Hypixel Studios didn't waste time sending their legal team after the brazen knockoff that dropped on the Nintendo Switch eShop earlier this month. The game, titled exactly "Hytale: Sandbox RPG" and published by RoVi Ninen—the same outfit behind the Clover Pit scam known as Coin Pit—lifts not just the name but the art style, promotional images, and enough visual cues to fool new Switch 2 owners into thinking the real deal had suddenly ported over. Founder Simon Collins-Laflamme confirmed on X that the studio is fully aware and the matter is "being handled by the legal team."

This isn't an isolated glitch in Nintendo's quality control. The eShop has long been a documented haven for these low-effort cash grabs, with fans on Reddit calling it "the tip of the iceberg" and noting how AI-slopped Hytale promo art made the listing look legitimate enough to nearly trigger impulse buys. Similar stunts have hit bigger IPs before, like the Pokémon Company's successful suit against a mobile clone that straight-up reused official artwork. Real Hytale, meanwhile, sits in PC early access only, sold through its official site after years of development ups and downs.

The receipts paint a clear picture: storefront vetting remains performative at best while opportunists prey on hype and confusion. Hypixel's swift response protects their trademark and the player base that waited through the delays, but it shouldn't fall solely on developers to police every shady listing. Until Nintendo treats its digital shelves like more than a flea market, these "Sandbox RPG" clones will keep popping up faster than patches can drop.