During RuneFest last weekend, an annual RuneScape celebration, developers Jagex announced the first new skill for the game in the last 4 years. The new skill, Archaeology, brings the total in-game skills that players can level up to 28.
The new skill will see players unearth hidden dig sites, artifacts, weapons and more. Archaeology is set to land in January 2020. The full skill is restricted to pay to play members but free members can level up to 20.
Jagex explained that the skill tries to incorporate different aspects of gameplay such as gathering (think fishing, woodcutting) and manufacturing (think smithing, fletching).
Alongside this announcement came news that Old School RuneScape will be receiving an expansion involving a new quest, boss, and city to explore. Which will be good news for many Old School RuneScape players as a new skill pitch, Warding didn’t receive enough votes to be added to the game.
Finally, Jagex also stated that RuneScape will be coming to mobile early access this year for RuneScape subscribers. So those of you that have been missing out on your old account, and had to start fresh on Old School RuneScape don’t have that much longer to wait!
Jagex has come under fire a few times for their loot box mechanics, just last month they admitted that some players can spend £5,000 on loot boxes per month.
Phil Marshall, Jagex CEO said:
“Revealing and sharing our plans for future content is always exciting and this year’s keynotes brought blockbuster news, including our headline new Archaeology skill in RuneScape, Early Access coming to RuneScape Mobile, and Old School’s new Morytania Expansion. The announcements showcase our ongoing commitment to creating significant and meaningful content for RuneScape and Old School, and it was truly rewarding to see the reaction from our players in person and on the live stream.”
If you’ve been thinking about jumping back into the world of RuneScape, now is a perfect time. Be sure to check our guide on how to get back into it.
You can view the full keynote speech down below, which clocks in just over an hour long and opens with some top special effects.
