Memes with Toto’s hit “Africa” are all the rage right now and Minecraft player and Youtube user grande1899’s latest video is the cherry on the cake. It’s just under three minutes long, so short enough for you to have a quick sing along wherever you are.

Dr. Grandayy 🏥
@grande1899
I finally made Africa by Toto with Minecraft note blocks
Watch the full version on my note block channel ⬇️https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JKli-d8QMLg …
(yes it’s a bubble upload today!)

5:40 AM – Sep 5, 2018
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The creator described the making of the video as:

“I made it all by ear using only note block sounds. The audio in the video is not the exact in-game audio as due to Minecraft’s limitations the in-game version doesn’t sound as good. The video is also sped up so the tempo is the same as the original song. The note block structure was generated using Minecraft Note Block Studio.”

Fans of the account are happy to see this latest edition to grande1899’s repertoire as they’ve covered everything from Dua Lipa to John Cena’s entrance music.

“Although the game was simulating an environment from 1989, urban planners these days still run into problems trying to get officials to think about their city in the long run. Climate change and sea level rise is a very crystalline example of the way city officials get in their own way and set themselves up for larger obstacles later on […]

Playing SimCity 2000 nowadays is a strange but wonderful way to realize what defines a city is not what it currently is, but what it could be. — inverse.com

More on simulations and gameplay for city planning:

SimCity and beyond: the history of city-building games
Three guiding principles for a fine fake metropolis
“Cards Against Urbanity,” the hilarious and surreal urban planning game
California Water Crisis? Now there’s a board game for that!
As It Lays: The New L.A. Game
The theory of everything in sandbox city: Will Wright’s keynote at ACADIA 2014

“Tate Worlds are exciting Minecraft ‘maps’ that present virtual environments inspired by artworks from Tate’s collection. The maps allow players of Minecraft to explore a range of paintings and sculpture, undertaking various activities and challenges that relate to the themes of the artworks, or exploring how they were made. Tate has teamed up with some of Minecraft’s best known mapmakers to create these virtual artworks, offering a unique combination of art, history and adventure. — Tate.org

The first two maps were released by the museum on November 24th and were based on two famous paintings of urban settings: Andre Derain’s 1906 painting of London, The Pool of London, and Christopher Nevinson’s 1920 painting of New York, Soul of the Soulless City.

André Derain, the influential Fauvist painter, depicted the bustling port of the Thames at the turn of the century. In the new Minecraft version of the painting, the bright colors employed by the painter are reproduced on an immersive scale. Gamers can wander the imaginary city and explore such historic sites as the Tower of London.

Christopher Nevin’s futurist-influenced painting Soul of the Soulless City depicts New York in the 1920s, as it began to emerge both economically and architecturally as a modern metropolis. Fittingly, the experience of the corresponding Minecraft maps begins on a train that hurtles you into the city, just as Nevin’s painting utilizes train tracks to convey its convoluted sense of perspectival motion.

In 2015, Tate Worlds will release maps based of John Singer Sargent’s Carnation, Lily, Lily, Rose from 1885-6, Peter Blake’s The Toy Shop from 1962, John Martin’s The Destruction of Pompeii and Herculaneum from 1822, and Cornelia Parker’s Cold Dark Matter: An Exploded View from 1991.

The BlockWorks studio proves, yet again, that architects can use Minecraft as a design tool to produce rather magical results with impressive detail. The team of architects, designers, and animators envision mystical cubic worlds in response to what they refer to as “Briefs”, which include commissions from YouTube personalities, gaming networks, museums, and film studios as well as original submissions to actual Minecraft design competitions.

Although the designs are largely fictional, BlockWorks draws inspiration from real-world buildings from throughout history and even structural details by today’s starchitects. As expected, the team’s growing portfolio is pretty spectacular, and surely retains one’s attention for a good amount of time.

You can check out more of BlockWorks’ projects in greater detail on their website. Also, sneak a peek at some their project trailers below or on their YouTube channel.

All images via. H/T Kotaku Australia

Introducing BlockWorks: Cinematic Trailer

Aeternium – Minecraft Cinematic by BlockWorks

Tomorrowland – Minecraft Cinematic by BlockWorks

“In this extended short, City Beautiful takes on the old school classic SimCity from the perspective of a professional planner 20 years later. Along the way, City Beautiful provides pertinent observations of game play versus reality. — theurbanist.org

Urban Design Ph.D student Dave Amos circles back around to the game that sparked his passion as a kid playing computer games. An advocate for sustainable living and diverse cities, Amos plays through the old school SimCity game providing relevant insights learned over the years in his career.

