Minecraft, following a massive uptick in overall popularity following its acquisition by Microsoft — related in no small part to its expanded cross-platform compatibility — is regarded by many as a game first and foremost for children. This is, however, more a recent development in the game’s accessibility and marketing, rather than a long-standing trend in the broader community. Development of Minecraft under Mojang, the game’s original parent company, was developed through version 1.7.10, with the game’s current PC iteration on version 1.13.2. While there have been distinct benefits which the overall community has been able to draw from, the increased visibility, for instance, causing the movement of Minecraft from an internet phenomenon into popular culture, there have also been serious costs for the people involved, in particular the opensource modding community.
Mods, or modifications made to a game in order to add content or otherwise shift the experience of playing, have been a staple of Minecraft since version 1.4. Some of the earliest mods on the scene was Thaumcraft 2, which added an entire system of magic to a game which lacked it at the time, and a recipe book mod which helped guide new players through the as-yet-undocumented options for crafting in the game. Part of the reason for the presence of numerous mods, even in early versions of the game, was as a consequence of both the lack of structure of the base game, which served primarily as a platform for many people rather than a game in and of itself, as well as the ease with which the code could be accessed and modified. In turn, Mojang took specific steps to encourage modding, and on the Minecraft forums, discussions of mods adding everything from airships to ogres were developed and contributed to by the community.
Unlike many other games, there were even a number of mod launchers for community creators to design packages of mods, or mod packs, which would include a curated suite of mods designed to create a distinct feel. Such launchers included the Tekkit launcher, Feed the Beast (FTB) and Curse launchers creating things like skyblock, a mode of play where the player begins floating on a small square of blocks in the void and must build their entire world from nothing. Essential in both the mod launchers, and for the mod creators themselves was the relatively slow release of new versions of the game. While there were features and fixes made to the base game, the two most popular Mojang versions were 1.6.4 and 1.7.10, which were both in circulation for lengthy periods of time. However, with Microsoft’s acquisition of Minecraft from Mojang, the environment changed, resulting in a much faster progression of versions. Rather than leaving the development of content to the community, Microsoft began updating versions adding things which in the past had been added through mods. While not negative on its face, the combination of rapid version progression in conjunction with a shift towards consoles over PCs resulted in a throttling of the modding community.
This hold, however, largely exists for the most recent versions, wherein I feel lies the greatest tragedy. Many older Minecraft players still play on the older versions such as 1.6.4 and 1.7.10 and many modders still develop for these older versions, preferring to make their versions contiguous and compatible with other mods rather than attempting to keep up with the newer versions. However, because this rich modding community is buried under six layers of versions, it is all but unknown to the casual observer, who might never know that such a background exists. It is my hope, then, that there is a certain degree of care paid to the modding tradition which has endured since the game’s inception, and which endures in the Technic launcher, as well as through Twitch. Minecraft is not just blocks. It has an array of machines, golems, magic, autonomous mining bores, rocket ships, magic flowers and even programmable computers. Minecraft is a platform I hope more people will recognize
In its seven seasons Fortnite has had a lot of things: meteors, soccer stadiums, epic in-game events, and more skins than your credit card can keep up with. But it never has had an entire island dedicated to Weezer, until today, the start of Season 8 that is.
More specifically, Fortnite’s creative hub now has an island dedicated to all things Weezer and that plays four songs from the band’s upcoming and unreleased albums. Because, that’s just what Fortnite does these days.
According to Polygon, the island is a cross-promotional effort to market Weezer’s upcoming 2019 albums: The Black Album and The Teal Album.
More details on how and why this happened are unfortunately unavailable, but it opens the door to an interesting concept: using service games as a tool of promotion. What if Kanye West teases Yandi with Apex Legends? Or Cardi B and Rihanna tease their upcoming albums in Anthem? Do I think this type of thing will happen again in the near future? Of course not, but I would have said the same thing about Weezer promoting its upcoming albums with Fortnite. And when you look beyond the near-future, it’s pretty easy to envision a reality where this isn’t the exception, but the norm.
Anyway, as you would expect, people have no clue what to make of the news, which is surely one of the crazier things Fortnite has done yet.
Fortnite is available for PlayStation 4, Xbox One, PC, Nintendo Switch, and mobile devices. For more on the popular battle royale game, be sure to peep all of our previous, and regularly updating, coverage of it by clicking right here.
Fans of the hit Cartoon Network series Steven Universe and the game Minecraft will be happy to know that the two are now mingling with one another thanks to a recently released Mash-Up pack.
“Steven enters the Minecraft universe in this Diamond-worthy Mash-up,” the description reads. “Contains Steven Universe themed skins, textures, original music from the show, and all your favorite locations, from Beach City to Homeworld. Believe in Steven!”
As can be seen in the video above, all of the Crystal Gems are present with this new Minecraftpack. In addition to this, other supporting characters from the show are also included, which will make carrying out your adventures through Beach City even better.
