by Stone Marshall | Jun 7, 2017 | Awesome Book News, Free, Intro, Minecraft News, Minecraft questions, news, parent-news, State of Stone, Stone Marshall Book News, Stone Marshall Books, Stone Marshall Club, Stone Marshall Minecraft Adventures, Uncategorized |
“Minecraft at the Sydney Opera House” is an epic two day festival, and host to Australia's first Minecraft competition.
Held in the Concert Hall on July 2 and 3, the event brings to life one of the best-selling video games of all time, its 120 million-plus players captivated by a world of limitless exploration and creative possibilities. Described by organisers as “a true choose-your-own-adventure experience” the festival will be unbeatable school holidays entertainment for children, families, and Minecraft devotees of all ages.
“The Sydney Opera House is about creativity in all its forms. We encourage makers, builders and artists of all kinds,” Sydney Opera House Senior Producer for Children, Families and Creative Learning, Jamie Dawson, said. “This event is about bringing Minecrafters together to share ideas, challenge each other and to meet the creators of one of the world's most popular games. And where better to do it than the Opera House.”
The Opera House's grand Concert Hall and Northern Foyers will be transformed into a Minecraft extravaganza spanning three sessions over two days. Attendees can come and go between the main competition on stage and the activities in the foyer.
Minecraft at the Sydney Opera House is designed for everyone: from dedicated players of all ages (who can compete to win an Xbox One), to parents and educators who can understand and unpack how the game can be applied in an educational setting – and even younger gamers who can meet (and challenge) new friends.
Alongside the competitions, Lead Creative Designer of Minecraft, Jens Bergensten, will participate in the interactive sessions. Lydia Winters, Brand Director of Mojang, the studio behind Minecraft, will share her Minecraft tricks and tips and answer fans' questions.
You can grab a ticket here.
There's A Minecraft Festival Coming To Sydney Opera House
by Stone Marshall | Jun 6, 2017 | Awesome Book News, Free, Intro, Minecraft News, Minecraft questions, news, parent-news, State of Stone, Stone Marshall Book News, Stone Marshall Books, Stone Marshall Club, Stone Marshall Minecraft Adventures, Uncategorized |
Scholastic says it will stop distributing a fan-fiction Minecraft book that compares an Indian character's name to a fart.
A Toronto mother tweeted a photo of a page in Diary of a Minecraft Zombie, accusing the book of “modelling racist behaviour for my kids.”
‘I was really troubled by the idea that my children, who have long and complicated names, might end up reading something like this.' – Sailaja Krishnamurti, St. Mary's University
In the passage, the protagonist's mom tells him he's about to room up with foreign exchange student Rajit Venkatanarasimharajuvaripeta — an Indian name also famous for being the longest railway station name in India.
“It sounded like my mom farted,” the boy reacts.
When Halifax's Sailaja Krishnamurti first came across the passage on Twitter, she became concerned about her own kids.
“Certainly my son loves to play Minecraft, and they're of an age where they could be reading on their own without my looking over their shoulder,” Krishnamurti told As It Happens host Carol Off.
Krishnamurti is a religious studies professor at St. Mary's University in Halifax who studies representation of South Asian culture in children's literature.
“And so I was really troubled by the idea that my children, who have long and complicated names, might end up reading something like this on their own and not really know how to process how that might make them feel.”
The book, which has no named author, is part of the Zack Zombie series, described online as “an original work of fan fiction which is not sanctioned nor approved by the makers of Minecraft.” It is sold online via Amazon, and distributed through Scholastic.
Contacted for comment, Scholastic at first denied responsibility for the book's content, noting it was not published in-house, but rather by a company called Herobrine Books.
‘We are grateful for letting us know about this issue and want to apologize for any offence or harm it may have caused anyone.' – Nicole Zaccagnini, White Water Agency
However, the company later responded to say it would no longer be shipping the book.
“Our partnership with Canadian schools and families is a privilege, and one that we take very seriously,” Scholastic told As It Happens in an email.
“The author has been made aware of your comments and is deeply troubled that the text has been construed as racist, as this was never intended, and he is eager to make editorial changes to be sure the text is corrected. Further on in the story, the character recognizes and apologizes for his bad behaviour and the two characters become friends, with Zombie learning a valuable lesson in friendship, diversity and acceptance. ”
But Krishnamurti said the story's positive ending “doesn't excuse the racism that's being enacted right at the start of the book.”
Nicole Zaccagnini, publicist for the Herobrine series, apologized for the passage and told As It Happens they have “already made steps to remove the offending statements from our book so that no one will be hurt by this in any way.”
“We are grateful for letting us know about this issue and want to apologize for any offence or harm it may have caused anyone,” Zaccagnini, an account executive at the public relations firm White Water Agency, said in an email.
“We believe that all cultures, religions and groups in which people identify with are all special in the building blocks of our society.”
Krishnamurti, meanwhile, said this whole debacle just shows the importance of diversity in children's literature.
