The Minecraft studio added another zero to last month’s $10K donation to charity: water.
It wasn’t the smoothest weekend ever for Minecraft studio Mojang, which rolled out the largest update in the game’s history and very shortly thereafter discovered that it had turned the game’s AI-controlled villagers into hyperactive, hyper-horny, and completely out-of-control jerks. But there’s a spot of good news amidst all of that, too.
In March, Mojang donated $10,000 to charity: water, a non-profit organization that works to make safe drinking water accessible in developing countries. Last week, it pledged to bounce that donation to $100,000, once a new map and skin pack called The Travelling Trader had been downloaded 100,000 times.
“663 million people currently lack access to clean water (that’s almost 1 in 10 people), which makes the great work of charity: water absolutely essential. They want to bring clean water to as many people as possible, and we want to help them more,” Mojang wrote. “Charity: water estimates that the number of people impacted by a $100,000 donation is over 3,300. So all you have to do is download a great map and skin pack, and you’ll help us help a fantastic cause!”
The pack was made by “excellent content creators” Jigarbov Productions, and it’s free, which made achieving the goal almost inevitable. Even so, the quickness with which it happened is pretty impressive:
Microsoft announced today that it will be celebrating the tenth anniversary of Minecraft’s release in May. Original creator Marcus “Notch” Persson will not be taking part.
Recently introduced to Minecraft is the new Village and Pillage add-on, bringing a new wave of aspirations to the villager NPCs and prompting them to develop their day-to-day activities. In fact, it might have worked too well, because now the locals are working, sleeping, and—quite disturbingly—breeding inside player homes.
Have they no shame? Numerous reports of nosy neighbors have appeared on Reddit since the update launched, spanning a wide variety of complaints. As reported by Kotaku, players have come home to find the villagers sleeping in their beds, small children jumping on said beds, stealing crops, and breeding wherever they please. There have even been reports of villager heads popping off while they sleep. No matter where your home is located, place it close enough to a village, and they will most certainly stop by. Fortunately, their interactions are always peaceful at the least.
But have no fear; if you’ve recently come across these pesky villagers invading your home, the community has already responded with a few solutions. One Twitter user discovered an easy fix with a fishing rod, pulling any unwanted NPC out of your bed. And others have reported that the villagers aren’t too good with stairs or gates, giving you a few options to protect your home. But perhaps the most important thing on the list is to simply have enough beds and workstations in the village for everyone. This should keep your neighbors well away from your house in the future, as they’ll have plenty to keep occupied.
As of now, there has yet to be an official statement on the villagers. But we’ll get back to you on any potential fixes in the future. In the meantime, enjoy the not-so-peaceful interaction of the once tranquil NPCs.
After being added to Xbox Game Pass, Minecraft fans have more to shout about this month as the game has received it’s long awaiting “Village and Pillage” update.
Version 1.14 brings with it a host of new features and animals, including adorable panda’s (and bamboo to accompany them), cartography, pillagers and crossbows. The pillagers have different professions, so expect to see butchers, shepherds and clerics inhabiting the world the next time you load into the game.
As well as the above we have fletching tables, a composter, foxes, junction blocks and ravagers, which are giant armoured bulls. As someone who hasn’t played Minecraft in a while, I’m fairly confused too, dear reader. Players can also find wandering traders who travel across the landscape with a llama in tow, selling their wares. It all sounds a bit Breath of the Wild to me, which can only be a good thing for Minecraft fans looking for a more gritty adventure.
One of the more important sections of the patch notes makes light of the fact that baby pandas can sneeze and startle their guardians, and the new endangered mob have personalities, and can be “lazy, playful, worried or aggressive.” It’s nice to see some extra accessibility features available too, including a UI screen reader and a text-to-speech system.
It’s hard to believe, but it has been nearly a decade since Minecraft first appeared. On May 10, the game will see the 10-year anniversary of its original pre-classic release. Through years of additions, changes, and being sold to Microsoft, Minecraft became a worldwide phenomenon, selling about as many copies as the Bible.
The development team at Mojang has just released the newest update to the game, version 1.14. This version is formally known as the Village and Pillage Update. It adds loads of new blocks, mechanics, and bugfixes, as well as a new lighting system and reworked textures. On today’s episode of ShackStream, we continue our progress on the homely mountain love shack and will begin to venture outwards into the unknown wilderness.
Watch live video from Shacknews on www.twitch.tv As always, we’d like to take a moment and thank our subscribers and followers. These streams only happen due to your support and regular viewings. Another big thanks to those who participate in the Twitch chat. Your interaction means a lot to the streaming folks and is always appreciated. Viewers who have Amazon Prime are given one free Twitch Prime subscription a month if Amazon and Twitch accounts are linked. Check out our guide for more information on how to link your accounts.
I weird bug is preventing owners of the Minecraft video game on Nintendo Switch from backing up their games to the Nintendo Online cloud service.
Many gamers on Reddit and Twitter had begun to wonder if the feature had deliberately been disabled due to Minecraft also using the Xbox Live cloud service for cloud saves and transferring data between devices but a Minecraft community manager chimed in on Twitter and confirmed that it is in fact a bug. A fix will likely be pushed out with an update in the near future.
