RuneScape’s Fourth MMO, RS4, Is Coming — and Players Get to Help Build It

RuneScape is getting a fourth MMO, and the studio wants your input on it before the game even exists.

The announcement came at RuneFest, the game’s annual fan event. The first look at RS4 showed a new MMORPG built in Unreal Engine and set in the world of Gielinor. The game is still years away, but the studio is opening the design process to players early, asking for feedback on everything from combat systems to skills.

The Working Title and the 25-Year Context

The game’s working title is RS4, though the studio says that may change. The number comes from the project being the fourth major RuneScape MMO in the franchise’s history.

The studio spent years thinking about whether to show RS4 this early. The game is still in its earliest stages, and the studio could have kept the project hidden for much longer. But the company decided transparency fits the RuneScape spirit better.

For 25 years, RuneScape has been shaped by its players. The studio has learned that its games are at their best when it builds with players, not just for them. That philosophy dates back to the game’s earliest days, when player suggestions helped shape the world of Gielinor itself.

The approach borrows from past projects. RS4 will combine the technical lessons of Dragonwilds with the community-driven development the studio learned from RuneScape and Old School. The result is a new RuneScape MMO that sits alongside the existing games, not as a replacement for any of them.

Why RS4 Is Not a Replacement

RS4 will not replace RuneScape, Old School RuneScape, or Dragonwilds. Each game has its own dedicated team, roadmap, and continued investment. The studio wants RS4 to add to the RuneScape universe rather than take away from it.

Players may spend most of their time in one game, move between several, or discover Gielinor for the very first time through RS4. The goal is to make the whole RuneScape family bigger, not smaller.

The Setting and the Ashenfall Hook

RS4 takes place in Gielinor during the Sixth Age, years after the events of Dragonwilds. The game begins in Ashenfall, an area first explored in RuneScape: Dragonwilds and located to the north-east of Gielinor.

Time has passed since the destruction of the Dragon Queen Kuldra. Ashenfall has changed with it, and the studio says the adventure will grow far beyond that starting point over time. The plan is to move into familiar places players know and love, while also opening up new places and stories across Gielinor.

The Early Access Design Approach

The studio is bringing players into the development journey earlier than usual. It wants to share ideas, test things, listen, and learn as it goes.

The design principles are familiar to longtime RuneScape fans. Integrity and permanent progression will be central to RS4, along with community-driven development. The studio says these values come from the best of what it has learned on Dragonwilds and from the RuneScape and Old School communities.

That approach means players will see design documents, concept art, and feature proposals before they become final. The studio is treating RS4 as a shared project rather than a closed one.

What Remains Unknown

The announcement left plenty of questions unanswered. Which platforms will RS4 support? Will it require membership? How will combat and skills work? When can players actually play it?

The studio admits it is too early to answer those questions. It says it will tell players more next year about the world, the game, the team building it, and how players can get involved.

The Comparison With Other Games

Each of the studio’s current RuneScape titles serves a distinct role:

• RuneScape offers the core sandbox experience.
• Old School RuneScape offers a classic-style experience.
• Dragonwilds offers an action-adventure spinoff.
• RS4 is a new MMO adventure currently in development.

The Long Road Ahead

RS4 is still years away. The studio is telling players now because it wants to build with them, not just for them. It says it will share more next year about the world, the game, the team building it, and how players can get involved.

The announcement ends with a call to join the journey. The studio is asking players to sign up now to be part of the adventure.

For a game that has been shaped by its players for 25 years, this feels like the natural next step.

See the video the story is built around at runescape.com.

Ashenfall · Gielinor · Jagex · MMO · RuneScape · Unreal Engine