While normally used by online gamers to create a generated world for exploration and combat, the world-building computer game Minecraft has been noted for its architectural capabilities. BlockWorks, a design studio in the UK, uses the game as a design tool to create materials for marketing, media, and education; a competition in Australia a few years back invited students to design a national park using the block-building program; and Bjarke Ingels has proselytized at length that the architecture field should become more like the game as well.

Providing an online platform to build the world we want to inhabit, Minecraft’s great distinction is its offer of complete freedom from real world constraints—there’s no clients, no engineers, and no financial restrictions. Testing those limits, architect and designer Andrew McClure of Nomad Design set out to build something using Minecraft. Educated on the program by his young cousin, McClure picked a site in the desert, laid out a foundation, and built his contemporary dream home, cantilevers and all.

Minecraft – or, specifically, the Minecraft Bedrock Edition series of titles – has now received dedicated servers for players across the board. Unfortunately, this feature has arrived on every platform other than Nintendo Switch.

Dedicated servers allow players on Windows and Linux computers to set up their own server at home, or host their server using a cloud-based service. From here, other players owning a Bedrock edition of the game can join in, giving those in your specific server the power to configure your world however you like with your own unique settings, modes, server life cycle, and more.

An article on developer Mojang’s support page has confirmed the fact that Switch owners cannot take part in this new feature.

Q: Who can play on my dedicated server?
A: Anyone playing on the bedrock editions will be able to connect to the server, with the current exception of Nintendo Switch users. Also, players on Xbox One will only be able to connect through a LAN connection.

The “current exception” part of that statement provides hope that Switch players will be able to join in the fun at a later date, but the lack of explanation behind the move is a little frustrating. Hopefully, Mojang is busy working behind the scenes to implement the feature on Nintendo’s console, too, but we’ll just have to wait and hope for an official announcement on this in due course.

Do you play Minecraft on Switch? Would you like to jump into dedicated servers with your friends? Let us know below.

After architect Andrew McClure received a lesson from his cousin on how to use Minecraft, he went to work making a slick looking house in the sandbox game in just two hours.

Check out video here:

The beauty of Minecraft is that it’s an absolute sandbox in which you can accomplish just about anything your brain can dream up. Gamers have taken on massive architectural projects in the game, like a realistic Japanese city, the world of The Witcher 3, the area seen in Spirited Away, and many other impressive feats. Minecraft can turn anybody into an architect, but what happens when an actual architect tries building a house in the game? That’s what BuzzFeed decided to test in a new video, and the results are interesting (via Geekologie).

Andrew McClure, a designer who specializes in custom high-end residential design, approached this endeavor as a self-described Minecraft noob, so his hope was that some of the software he uses to design homes for work would have some overlap with the tools available in the game. He was given two hours to build whatever he wanted, and he approached it very much like a real job.

He began by surveying the area, its lighting, and other factors that are important to consider when designing a building IRL. Once he got a lay of the land, he got to work, explaining parts of his process on the way. What resulted from this experiment is a modern, nicely designed house with a focus on light, function, and aesthetic. If anything, this video reinforces the fact that Minecraft is a versatile space and can be used for silly fun or more seriously thought-out projects.

What do you think of this Minecraft house? What’s the best thing you’ve ever built in-game? Let us know down in the comments!

YouTube gamer Callum Knight, a.k.a SeaPeeKay, is a knight by name, but also became king of the castle by achieving the Fastest time to build a castle in Minecraft creative mode (PC edition).

The attempt took place at Guinness World Records’ London HQ on 21 March 2018, when we challenged him to build the custom castle.

After three attempts, he managed to clinch the title with a time of 4 minutes 20 seconds.

However, even directly after his success full attempt he was thinking of ways to shave seconds of his time.

SeaPeeKay gameplay 2 – article

“I was being very careful to not misplace blocks, which I think slowed me down,” he said. “I feel I could’ve knocked more time off if I’d worked out the quickest and most efficient way to place the blocks.”

You can take that advice and run with it, as Callum’s castle record is up for grabs in the Minecraftreader challenges, which can be found in Guinness World Records: Gamer’s Edition 2019.

Callum Knight – Fastest Time To Build A Castle In Minecraft-4-article

Callum has had a taste of record-breaking before – and currently holds two titles.