“The Crystal Gems are a team of magical beings who are the self-appointed guardians of the universe. Half-human, half-Gem hero Steven is the “little brother” of the group. The goofball is learning to save the world using the magical powers that come from his bellybutton and he goes on magical adventures with the rest of the Crystal Gems, even though he’s not as powerful — or smart — as fellow group members Garnet, Amethyst and Pearl. Despite his shortcomings, Steven usually finds a surprising way to save the day.” The Steven Universe x Minecraft Mash-Up Pack is available now in the Marketplacefor 990 Minecoins. The blending of the two also has fans wondering what an episode of the show stylized like Minecraft would be like, and I can’t help but wonder the same. Who knows, maybe we’ll see something of the sort down the road from fans now that these textures and characters are in-game. All we have to do is believe. What do you think about this? Are you excited to check out Beach City and hang out with the Crystal Gems in Minecraft? Sound off in the comment section below, or hit me up over on Twitter @anarkE7!
Check out the Steven Universe x Minecraft Mash-Up Pack. You can explore the immersive world of Steven Universe, pick special character skins and collect iconic items, including Connie’s new sword, Cookie Cats, and so much more.
Minecraft and Undertale cross paths in a fan-created video, where Steve falls into Mt. Ebott recreating the intro of the low-fi indie game.
Both Minecraft and low-fi indie adventure Undertale with games like Fortnite and Deltarune stealing their spotlight. But creators are still working on making some cool fan projects — even if it means merging the two unlikely franchises together. A newly-created video focuses on just that, offering up the intro of the game in a new light.
Posted by Redditor u/Dodu-, the video seems innocuous enough. The 25-second video starts with Minecraft protagonist Steve climbing a gigantic mountain. Following the ascent, Steve falls through a crevice in the middle of the mountain, hitting a pitch-black section. Tiny, yellow flowers greet the player before he turns to a purple sheep.
You can catch the full video below:
Make no mistake–work was put into this. While there are naturally-developed caverns, caves, and sinkholes in Minecraft, Dodu explained that he had to blast this section out using TNT.
Now what does this have to do with Undertale — let me step in and deconstruct that for you.
For everyone who has never played the RPG Maker title that struck internet fame, each game begins with the same intro — following a war that broke out between Monsters and Humans. Despite coming out victorious and sealing the Monsters underground, in the year 201X humans have been falling through a hole at the top of Mt. Ebott. Those who manage to fall through that hole are never seen again.
You, as the game’s protagonist, trip and fall into Mt. Ebott, starting Undertale‘s adventure.
The game opens up to a quick dialogue section — you are introduced to Flowey, the seemingly innocent flower-like creature that “welcomes” you to the game. That is, before purple-clad goat mom (Toriel) drives the vindictive flower away and whisks you to her home.
So there you have it–Steve climbs the mountain, falls to the bottom, is greeted by flowers, and has his first encounter with Toriel.
Minecraft is currently available on quite literally everything — whether it be your Nintendo Switch, tvOS, or toaster. Meanwhile, Undertale is available for Nintendo Switch, PC, PS4, and Vita. Oh, and Minecraft is purchasable on Amazon if you are interested and haven’t picked it up yet.
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Minecraft was officially released by Mojang back in 2011, and almost eight years later Minecraft is still one of the most popular games in the world. Here’s how you can get your hands on the sandbox title on Xbox, PlayStation, PC and mobile devices.
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While games like Fortnite and Apex Legends have taken the gaming industry by storm, Minecraft continues to be one of the most popular games ever made.
Over 154 million copies of Minecraft have been sold worldwide, and the game based on surviving in a world made out of cubes boasted 91 million monthly players back in the summer of 2018.
Minecraft has come one of the most popular games ever created.
Minecraft is still a global phenomenon, with new players still picking the game up every week to explore and build in a computer-generated world that is completely unique to the player.
With that in mind, here’s how you can get your hands on the incredibly popular game.
How to download Minecraft on PC and Mac
PC is the most popular way to play Minecraft, and is also one of the easiest ways to get your hands on the game.
To play the game on PC or Mac, simply go to the official Minecraft website. Once you’re on the website, you’ll be greeted with a button asking you to purchase Minecraft. Click on that and create a Mojang account, and you will be able to purchase the game for $26.25.
Minecraft can be purchased from the official website.
How to download Minecraft on Xbox
To get your hands on Minecraft on Xbox, simply head to the Xbox Marketplace on your Xbox system, and type “Minecraft” into your search bar. Players can they purchase the game from the marketplace, and the digital edition of the game will be stored on your Xbox console.
Players can also buy physical copies of the game from major retailers.
How to download Minecraft on PlayStation
Downloading Minecraft on PS4 is extremely similar to doing so on Xbox. Simply head to the PlayStation Store, search for the game and it should appear ready for you to purchase. Just like the Xbox version, there are also physical copies of the title available to purchase.
Physical copies of Minecraft are available.
How to download Minecraft: Pocket Edition on mobile devices
Downloading Minecraft on mobile devices in incredibly easy too. Simply head to the App Store on Apple iOS devices, or the Google Play Store on Android and search for the Pocket Edition of Minecraft.
Once you have found it, you can purchase the game for around $7, and play it any time, any place.
