Following a community vote, Jagex plans to eliminate Treasure Hunter from RuneScape

Jagex has officially announced a plan to withdraw the Treasure Hunter feature from RuneScape by January 19, 2026.

In the previous month, the UK-based developer invited the community to vote on the fate of microtransactions in RuneScape. This included deciding whether to eliminate the Treasure Hunter daily activity, as detailed in a recent announcement.

More than 120,000 players voted in favor of its removal, exceeding the required threshold of 100,000 votes.

First launched in 2014, Treasure Hunter allowed gamers to obtain rewards like XP boosts, items that could bypass game mechanics, and in-game currency.

While a limited number of keys could be acquired at no cost, additional keys were made available for purchase within the game's microtransaction system.

The decision to remove this feature will also lead to the elimination of 225 items linked directly to XP and skills, as well as those that disrupt the core gameplay and player economy, including direct XP purchases.

Jagex CEO Jon Bellamy mentioned on LinkedIn that other elements such as "appointment-based game mechanics" and "daily login incentives" will also be phased out.

Bellamy stated, "Removing Treasure Hunter is part of a broader shift within Jagex, aiming for more meaningful value, enhanced fairness, and long-lasting developments for our players across all games."

He continued, expressing that the player vote reflects strong enthusiasm for RuneScape. Over the next year, Jagex aims to introduce an Integrity Roadmap to address significant issues within the game, alongside a historic content roadmap.

In a recent discussion, Bellamy shared his aspirations for the company's future following his appointment as CEO earlier this year. His views on microtransactions and the need to restore various forms of integrity to RuneScape were also explored in the interview, available here.

He emphasized, "Restoring some integrity that might have been lost over the years is about more than just monetization—it also involves maintaining visual and gameplay integrity."

Bellamy hinted at experimental initiatives focusing on monetization but indicated that more efforts are underway to enhance integrity across all aspects of the game.