At last year’s Guinness World Records Gamer’s Showdown, Callum set the record for Fastest time to build a house in Minecraft in survival mode, with a time of 3 minutes 54 seconds.

However, this record has since been broken twice and the current record-holder is Christopher Rüsch from Germany with a time of 3 minutes 24 seconds.

Callum Knight – Fastest Time To Build A House in Minecraft-article2

Along with fellow gamers N60Sean and TommyT999 and showdown presenter Sam Homewood he also set the record for Most coins collected in a single round of Coin Runners team of 4 in Mario Kart 8 Deluxe with 53.

“I didn’t have any records until about a year a go, and then I managed to get my first two in one sitting!

“It’s a really cool thing, I love having the titles!”

From left to right: SeaPeeKay, Sam Homewood, Adjudicator Louise, N60Sean and TommyT999 at the Gamer’s Showdown
From left to right: SeaPeeKay, Sam Homewood, Adjudicator Louise, N60Sean and TommyT999 at the Gamer’s Showdown
His appetite for record breaking is only growing – and he suggests there may be fewer Minecraft records in store.

“One of my Guinness World Record titles is for Mario Kart, which isn’t necessarily a game I’m known for playing – maybe I can find some more Mario Kart ones to smash!

“I think it’s cool to have titles in games that people don’t associate with me. I’m a very competitive gamer, and I like to challenge myself and play a lot of things.”

In fact, when Callum started his YouTube channel, he hadn’t ever played Minecraft before.

“I started my channel on horror games, and then met some friends who played Minecraft and they were like ‘you should try it out!’ and here I am, five years later.”

Callum shifted his focus onto creating mainly Minecraft content due to the endless opportunities he felt the game offered.

“The possibilities in Minecraft  are limitless. There are always new things to do every time you load up the game.”
So, what is the secret to Callum’s success?

“There’s no real inner secret. It’s about working hard, there’s no quick path really.

“Enjoy it, but keep doing the important things, like work and school – and hopefully it goes somewhere.”

Callum_Knight_-_Fastest_Time_To_Build_A_Castle_In_Minecraft -article

Callum always tries to inject fun and laughter into his videos – something which motivated him to begin his YouTube channel in the first place.

“I always wanted to go some sort of comedy, but I didn’t want to do stand up. I’d always liked video games, so I decided to try and mix the two together – comedy and video games!”

When starting his channel almost 6 years ago, Callum never envisaged that he may hold records like the ones he read about as a child.

“I definitely read it a lot… I had the Guinness World Records book every Christmas, and now it’s like, my records could be featured!”
However, Callum’s dreams have come full circle, as his records feature in Gamer’s Edition 2019 on page 96, 102, and 104!

TEXAS – A popular video game will have fans flocking to Texas for a unique experience.

“Minecraft” has taken the video game world by storm gaining enough success that it now has its own festival, Minefaire.

One of the creators of the fair, Gabe Young, stopped by the Spectrum News studio to discuss the event. In the video above they discuss their inspiration for the festival.

Minefair is in Austin on Sept. 15 and 16 at the Convention Center.

Event features:

YouTube creators
Tournaments
Build battles
Costume contest
Live stage shows
Minecraft education mentors
Minecraft merchandise

Tickets range from $45 to $69.50.

Every business leader needs to truly understand how AI is a gamechanger. Join other execs at VB Summit, Oct 22 & 23, 2018 in Mill Valley, CA Grab your ticket now at 30% off.
Target is about to pack even more Minecraft-related products into its stores. The retailer and The Minecraft Team announced today that they are collaborating on merchandise and fan parties. More than 75 new Minecraft items are coming exclusively to the big-box chain.

Microsoft’s block-building game is nearly 10 years old. Over the last decade, it has attracted an audience from across a diverse spectrum. Target has locations in cities, colleges, and suburbs to reach those consumers. The companies plan to have products for every taste as well. You can get apparel like shirts and PJs. Fans will find a new Minecraft Lego set among other toys. You can even get Minecraft-branded furniture and bedding.

Minecraft, Tomb Raider, FIFA, Call of Duty are just some of the latest gaming phenomenon’s to have been recognised in the eighth edition of ‘gaming bible’ Guinness World Records Gamer’s Edition 2015, out on Thursday 6 th November.

Spaniard Rodrigo Martin Santos, who owns a staggering 2,383 related Tomb Raider items, has earned him the record for the Largest Collection of Tomb Raider Memorabilia.

