< back to game >

Skyblock^RM

YouTubeLinkLink

Skyblock Remastered

Planning Documentation

Skyblock^RM Planning Documentation

A complete plan of a remastered Skyblock.

Primary Details

Skyblock is a game where you spawn on a small floating island with very few resources, and your goal is to survive above the void. In this version of Skyblock, you will have a wholly-remastered Skyblock game with the original content, but better. Additionally, you’ll be presented with fresh new content!

What was Skyblock?

Skyblock was a game that allowed you to play survival on a small floating island with very few resources to hand. Your task was not only to survive on this tiny island above the void but to become the richest team on the server. That’s right, I said team! You could play solo or in groups, this is something that will also be available in the remastered version. Skyblock had not only access to a public hub space but also a shop and custom quests which will also make a return in the remastered edition.

Why make a remastered Skyblock?

Skyblock was made a long time ago now, it’s been updated constantly but with outdated code. This means that the performance of the game is not only low but was never able to be finished due to the way it worked. This is why only one of the four planned quests was added, as there was a significant concern for performance on all devices. The remastered version aims to rewrite the code better and restructure the world so it performs better for everyone. Additionally, I aim to completely redo the other content to make more sense and be a lot cleaner than the original.

What features will return in the remastered version?

The remastered edition of the Skyblock will have all of the original features returned, but there is no promise they will return in the same state they were done initially. This means that while the same features will be implemented, they may not function in the same way as before. As an example, to enchant items in the original Skyblock you were instructed to place nine items in a three-by-three grid. This was difficult to do on some devices due to the sensitivity of the item positioning and how easy it was for items to be picked up or auto-grouped together. In the new version, this will be adapted to be a lot simpler to use.

What new features will be in the remastered version?

The remastered edition of Skyblock will mostly contain all the old features in revamped ways before it receives any new content. While I won’t go into much detail about my plans for new additions in the remastered version of this game, I shall share that there is a desire to include fresh new content in the future. I will also not disclose any information about what these features will be. Once new features are added to this game, you’ll receive notifications via the xSnipez Games Discord Server and xSnipez Games Website.

Secondary Details

This segment contains information about all the previous features in the original Skyblock game. This includes information about what the old features were and how they are going to change in the remastered edition.

Changes to the Skyblock Hub

The Skyblock hub was a place where you could not only access the Skyblock store, quests and additional features, but it was a place for you to communicate with other teams. The Skyblock hub will receive several changes in this edition, including a completely new build. In this edition, the centre of the Skyblock hub will be located separately from everything else you can access with the hub portals. This won’t appear as much of anything to regular players as you won’t see it, but this change should drastically improve the lag issues seen in the original Skyblock. Additionally, guidance on how to improve the performance of the game will be provided in-game so that you can make sure your game runs as smoothly as possible. Aside from this, the Skyblock hub will remain the location you can see other players, and access your island, the Skyblock store and quests. Finally, additional changes to the Skyblock hub include more advanced ways of interacting and socialising with other players, less noisy hub portals and the ability to set your respawn place.

Changes to your Skyblock Islands

In the original Skyblock, you spawned on a five-by-three-by-five island, with a single chest and an oak tree. In the chest, you were given a basic starter guide with a bucket of lava, three pieces of bread and a singular block of ice. Additionally, if you travelled to the max world height directly from your spawning spot, you’d find another chest with a second block of ice. In the new Skyblock, you’ll have similar starting resources with a more advanced starter guide and better-starting food. Additionally, you’ll be provided with an oak sapling, this is because, in the previous version of Skyblock, there were issues with them not dropping at the beginning. On top of this, you’ll have a much better-looking starting island, no more basic box islands.

Changes to the Skyblock Store

The original Skyblock had a Skyblock store which was accessible through the Skyblock hub. This store was separated into three sections, “buy”, “sell” and “quests”. The “buy” section was two floors which displayed multiple items for sale, which you could purchase for Skyblock coins, or “Sky Coins”. The “sell” section was a single floor with places to sell multiple variants of resources in exchange for “Sky Coins”. Finally, the “quests” section is where you were able to find all the information about various quests. Unfortunately, due to performance issues, this section was never completely finished and only obtained one of four planned quests.

However, in the remastered edition, all this will change completely! The new edition will also have a “buy” and “sell” section, but implemented in a way to reduce the amount of lag. It will not only be easily accessible to utilise both areas but there will also be UI indicators and actual sound effects when interacting with the store. Furthermore, the quest section will be completely revamped to include a better questing system. The old quests were an unfinished and time-consuming system that was very unbalanced. Without revealing too many plans for the new version of quests, they will focus on “small objectives”, which could lead to big adventures.

In the original Skyblock, there was a section which allowed you to craft enchantment books and another section allowing you to apply these enchantment books to your items. The idea was to use block textures to create a grid on the floor which looked like your regular crafting grid. Your goal then was to use the recipe book provided to create patterns of items on the floor that for a cost of “experience”, would craft an enchantment book. This book could then be taken to the “blacksmith” along with your items which could enchant your items. Furthermore, there was a hidden room that allowed you to do a similar thing with brewing potions, except you had to throw the items into a cauldron instead. While the same concept for the ideas will remain, I shall be implementing a less complex and lag-friendly method of doing it.

Changes to Item Names & Item Teleportation

In the original Skyblock, there was a base level of item management. The idea was for items that could be sold to have a “yellow” name, indicating that they had a level of value. Due to the way these “yellow” names were implemented, it resulted in some loss of items and sometimes even deleted blocks around it. This meant that this feature was fine-tuned to avoid breaking items and blocks. Additionally, “valuable” items would teleport to the nearest player in a specific range to allow players to manage their items better, decrease entity lag and prevent players from trading items in the Skyblock Hub. In the new version of Skyblock, these features will be implemented in a way that won’t result in items (or blocks) being deleted. Item names will not only appear “yellow” to indicate value but will also have a tiered name colour system to indicate levels of value. Item teleportation will work the same, but instead of disabling the teleportation for items that are used in crafting and brewing recipes, there will be a place that allows you to drop items and disable the teleportation feature.

Tertiary Details

This segment contains information about some new features and sneak previews. This includes information about what the new features are and how they are going to change Skyblock for the better.

Skyblock Dungeons

Skyblock Dungeons will be a new area in Skyblock that allows for deep exploration of a pre-built dungeon. This dungeon will have areas where you may fight mobs, explore and loot. The plans for this area will also include collaboration between teams, boss fights and challenges. This also may or may not be the area where new quests will be present. While exploring this area will grant you loot, there will be areas that you can and cannot visit depending on your “team level”. That’s right, you saw that correctly, there are going to be “team levels”. This level will determine how far you can travel in the dungeon, what areas are unlocked in the Skyblock hub and how deep you can go in the SkyBlock dungeon.

Skyblock Mines

Skyblock Mines will also be a new area in Skyblock that allows for exploration, mob fighting and ore mining. While these will definitely be gated behind “team levels”, they will hopefully provide a more fun way to obtain ores than the classic waiting for ore generators to regenerate. The plans for these are very “in the works” at this moment in time and will most likely not be implemented for a while. Features like this one require a lot of “balancing” and changes so, even upon release they may not be completely perfect. Ores generated in the mines will be any ores that are not “locked” (locked behind quests). Ores generated will also be random, making mining a unique experience every time. Additionally, the mines aren’t going to be “free”, they’ll be locked behind mine passes (and “team levels”). Once a mine pass is used, you’ll have limited time to explore the mines, and after it expires, you’ll be killed if you’re still in the area (losing all items). It is recommended that you leave where you came in before your time expires, but you do you.