Runescape: Dragonwilds Quietly Launched Early Access Version Today

Taking a lot of the elements of Runescape, the wildly popular MMORPG, RuneScape: Dragonwilds will offer a fresh perspective to the world as an open-world survival crafting game. As explained by Game Informer magazine, “The premise of Dragonwilds is that dragons have awoken on the forgotten continent of Ashenfall, resulting in a survival crafting adventure for one to four players with the mission of slaying the Dragon Queen. As you journey through Ashenfall, you’ll explore and uncover ancient civilizations to learn why the region is so full of transformative magic”.

Only two weeks ago, Jagex gave us the first and only extended look we had at the new Runescape: Dragonwilds. Before the trailer, there was next to no information about the game. Even after the trailer, there were plenty of unanswered questions; luckily, fans did not have to wait long for those questions to be answered. The game is different from the original Runescape, but many elements are still there. Quests, light RPG elements for level growth, runes, and magic are all heavily present in the game. Adding a survival crafting element simply mixes the game up in a novel way.

For the early access version of this game, players will have access to only a small portion of the larger world and vision. Players will be introduced to the first several game regions, the base mechanics (building, combat, gear crafting, magic, Rune skills, survival systems), several dungeons, and a dragon encounter. Jagex is looking for feedback on the game and plans to apply the feedback to the released game when it is ready.

In a press release earlier today, executive producer Jesse America spoke directly to fans and gamers.

“We’re so excited to surprise players with our Early Access launch today and invite them to discover the magical world of RuneScape: Dragonwilds right now. We’ve been working hard to develop an entirely new type of RuneScape experience that ignites fans’ passion, creativity, and love for questing, and provide them with an all-new RuneScape adventure to discover. And this is just the start of our development journey. Throughout Early Access, we’ll be updating the game regularly with new content and features, while listening closely to the community to deliver an iconic open-world survival crafting game that is loved equally by our biggest RuneScape fans and new players alike.”

Runescape: Dragonwilds appears to bring the root foundations of Runescape to the table while adding an entirely new one to four-player spin. Fans of Runescape will want to try this game and experience the world in a whole different way.

Final Thoughts

Fans can immediately sink their teeth into Dragonwilds’ exciting crafting experience, with the early release available right now on Steam. Feedback will be essential to the growth of the game so that players can make their voices heard. Jagex suggests the full game will be released sometime in early 2026, but until then, fans can play in the early game sandbox and enjoy all the world has to offer them.