“I think it's an instructive moment for all of us as parents and as people who are thinking about children's literature to really advocate for more diverse representations in the books our children are reading.”
Scholastic pulls fan-fiction Minecraft book that compares Indian name to a fart
by Stone Marshall | Jun 6, 2017 | Awesome Book News, Free, Intro, Minecraft News, Minecraft questions, news, parent-news, State of Stone, Stone Marshall Book News, Stone Marshall Books, Stone Marshall Club, Stone Marshall Minecraft Adventures, Uncategorized |
The long-awaited Discovery Update for Minecraft: Pocket Edition has gone live for Android users. This is a huge new update for Mojang’s popular sandbox game, with a bunch of new content and features. The biggest new addition is the Marketplace, an in-game store where players can purchase new content provided by talented Minecraft creators.
As we previously reported, the Marketplace offers a way for players to buy new in-game skins, texture packs, maps and more to help extend their Minecraft experience. It will also help Minecraft creators earn money for their efforts. Marketplace items are purchased with Minecraft’s new in-game currency, Minecraft Coins, which in turn are bought using real-world money.
Adding an in-game store would be big enough for Minecraft, but there’s tons of additional new items and content included as part of this Discovery Update. As the title suggests, players will be encouraged to explore the game world to find new maps, monsters and puzzles, including finding treasures in the Woodland Mansions. You will also encounter new creatures, including helpful llamas that will carry much of your found treasure for you. You can check out the entire change log for the Discovery Update at the official Minecraft site.
What are your impressions of the Minecraft: Pocket Edition’s Discovery Update? Do you like the new Marketplace feature? Let us know in the comments!
Minecraft: Pocket Edition Discovery Update adds Marketplace in-game store and more
by Stone Marshall | Jun 5, 2017 | Awesome Book News, Free, Intro, Minecraft News, Minecraft questions, news, parent-news, State of Stone, Stone Marshall Book News, Stone Marshall Books, Stone Marshall Club, Stone Marshall Minecraft Adventures, Uncategorized |
The Discovery Update is here!
Pocket and Win 10 gets Marketplace, mansions and more!
The long-awaited 1.1 update for Pocket and Windows 10 is out today. We’re calling it the Discovery Update – and not just because we like the way it sounds! There are new features and secrets to explore, not least the spooky Woodland Mansions. What treasures lie within – and what peril? That’s for you to find out (or shamelessly look up on the wiki)!
There’s loads more. Llamas. Shulker Boxes. Dyable Beds. New blocks, like glazed terracotta and concrete. New enchantments, like Frostwalking and Mending. Ingot Smelting is a thing. Add-Ons are now additionally exciting, and will let you remix movement properties. You can now get the Skyrim Mash-Up Pack, too! Find the full changelog below.
Of course the big headline is… Marketplace! It’s a place where Pocket and Windows 10 players can browse, buy, download and play cool community creations from within the game itself. You can get a rundown of what kind of stuff you’ll find on there at launch in this quick guide to Marketplace! There’s also a nice video to tell you all about how it works. Lovely.
Anyway, here’s the full 1.1 changelog!
New Features:
- Minecraft Marketplace
- Skyrim Mash-up Pack
- Llamas
- Shulker Boxes
- Woodland Mansions
- Cartographer Villager & Exploration Maps
- Illagers (Evokers & Vindicators)
- Vex
- Concrete & concrete powder
- Glazed terracotta blocks
- Dyeable beds (and you can jump on them, too!)
- Iron and Gold tools can now be smelted into Iron Nuggets and Gold Nuggets
- Adventure Mode
- New game rules: DoFireTick, DoMobSpawning, DoTileDrops, MobGriefing, DoEntityDrops, KeepInventory, DoMobLoot, DoDaylightCycle
- New achievements
- Mending & Frostwalking enchantments
- Totem of Undying
- Off-hand slot (only works for arrows & Totem of Undying)
Tweaks:
- Changes in world generation. Seeds which contain pre-generated structures such as ocean monuments & igloos may generate those structures in different places now
- The sun now rises in the East and sets in the West
- CanPlaceOn & CanDestroy are now supported in the ‘/replaceitem' command
- Dampened the vertical look speed when using a controller
- Improved navigation of the settings screen when using a controller
- The X button can now be used to clear the hotbar on the Creative inventory screen when using a controller
- Improved controller input when selecting items on the Creative inventory screen
- Maps are now numbered so you can tell which map is which!
- Empty Maps with Compasses have been renamed to Locator Maps to distinguish between Empty Maps without Compasses
- New sleeping animation slowly lowers you into serene slumber
- Updated color palette for wool blocks and carpet
- Stained clay blocks have been renamed to terracotta
- Improved lead rope physics
- Cave Spiders now attack with poison time based on difficulty
- Worlds will now show a screenshot preview in the main menu
- 1 melon block can now be crafted into 9 melon slices
- 1 cobweb can now be crafted into 9 strings
- Eating animation can now be seen in third-person camera
- /locate command will now find more structures
- The screen safe area can now be adjusted in Video settings
- Add-Ons: movement properties are now data-driven
Bug fixes:
Woah, woah, woah! There are far too many fixes to list here! My favourites:
- Good news for Elytra fliers – You can now shoot yourself with a bow and arrow (and can splash yourself with potions again, too!)