The 27-year-old’s collection was counted and approved by Guinness World Records this year.

Rodrigo_Martin_-_Largest_Collector_Of_Tomb_Raider_Memorabilia-111.jpg

Rodrigo was inspired by the creator of Lara Croft, Briton Toby Gard. The original computer games helped build his collection and his most prized assets include the original costume worn by model Rhona Mitra in Tomb Raider 2 and a life sized Lara Croft and Rose statue of which only 50 were ever made.

Austrian Minecraft endurance player Martin Fornleitner played the crafting game for a staggering 24 hours and 10 minutes on his Sony Xperia Play handset earning him the record for the Longest Videogame Marathon on Minecraft.

Martin_Fornleitner_-_Longest_Videogame_Marathon_On_Minecraft-0321.jpg

Remarkably, the 19 year-old achieved the record in a glass container in Vienna back in 2011 under the watchful eye of the public and claimed tiredness was his biggest battle throughout the record attempt. Martin suggests a lot of practice is needed if anyone was ever interested in taking on his record and, also, a good music playlist to keep you interested (and awake).

In the world of football simulation, FIFA is king – and in the world of real football, Germany is king. Combine the two, and you get Patrick Hadler, aged 19, from Hannover, who replicated his countries success at this year’s World Cup, by achieving the record for the Highest Margin of Victory against the Computer on FIFA World Cup 2014 with a 321-0 scoreline!

Patrick_Hadler_-_Highest_Score_On_FIFA_World_Cup_2014_001.jpg

Patrick believes commitment, focus and a keen eye for goal was at the heart of his success and wanting to feel as good as the real life Germany football team.

Hecaterina Kinumi Iglesias (aka Kinumi Cati), is a specialist in the science and fantasy field of gaming and holds two endurance based records for the Longest Videogame Marathon on Final Fantasy ( 38 hours 6 minutes on July 28 th 2013) and Longest Videogame Marathon on World of Warcraft ( 29 hours 31 minutes on March 30 th 2014).

Kinumi_Cati_-_Longest_Marathon_On_Final_Fantasy-074.jpg

Hecaterina’s inspiration behind her records came from wanting to be recognised as a ‘good gamer’ and to grant her more exposure on her Youtube channel, where she also shares videos of her singing.

Other gaming records include:

Best-selling Eighth Generations Console – PS4
Most “Game of the Year” Awards – The Last of Us
First Mobile Game Series to Reach 1 Billion Downloads – Angry Birds
Fastest Car in a Videogame – Gran Turismo 6 – The Red Bull X2011 can travel at 622 km/h (386 mph)
Longest-running Sports Videogame Series – There have been 30 Madden NFL games across 26 years
First Fish to “play” a Videogame – US College students managed to make Pokémon respond to a fish
Most Costly Pac-Man Game – “Google Doodle” was played for 500,000,000 hours in total, distracting office workers everywhere and costing businesses an estimated £85 million in lost productivity!
This year’s Guinness World Record’s Gamer’s Edition is packed full of new features covering topics as diverse as the toys-to-life phenomena, gaming firsts, zombie games, Alien games videogame fashion and the big titles you’ll likely be playing over the coming months. It also looks at handheld gaming from Mattel’s Auto Race in 1976 to the innovative mobile gaming scene of today and how to become a record holder yourself with expert gaming tips.

Craig Glenday, Editor in-Chief, Guinness World Records, said: “Gaming is so dynamic and fast-moving that there’s never any shortage of exciting new superlatives for Guinness World Records to explore. Speed runs, high scores, technical achievements, collections, cosplaying… you’ll find it all the new Gamer’s Edition. And this year, we’re focusing on the most popular games as chosen for by our readers, peppered with interviews, features, hardware profiles and annual awards. Video gaming is sure to become the most significant art form of the 21 century, and the Gamer’s Edition – now in its eighth year – is committed to recording and documenting the increasingly impressive progress being made.

Guinness World Records 2015 Gamer’s Edition is out now. To find out where to buy it in your country, head to www.guinnessworldrecords.com/gamers

It was a thrilling day of videogames action, live record-breaking and social media fandom at the inaugural Legends of Gaming event last Saturday, as multiple new Guinness World Records were smashed for Minecraft and Rocket League.

The packed-out live show saw seven of the world’s biggest YouTube stars descend on London’s Alexandra Palace to battle it out in such games as Splatoon, Mario Kart and PES 16.

