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AppWizard

January 16, 2026

Hytale Early Access Review So Far

Hytale, developed by former Minecraft modders, is a survival crafting game that serves as a spiritual successor to Minecraft. It retains familiar block-breaking and building mechanics but streamlines gameplay by allowing players to craft basic tools from easily collectible materials. Movement is enhanced with the ability to jump higher and utilize parkour mechanics. The game runs smoothly on high-performance systems, maintaining framerates above 60 even at maximum draw distance. Hytale features an engaging combat system with various weapon types and a diverse range of enemies. Building mechanics offer a broader selection of components, though some classic techniques may become obsolete. The Early Access version currently lacks clear direction, with the main hub area under construction and exploration revealing barriers in dungeons. Overall, Hytale presents thoughtful enhancements and a refreshing take on the survival crafting genre.

AppWizard

January 16, 2026

Hytale Feels Like Little More Than A Neat Minecraft Texture Pack

Hytale is an early access game that has been in development for a decade, facing a cancellation by Riot Games before its revival in November. The game features mechanics such as jumping two blocks high and a combat system that requires timing for attacks, which are similar to potential mods in Minecraft. Hytale includes familiar mobs like skeletons, spiders, zombies, and golems, alongside new creatures like goblins and Kweebecs, and a mysterious area known as the Void. Crafting in Hytale is more complex than in Minecraft, requiring multiple workstations, and workbenches can recognize adjacent chest contents. Despite its unique elements, Hytale often feels derivative of Minecraft, with similar sounds and inventory mechanics. Future updates, including an anticipated Adventure Mode, aim to introduce RPG-like storylines and quests. The game currently faces balancing issues but remains visually appealing, though it has not surpassed Minecraft's foundational elements.

AppWizard

January 15, 2026

7 Things in Hytale’s Early Game that Surprised Me as a Minecraft Veteran

Hytale has entered early access, offering players a vibrant world to explore. Early-game guides are being developed to assist newcomers with topics like smelting and server setups. The game is inspired by Minecraft but features unique elements. Key observations from the early game include: 1. Players can fell an entire tree with a single punch, resulting in an explosion of wood, sticks, and sap. 2. Overworld mobs, such as squirrels and rabbits, have more health than expected, requiring multiple hits to defeat. 3. Ores glimmer faintly in underground caves, making them easier to spot with torches. 4. The crafting system requires various materials for gear progression, making it more intricate compared to Minecraft. 5. There are enhanced decorative options, allowing for slanted roof blocks, half-block walls, and shelves with candles and books. 6. Exploration reveals unique locations like the "Forgotten Temple Gateway," which features distinctive mobs and NPCs. 7. Farming mechanics are more complex, with players able to construct animal care buildings and use farming aids, and new seeds requiring “Essence of Life.”

AppWizard

January 15, 2026

Hytale and Minecraft: 5 key differences you should know about

Hytale, developed by Hypixel Studios, shares similarities with Minecraft, including expansive, procedurally generated worlds and block-based environments. The game features a more nuanced combat system with special movesets and ultimate attacks, distinguishing it from Minecraft's melee system. Hytale's crafting is streamlined, allowing players to select items from a menu rather than arranging resources in a grid, and includes a progression mechanic for crafting stations. Additionally, Hytale introduces mantling, enabling players to jump and grab onto edges of blocks, enhancing mobility and exploration.

AppWizard

January 14, 2026

Long-Awaited Minecraft-Like MMO Hytale Launches in Early Access and Seemingly Registers Big Player Numbers Right Away

Hytale is now available in early access after its creator reacquired the rights from Riot Games. Players can purchase the game from the official website with three options: Standard (), Supporter (), and Cursebreaker (9). The game has reportedly seen a high rate of new players, although initial claims of 2.8 million users were debunked due to server issues. The development team revitalized a dormant build in eight weeks, addressing core systems and bugs. Exploration Mode features an infinite, procedurally generated world with biomes, structures, and creatures, allowing players to explore, craft, and engage in multiplayer experiences. Creative Mode offers building tools and specialized entity tools. Modding support is available from day one, with partnerships for robust content creation. Hytale supports multiplayer across all modes and plans to introduce Adventure Mode, official Minigames, and social features. There are future plans for console launches and consideration of a mobile version.