- Horses now make sounds when they jump! Neeeeigh!
To see a more complete list of bugs, you can find the full changelog here: http://aka.ms/mcchangelogs
The Discovery Update is here!
by Stone Marshall | Jun 5, 2017 | Awesome Book News, Free, Intro, Minecraft News, Minecraft questions, news, parent-news, State of Stone, Stone Marshall Book News, Stone Marshall Books, Stone Marshall Minecraft Adventures, Uncategorized |
Patty Jenkins is having the biggest opening weekend for a female director in cinema history. Her superhero blockbuster Wonder Woman shattered the previous record for a female director by lassoing an estimated $100 million domestic and about the same cume in foreign markets. By Friday, the film had already taken an estimated $86 million in worldwide box office, and predictions for the final weekend cume continue to rise as ticket sales continue to exceed expectations.
Source: Warner Bros
Gal Gadot charges the battlefield in Warner's “Wonder Woman”
Added to the great box office news for Wonder Woman — indeed, no doubt driving that financial performance — is a 94% Certified Fresh critical reception and an A-grade from audiences via Cinemascore. The Rotten Tomatoes score means Wonder Woman is now tied with The Dark Knight and Iron Man as the best-reviewed superhero films in history, and the A Cinemascore is likewise on par with the highest-graded superhero films except The Avengers, which is the only superhero release to score a rare A+ from audiences.
Wonder Woman is a huge success for Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment. The terrific critical reception, love from audiences, and overperformance on opening weekend are strong signs the DCU has turned a corner in terms of perception and embrace by the general public. The previous DCU films Man of Steel, Batman v Superman, and Suicide Squad had mixed to negative critical reviews, mixed audience scores, and performed good at the box office but not great, with the first two movies coming in below studio hopes and expectations. Much retooling and rethinking was done over the previous several months, and Wonder Woman is the first DCU film representing much of that change in approach and perspective.
Source: Warner Bros
The Amazons of Warner's “Wonder Woman”
It's possible that Saturday and Sunday numbers will continue the upward trend in estimates for Wonder Woman, as families flock to the box office and the positive word of mouth from audiences spreads, turning this into a must-see movie event. Likewise, social media is filling up with people proclaiming their intention to go right back and watch the movie again, so repeat business — always a tough element to factor for when we make our predictions this early — could further drive up the final weekend numbers.
Some outlets are still predicting a final domestic bow in the $95-97 million range, just shy of $100 million, and if that winds up being the case it's still a huge victory for Wonder Woman and defies all of the earlier concerns and lower estimates. Those numbers still point to a likely final domestic tally north of $250 million, and more likely closer to $300 million, which implies a global total in the $600-700 million range.
Source: Warner Bros
The team pose for a famous photo in Warner's “Wonder Woman”
There's no doubt the final worldwide box office opening will be right around $200 million by close of business Sunday, and could go north of that number. For now, whatever the precise final numbers turn out to be, you can be sure there's a lot of celebrating going on over at Warner Bros. and DC Entertainment right now, and Patty Jenkins, Gal Gadot, and everyone involved in the picture have every reason to be dancing in the streets this weekend.
Have you seen Wonder Woman, dear readers? If so, let everyone know what you thought by sounding off in the comments below!
‘Wonder Woman' Shatters Records With $200+ Million Worldwide Opening
by Stone Marshall | Jun 4, 2017 | Awesome Book News, Free, Intro, Minecraft News, Minecraft questions, news, parent-news, State of Stone, Stone Marshall Book News, Stone Marshall Books, Stone Marshall Club, Stone Marshall Minecraft Adventures, Uncategorized |
If you're one of the few people in the world never to have played Minecraft, then now might be a good time to see what all the fuss is about.Minecraft lets players shape worlds and build elaborate structures one block at a time. It's a game about adventure, discovery and survival, as players try to stay alive long enough to uncover its many secrets.
A true phenomenon that has claimed the social lives of over 100 million players, it's out on pretty much every platform under the sun, from PS4, Xbox One and PC, to Apple TV, PlayStation Vita and even Raspberry Pi.
Minecraft Nintendo Switch Edition sits somewhere between the home console versions and the iOS, Android and Vita editions. It offers all the convenience of the tablet versions, but with the superior controls that you get on consoles.
It's not as pretty as the PS4 and Xbox One ports, the world aren't quite as big, and it's not as deep as the PC original, but it does provide more flexibility.
And that's why, even as somebody who has pumped hundreds of hours into Minecraft on PC and PS4, Minecraft Nintendo Switch Edition still holds a certain appeal.
Minecraft Nintendo Switch Edition REVIEW: The best game of Minecraft on the go