Included in the line-up were current Guinness World Record holders Ali-A and Dan The Diamond Minecart, both of whom hold viewing records for their hugely popular Call of Duty and Minecraft channels, respectively.

Meanwhile, GWR was celebrating the launch of Guinness World Records 2016 Gamer’s Edition by inviting members of the public to try and beat Ali-A’s recent Minecraft record for ‘Most wood collected in 3 minutes’.

Given that the record-breaking area was mobbed throughout the day, it was perhaps little surprise that Ali-A’s record of 78 blocks of wood was smashed not just once, but FOUR times over as competitive levels for the quick-fire challenge hit fever pitch.
Minecraft-record-holder
At 11am, in the day’s first official adjudication, 10-year-old Rhys Flynn pipped Ali-A’s record by collecting 79 blocks of wood. Then at 1pm, Dylan Kalabza celebrated his 13th birthday in style by bagging 91 blocks of wood, and therefore snatching Rhys’ moment of glory.

However, Dylan’s own record was to last only two hours as Nathan Dowdall raised the benchmark even further by collecting 98 pieces of wood, much to the delight of his mates who mobbed him with hugs as his timer reached zero.
Minecraft record holder mobbed
As subsequent record attempts ended in failure, it seemed that Nathan would go home an undisputed Minecraft record holder, but there was to be one final, unexpected twist.

At 8:50pm, at the very last adjudication of the day, Enkil Fernando Ceron Alvarez provided a spectacular climax by collecting 99 blocks of wood – and thus gazumping Nathan’s seemingly unassailable score by just one block of wood.

But it wasn’t just the public setting new Guinness World Records in gaming. Onstage, social media superstars Dan TDM and Syndicate smashed in 11 goals in the popular vehicular football game Rocket League, to set the standard in ‘Most goals scored in a game of Rocket League for a team of 2’.

As a brand new category, GWR had given the guys a minimum of 11 goals to score against the computer, which they just about managed. Dan TDM netted 10 of the duo’s goals – much to his teammate’s noticeable relief.
Syndicate-and-Dan-TDM
However, with Rocket League being a huge hit with gamers across the globe, GWR is welcoming applicants to try and better the duo’s record. And if you do, don’t forget to send in the evidence!
Syndicate and Dan TDM with Stephen Daultrey
Syndicate and Dan TDM with Guinness World Records Gamers Edition Editor Stephen Daultrey

Elsewhere, twin brothers Jake and Liam Thompson aka TWiiNSANE were presented with a certificate for their ‘Fastest time to capture the flag on Call of Duty: Advanced Warfare (shared controller, team of two)’ record, which they set back in June 2015.
Twiinsane with Stephen-Daultrey
Twiinsane with Stephen-Daultrey

All in all, the first Legends of Gaming event was a resounding success – and a fine testament to the power of these YouTube gaming personalities.

Guinness World Records 2016 Gamer’s Edition which is out September 10. To find out more about the book and pre-order your copy, head to www.guinnessworldrecords.com/2016

Microsoft has made its Minecraft: Education Edition available for iPad for the first time. Designed for ages K-12, the special edition features over 400 lesson plans, assessment features, and much more.

Previously teased last month, Microsoft has now made its popular Minecraft: Education Edition available globally for iPad.

Schools will need a Microsoft 365 licensing agreement to get access to Minecraft: Education Edition, which is available from the App Store now.

Microsoft offers a slew of tutorials and other free resources on how to implement and best use the education edition in the classroom.

For teachers who aren’t sure if their school is set up to use Minecraft: Education Edition, Apple recommends getting in touch with their IT administrator.

The game’s release notes share more details about the special education edition:

DESIGNED FOR CLASSROOMS EVERYWHERE

Designed for students of all learning styles, ages K-12 and higher education
Supports development of key 21st century skills including STEM
Over 400 free lessons and tutorials available on our website
Special features allow for formative assessment, teacher controls and classroom collaboration
Online educator community provides peer support
SPECIAL LESSONS & WORLDS

Chemistry features allow students to build an in-game periodic table
Update Aquatic introduces marine life to the Minecraft oceans
Treasure Island and Roald Dahl worlds bring novels to life
In-game features like camera, book and quill, and chalkboards help students document their work
3D export tool for mixed reality and 3D printing
WHAT IS MINECRAFT?

