Right now, both Habbox and the hotel at large are buzzing with rumours, speculation and excitement for the recently announced “massive new game feature” heading to Habbo this Halloween. But what on earth could it be? Those of us in the Habbox Helpdesk earlier today found out what it’s definitely not…
Yes, it’s certainly true that HabboxForum’s News & Rumours is full of speculation as to what the update may include, but it’s rare that Sulake themselves are quick to refer to something as a “massive” feature – usually when updates with hotel-changing additions arrive, they are mentioned briefly but then come to pass as the norm – such as when Trax finally hit, or Wired, to name but a few examples. A lot of people are guessing it may have something to do with furni again, or even greater customisation for rooms. Another user I spoke to recently suggested it could be the return of the once beloved SnowStorm game.
The most likely and discussed theory though is further social media integration with Habbo somehow. A lot of people have discussed the likes of voice chat integration or even partnership with Skype, to allow you to call other Habbos. Though, others argue (quite rightly) that this would be way too hard to moderate, increases the chances of younger users being at risk, and leaves Sulake outright prone to another infamous Channel 4 investigation. Luckily for us, though, one of Habbo.com’s Software Developers, Macklebee, happened to drop in to our very own Habbox Help Desk at a rather opportune time. Of course, questions were bombarded.
Thankfully, that rules out a few daunting prospects. It doesn’t take a genius to realise that having voice chat integration in Habbo would cause all kinds of chaos. First off, as Macklebee said, how on earth would it be moderated? Also mentioned before, it would lead to all kinds of risks to younger players that Sulake have spent more than a decade trying their utmost to protect. The fact that the features upcoming aren’t exclusive to the browser client-based Habbo, and are hitting the smartphone version too, implies that they’re not a successor to the recently deceased Pocket Habbo. Macklebee’s hints that it’s not an avenue Sulake have pursued before also implies that it’s not the return of SnowStorm or Battle Ball to the public rooms again (a feature that many people have said they’d like to see return).
Someone else proposed that the new feature could be a form of pet battling coming to Habbo or something along those lines – which would certainly be a new and interesting twist. Aside from that, it’s not easy to predict what it could be, however, it’s a nice change of pace to have a few answers eliminated by a member of staff. Macklebee and the rest of the software developers at .com (responsible for eradicating the recent 76% error on the loading screen that plagued users) have undoubtedly got their work cut out. Keep your eyes peeled this month, it should be a good one!
What are your own thoughts on what the update might include? Let me know in the comments below!
In before it’s diagonal facing furniture.
Nice article, Drew. I hope this new update is indeed a ‘game changer’. My expectations are high because they’ve said that so, I’ll be one very unhappy bunny if it turns out to be something completely unentertaining.
earn credits feature, that would help a lot of new players out there and attract even more.
Might be like a trick or treat game, some ‘special staff’ rooms when you enter you get a prize, and it has a progress tracker so it’s phone engaging?
I doubt they’d ever do a earn credits feature because buying credits is where Sulake gets the bulk of its profit from!
I honestly have no idea what a “game changer” could be, unless they’re changing something like the look of it which I would be v. angry at! I really think it’s more that a little feature like pet battles or a new game because I wouldn’t call that a game changer
LITERALLY NO IDEA I hate this I usually have at least an inkling
Very interesting