AppWizard

January 14, 2026

Minecraft 26.1 Snapshot 3

In the latest Snapshot release, players can access game rules directly from the in-game pause screen via a new World Options button. The Data Pack version has been updated to 97, introducing new block and fluid tags, as well as modifications to the time command to integrate with new World Clocks. World Clocks maintain an internal time that progresses with each tick and can be paused or resumed. A new clock field links timelines to specific World Clock IDs, and Time Markers now assign names to designated points in time within a World Clock context. The time command is now based on World Clocks, and a new required field has been added to Game Test Environments for specifying World Clock IDs. New tags for blocks and fluids have been introduced, and the Tripwire texture has been updated for better visual clarity. Several bugs have been fixed in this release.

AppWizard

January 14, 2026

Hytale surges to the most-watched game on Twitch, attracting over 420,000 viewers with its long-awaited launch

Hytale has officially entered early access after a decade of development challenges. The game's announcement trailer from 2018 has received 62 million views. On launch day, Hytale became the most-watched game on Twitch with over 420,000 viewers. Players are encountering challenges with wildlife, particularly bears. Hytale has secured funding for two years of early access development, and expectations are high for over one million players on launch day. There has been a significant spike in global search interest for Hytale on Google Trends. Initial technical issues have arisen, and the development team is working on a hotfix to address bugs and account verification delays due to high demand.

AppWizard

January 13, 2026

This Free Android App Blocks Useless Notifications and Lets Important Ones Through

DoNotNotify is a free Android application that allows users to create custom filters for their notifications, helping to reduce distractions while maintaining access to important messages. Users can filter notifications by creating blacklists or whitelists. A whitelist allows users to receive only selected notifications, such as alerts about specific topics or keywords, while a blacklist enables users to block notifications from certain individuals or subjects. The app requires permission to access notifications and has a privacy policy that states it does not collect personal information or share data with third parties.

AppWizard

January 13, 2026

6 Free Apps To Automate Tasks on Android

In daily life, people engage in repetitive phone actions that shape their routines, such as turning off Wi-Fi or silencing notifications. Android devices offer basic automation features, but true automation potential lies in apps that allow personalized routines. Samsung Galaxy users can utilize Modes and Routines, integrated into One UI 5.1, to create preset profiles and custom automations based on triggers like time and location. Google’s Action Blocks enable users to create customizable shortcuts for complex tasks with a single tap, leveraging Google Assistant. Automate by LlamaLab uses a visual flowchart interface for routine creation, allowing users to design automation flows with over 320 building blocks available. aProfiles focuses on profile-based automation, adjusting settings based on time and location, while IFTTT allows users to create applets for connected services, with limitations on custom applets for free users. MacroDroid offers a three-part structure for automations, with over 100 triggers and actions, and a template library for pre-made macros, while the free version limits users to five macros.

Winsage

January 12, 2026

EDRStartupHinder Disables Antivirus and EDR Protections During Windows 11 25H2 Startup

A new tool named EDRStartupHinder was unveiled on January 11, 2026, which allows attackers to inhibit the launch of antivirus and endpoint detection and response (EDR) solutions during the Windows startup process. Developed by security researcher Two Seven One Three, it targets Windows Defender and various commercial security products on Windows 11 25H2 systems by redirecting essential system DLLs during boot using the Windows Bindlink API and Protected Process Light (PPL) security mechanisms. The tool employs a four-step attack chain that includes creating a malicious service with higher priority than the targeted security services, redirecting critical DLLs to attacker-controlled locations, and modifying a byte in the PE header of the DLLs to cause PPL-protected processes to refuse loading them. This results in the termination of the security software. EDRStartupHinder has been tested successfully against Windows Defender and other unnamed antivirus products, demonstrating its effectiveness in preventing these security solutions from launching. The source code for EDRStartupHinder is publicly available on GitHub, raising concerns about its potential misuse. Security teams are advised to monitor for Bindlink activity, unauthorized service creation, and registry modifications related to service groups and startup configurations to detect this attack vector. Microsoft has not yet issued any statements regarding patches or mitigations for this technique.