre was heavily influenced by community feedback gathered through surveys conducted by Jagex prior to the project kickoff. Turek elaborated, “When we were initially brainstorming, we consulted with our audience through surveys to glean their thoughts on potential genres. At that time, survival crafting wasn’t as congested a sector as it is now. Although there were formidable competitors, we believed we could introduce something uniquely ours.”
(Translation: We sought opinions on which genres would resonate well with our audience.)

Overall, players can expect Dragonwilds to seamlessly integrate classic RuneScape mechanics with innovative survival crafting features, marking an exciting evolution for the franchise.