@HelenAngel I see that cloud saves are no longer supported, why is that?
Minecraft is an incredibly popular video game made by the, now Microsoft-owned, Mojang game studio. The game is available on most gaming platforms and supports cross-save and crossplay between the Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, Windows 10, VR, and mobile devices.
It’s safe to say Disney’s “Avengers: Endgame” won’t be done breaking records any time soon. Up next, the Marvel box office behemoth has its sights set on securing the biggest domestic second weekend of all time.
That crown currently belongs to “Star Wars: The Force Awakens,” with its mighty $149 million sophomore outing in North America. “Avengers: Endgame” is already in uncharted territory after its jaw-dropping $357 million opening weekend, making it all the more difficult to predict just how big of a second weekend the superhero blockbuster is heading for. Even so, “Endgame” could endure a massive 57% decline in box office receipts from its debut and still surpass the benchmark set by “The Force Awakens,” which dipped 39.8%.
By comparison, “Avengers: Infinity War,” the precursor to “Endgame,” saw a 55% drop in sales during its second frame. It’s undisputed that the superhero finale will assemble sizable ticket sales this weekend, but even if “Avengers: Endgame” falls short of that particular goal, it will still be in rarified company. Admission for the blockbuster could plunge by 68% (a number that would be dire for many other movies) and still come in ahead of the second weekend’s of “Avengers: Infinity War” ($114 million), “Black Panther” ($111 million), and “Jurassic World” ($106 million).
On Tuesday, “Avengers: Endgame” collected $33 million, bringing its domestic haul to $427 million. After just five days, it’s already the highest-grossing movie of the year in North America, dethroning “Captain Marvel’s” $414 million and counting. Overseas, the tentpole just crossed the billion-dollar mark.
With $1.48 billion globally, “Avengers: Endgame” has now passed “Black Panther” ($1.34 billion) and “Avengers: Age of Ultron” ($1.4 billion) to become the eighth-biggest movie in only seven days in theaters. That stunning bounty has pushed Marvel Studios over $20 billion in ticket sales from the 22 films that comprise the comic-book empire’s cinematic universe.
Despite the clear chokehold “Avengers: Endgame” has over the exhibition industry, there are three new wide releases brave enough to take on Earth’s Mightiest Heroes. Lionsgate’s “Long Shot,” a comedy starring Charlize Theron and Seth Rogen, is banking on moviegoers needing a fix of laughter to cope with the devastating conclusion to the current phase of Marvel movies. Sony and Screen Gems are releasing psychological thriller “The Intruder,” while STX has “UglyDolls,” an original animated musical featuring Kelly Clarkson, Nick Jonas, and other familiar voices. All three are targeting opening weekends in the low-teens.
“Long Shot,” one of this summer’s few funny movies aimed at adult audiences, is expected to earn between $9 million and $16 million when it opens in 3,100 North American locations. The raunchy R-rated romantic comedy stars Rogen as a journalist trying to win over his former babysitter (Theron), who is running for president. Jonathan Levine, who previously worked with Rogen on the Joseph Gordon-Levitt drama “50/50,” directed the movie, which was penned by comedy writer Dan Sterling and “The Post” scribe Liz Hannah. Rogen produced “Long Shot” with his longtime partner Evan Goldberg, as well as Theron. Reviews were mostly positive (it has an 87% on Rotten Tomatoes), though critics like Variety’s Peter Debruge cautioned that the “undeniably funny” movie fails to reflect a post-#MeToo world.
“UglyDolls,” targeting a much different audience than that of “Long Shot,” is an animated adventure based on the popular children’s toys. STX’s first foray into animation should collect $12 million to $16 million from 3,600 screens. “UglyDolls” takes place in Uglyville, where colorful fabric dolls long for the day they will meet their perfect human match. When Moxy (Clarkson), the group’s fearless ringleader, takes her pals on a journey to Perfection, a town filled with more conventionally appealing dolls, the band of misfits learn to embrace what it means to be unique. Clarkson, Jonas, Janelle Monae, and Pitbull recorded all new music for the musical movie. STX and Alibaba Pictures co-financed the project for $45 million. It was directed by Kelly Asbury, who previously helmed animated movies “Shrek 2” and “Gnomeo & Juliet.” The next few weeks will be especially competitive on the family front, with essentially all ages still purchasing tickets for “Avengers: Endgame,” and Warner Bros.’ “Detective Pikachu,” Universal’s “The Secret Life of Pets 2,” and Disney’s “Toy Story 4” debuting this summer.
“The Intruder,” a PG-13 thriller, anticipates a start between $9 million and $16 million from 2,200 venues. The movie follows a young married couple, who after buying their dream house, realizes the seller (Dennis Quaid) has some shady intentions. It carries an $8 million price tag. Sony’s Screen Gems division has recently found success serving up modestly priced thrillers like “The Possession of Hannah Grace,” “Searching,” and “Slender Man.” Those three titles, which all all brought back solid box office receipts, cost under $10 million to produce. Talk about scary-good.
