Minecraft developer Mojang has announced that support for Minecraft: Story Mode is ending, and that players will have until June 25th, 2019, to download their episodes. The game’s delisting follows the disappearance of other games created by Telltale Games, which abruptly shut down last year.
Mojang says that because of Telltale’s closure, the game will no longer be supported as of June, and that players who purchased it will need to make sure to download it before it’s taken down for good. The game is the latest of Telltale’s creations to be pulled from stores: at the end of May, Kotaku reported that games such as Tales from the Borderlands was no longer available on Steam, and that storefront Good Old Games announced that it would no longer be selling Telltale’s games.THE GAME IS THE LATEST TELLTALE CREATION TO BE PULLED FROM SALE FOLLOWING THE STUDIO’S CLOSURE
Telltale Games announced the story-driven game back in 2014 and launched it in 2015, bringing a traditional narrative to the sandbox game through a series of episodic games that Telltale became known for. The game was available for Microsoft Windows, macOS, PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita, Wii U, Nintendo Switch, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Android, and iOS.
The game followed Jesse (voiced by Patton Oswalt), who, along with his friends, have to find the Order of the Stone, to prevent the destruction of their video game universe. At the time, Telltale’s director of creative communications Job Stauffer noted that the game was inspired a bit by classic films from the 1980s, like Ghostbusters and The Goonies: There was something magical about that generation of film before the PG-13 rating became commonplace that bred an incredible body of inspiration for us.”
The game ran for two seasons (Season 1 ran for eight episodes, and Season 2 ran for five episodes) between 2015 and 2017, and last year, Telltale Games signed a deal with Netflixto bring its games to the streaming service, and a five-episode season of Minecraft: Story Mode debuted in November.
Sonic Ether’s Unbelievable Shaders is a shaderpack that adds the kinds of effects we normally associate with ray-tracing— like light that’s able to bounce off other objects—to ol’ blocky-ass Minecraft, and do it while you’re playing in real-time.
It’s not technically ray-tracing (he’s actually using path-tracing), but the effects are still incredible. Here are some examples of it in action:
And here are some screens showing it off on some more traditional areas:
You can download what you need by pledging $10 over on Sonic Ether’s Patreon page. Just know that the effects here are software-based, so you’ll need a decent PC to get a good framerate.
As old as Minecraft is, I’ll never get tired of appreciating just how good it looks when people put the effort in. I know a lot of games can get modded to Hell and back and look great, but there’s something about the distance blocky ol’ Minecraft has to travel to get there that makes it particularly special.
Case in point: this absolutely stunning house, made by umsoea using all kinds of tricks like shaders and custom textures. The architecture is definitely helping sell the whole thing here; a modern house like this is naturally blocky, removing one of the great obstacles Minecraft builds tend to have before they can look “real”.
But neither that fact, or the framerate (it’s…bad) can take away from just how good this looks. This wasn’t built for smooth gameplay and digging underground, this was built to marvel at, and I’ve been doing a lot of that today.
You can find links to download the stuff you need for this here.
According to Minecraft’s Chinese publisher NetEase Games, the game has surpassed the 200 million player mark in China alone. The mod community is thriving as well with over 25,000 Minecraft mods being created by over 2,100 developers in the region. Those mods have been been downloaded 1.36 billion times, making China one of the biggest player bases for the sandbox legend.
Minecraft’s Chinese community is working on several projects that recreate some of the country’s most recognizable architecture. The game is being used to revive historic icons, like Beijing’s Forbidden City, and to provide the public with a more interactive way to experience them. The National Architect & Cthuwork Studio spent over three years recreating the Imperial Palace within the Forbidden city which used over 100 million Minecraft blocks in its construction.
credit// NetEase
The team spent time doing extensive research before building in the city in the game. They have accurately recreated the palace interior allowing players to truly explore the city in depth. Thanks to 3D printing, their in-game recreation was printed and displayed within the real Imperial Palace for locals and tourists to see.
This is not the first time that Minecraft has been employed as an agent to pay tribute to world heritage sites. Even before the tragic destruction of Notre-Dame in Paris, an independent development studio named Huanling built a cyber version of the famous church in high detail using digital technology and art. The team has revived a breathtaking replica of the original by capturing and simulating the natural light passing through its tangible construction at a meticulous level.
Ever since its original debut way back in 2009 (if you can believe it), Minecraft has become a global gaming phenomenon, attracting millions of fans, young and old alike, to its incredibly addicting gameplay and easy-to-learn creation tools. Due to how popular it has become, Minecraft has become home to tons of high-quality merchandise items over the years. Here are our favorites.
