First look: Jagex is developing a new RuneScape MMO in the Unreal Engine, the first numbered installment in the series since the release of RuneScape 3 in 2013. The project was announced at RuneFest 2026 under the working title RS4, although players have already started calling it RuneScape 4. Jagex said the game is in early development with its own dedicated team and is still several years away from release.
The company hasn’t said which version of Unreal Engine it’s using, which platforms the game will support, or when it plans to show gameplay. The first public look at the project is more of a CGI teaser than an in-engine demonstration.
The trailer shows a city in a green valley among floating islands and a dragon rider being attacked by a three-headed dragon. The footage conveys a cinematic fantasy setting more than anything else, offering few details about the game’s systems, combat, scope, or online structure.
RS4 has its roots in RuneScape: Dragonwilds, the Unreal Engine 5 open-world survival game from Jagex. The MMO reportedly began life as an expansion for Dragonwilds and was originally planned for a 2027 release. However, that changed after playtesters pushed for a more traditional MMO in the same world.
The result is now a separate game and not an add-on. The story is set to begin years after Dragonwilds and will take players back to Ashenfall, the region introduced in the survival game. Beyond this common framework, Jagex has not said how closely linked the two projects will be.
The use of Unreal Engine is one of the more important details of the announcement. Jagex has already used Unreal Engine 5 for Dragonwilds, but RS4 will be a much bigger test of the technology within the franchise. Building an MMO requires more than large environments and detailed character models. The game requires reliable online infrastructure, persistent worlds and systems that can support a large player base over time.
None of this has been shown yet. Jagex did not discuss the game’s server structure, world design, combat model, player economy, or social systems. It also didn’t say whether RS4 will follow the classless, skill-focused approach of the existing games or take a different route.
There are also business issues. RuneScape 3, Old School RuneScape and Dragonwilds will continue to work after the release of RS4. Jagex hasn’t said how the new game will be monetized or whether players will be able to carry over accounts, cosmetics, characters or progression from RuneScape 3.
That leaves RS4 as a project with a clear setting and engine choice, but few confirmed details about how it will work. The move to Unreal Engine gives Jagex room to create a newer technical foundation for RuneScape, but the studio hasn’t yet shown how that foundation can be translated into a modern MMO.