The Pig Riders Adult T-Shirt for adults is the perfect way to show your Minecraft spirit. The design is cool, yet not overly flashy in any way. In addition, it’s made out of 50% cotton and 50% polyester, which ensures a nice balance between comfort and shrink-resistance.$10 at Minecraft
The Midnight Chase Youth T-Shirt features an awesome-looking design with iconic Minecraft characters like Steve, zombies, and a creeper, and it’s made with 100% ring-spun cotton for maximum comfort.$15 at Minecraft
This 1TB Xbox One S model comes with an awesome-looking Minecraft skin that’s reminiscent of the dirt blocks you see in-game. It comes with a sweet creeper-themed Xbox One controller, too.$335 at Amazon
This is the same controller that comes with the Minecraft Xbox One S, but it’s sold separately. The sickly green creeper color looks super cool, and the controller also comes with textured grips for enhanced comfort and Minecraft font on the buttons.$58 at Amazon
The Pig Xbox controller features the iconic face and color of the adorable pigs you can find in Minecraft, and like the creeper-themed controller, the grips are textured and the ABXY buttons have Minecraft font on them.$60 at Amazon
This Steve costume is a fantastic way for your little one to dress up Minecraft-style. It offers a boxy and easy-to-wear suit and a large, 10-inch mask that fits comfortably over a child’s face.$33 at Minecraft
The Creeper Rush Cap is the best baseball cap-style hat available officially for Minecraft, featuring a sleek black-and-green look with three creepers on the front. In addition, it’s also got an awesome mesh back that helps keep your head cool in high heat.$20 at Minecraft
The Creeper Stripe Beanie shares the same sleek black-and-green look as the Creeper Rush Cap, and its got a 100% acrylic knit construction that will keep the head warm in the cold.$20 at Minecraft
This neat little wallet features a cool design that will remind players of their spider-riding adventures, and it doesn’t look overly crazy style or color-wise, which is great. Additionally, it has a translucent ID slot and five slots for various card types.$20 at Minecraft
The Creepy Creeper backpack is an excellent choice for anyone looking for a new backpack. Its creeper-themed design is super cool, and it also has enough room inside for a full 17-inch laptop, books, and plenty of various other items.$30 at Minecraft
The Dirt Block Lunchbox is a roomy 8.5-inch container perfect for holding your lunch throughout the day, and its design features a detailed rendition of the iconic Minecraft dirt block.$15 at Minecraft
The Grand Adventure Creeper Plush is a soft and fluffy 16-inch tall plush made out of polyester fibers, meaning that it’s both fun to play with and comfortable for children to snuggle with in bed.$30 at Minecraft
The Mining Steve Action Figure is a fully-articulated, 5-inch action figure of the iconic Minecraft character Steve. In addition to the figure simply looking awesome, you can even make Steve swing his pickaxe, adding play value into the mix.$15 at Minecraft
The LEGO Minecraft: The End Battle set depicts the famous “final boss fight” of Minecraft, offering buyers Dragonslayer, Ender Dragon, and Enderman figures to build. They’ll also get a code to unlock the Dragonslayer skin in-game.$20 at Minecraft
The LEGO Minecraft: The Melon Farm set depicts a dangerous encounter between a creeper and Steve, his pig steed, and a villager. You also get a chest and a handful of food item pieces for setting up a diorama.$30 at Amazon
The Light-up Adventure Sword is an awesome handheld toy that looks like the sword from the game. It also lights up and makes cool sounds thanks to its triple AA batteries, with the first set of these included in the box.$35 at Minecraft
The Minecraft Graphic Novel is a new story that features protagonist Jack and his friends attempting to challenge and take down the infamous Ender Dragon. It’s got 88 pages, so there’s plenty of fun reading to be had here.$10 at Minecraft
This 76-by-86-inch set features a full-sized comforter, fitted and flat sheets, and pillowcases make the perfect bedding set for any young Minecraft player. The design looks awesome, and the whole package is made out of warm polyester material and fill.$75 at Minecraft
If we had to choose
There’s a ridiculous amount of officially-licensed merchandise out there for Minecraft, and chances are, there’s something out there that will suit your needs or desires no matter what they are. If I had to choose one for myself, though, I would go with the Pig Riders Adult T-Shirt, as I think the design is really cool, yet not overly crazy as to draw unwanted attention to me while I’m out-and-about. Plus, you can get it at a fantastic price, which you often can’t say about brand shirts.
People looking for something for the kids to play with should check out the Light-up Adventure Sword for its cool electronic effects that add plenty of play value, as well as the design and shape which is accurate to the swords you see in the full game. If you;re picking something up for someone who loves to read, then the 88-page adventure story within the Minecraft Graphic Novel will be perfect due to its neat take on the Minecraft art direction, as well as the fairly large size of the story overall.