Minecraft is so much more than just a game about breaking and placing blocks – it’s an adventure where players work together to create and explore wonderful, imaginative worlds. Now, Minecraft is transforming how people teach and learn in over 120 countries with over 100 million players worldwide.
Minecraft: Education Edition brings the creative and immersive environment of Minecraft to classrooms around the world. Educators are empowered to use game-based learning and inspire students to express their ideas, explore and build amazing worlds and write their own stories. The possibilities for learning are endless!

For console and PC players

To get our challenges up and running, we’ve let “SeaPeeKay” have a go at this one already. He set a time of 4 minutes 20 seconds, but we know you can do better! Your task is to build the same castle as in our main picture. It must have four walls, four turrets with battlements, an opening to the castle with a portcullis, a water-filled moat and a wooden bridge. Your last act before the clock stops is to make the castle your own by placing a coloured banner (any colour will do) at the top of it.

Fastest time to build a rocket in Minecraft Survival mode
For console and PC players

To prepare for this one, create a superflat world in Creative mode, then stack blocks of ice into a tower until the coordinate readout says Y: 50 – this is the point your rocket has to reach.

Break all the blocks (except the one at Y: 50), fill your hotbar only with the material for your rocket, then switch to Survival mode. Start timing and build a rocket of any design (the one pictured is just an example). With the rocket built, get in and launch it. Stop the clock after you reach the ice block and break it with your fist.

Fastest time to saddle and stable 10 horses in Minecraft Survival mode
For console and PC players

Howdy, pardners! Before you can channel your inner cowboy or cowgirl, you’ll need to prepare. To start with, create an enclosure of 50 x 20 blocks. Use fence blocks at the four corners of the enclosure and create a fence gate wall every 12 blocks (to create three jumps). Finish the structure by building 10 stables at one end of it.

Next, spawn 10 horses and tame them using golden apples. Once that’s done, empty your inventory of everything except for 10 saddles and then switch to Survival mode. Start the clock, grab the first horse and bring it back to your stable – leaping the three fences as you go. The clock stops once all of your horses have been stabled.

astest time to build an igloo in Minecraft Survival mode
For console players only

Before you build your very own igloo, you’ll need to create a superflat world with layers of snow, oak wood, cobblestone, coal ore, white wool, black wool and bedrock (make sure you create them in that order). Once you’re done, load the world in Survival mode. Then, with the clock ticking, mine the necessary resources to create your igloo, which must include a bed, a crafting table, a furnace and four torches.

Your igloo must be 7 blocks wide x 5 deep x 4 high. Once it’s built, cover the floor with black carpet and add the bed, crafting table, furnace and torches.

How to attempt the records
If you think you’ve set a new record, you’ll need to submit your evidence to Twin Galaxies.

Once registered, follow the steps to upload your attempt under the relevant challenge, making sure you detail significant moments in your video (e.g. time stamps for when the attempt starts and finishes).

Please make sure direct capture footage is uploaded as that is required for evidence review, however you can support that with other videos such as Twitch stream links and photos.

Then sit back and relax while the Twin Galaxies community will now adjudicate your record attempt. Keep checking the challenges leaderboards to see how the adjudication is getting on and to see if you could potentially be a record holder!

There’s also more detailed information about how the Twin Galaxies process works.

Good luck!

Microsoft is making it easier than ever for players to enjoy “Minecraft” together with the announcement of the “Minecraft Master Collection” and “Minecraft Starter Collection.”

The “Minecraft Starter Collection” is a $29.99 bundle that includes the “Minecraft” base game, along with 700 Minecoins, that opens up the ability to purchase various skins, texture packs, mash-ups, and other items from the game’s marketplace. It’s aimed at new players looking to jump into the game in an expedient fashion who aren’t looking to spend extravagantly, but want a taste of what’s on offer.

The “Minecraft Master Collection” is $49.99, and offers all the content of the “Minecraft Starter Collection” along with 1,000 Minecoins and various content created by “Minecraft” Marketplace partners. You can select experiences like the PureBDcraft Texture Pack by BDcraft, the Winter Mini-Games Festival by Noxcrew, and several others. This set is meant more for players who have already dabbled in the game and want a bit more to play around with.

Additionally, Microsoft has announced the new Xbox One S Two-Controller Bundle to make it even simpler to round up other players to jump into “Minecraft” with. These special sets are geared toward facilitating “Minecraft” gaming nights, but an extra controller on hand is useful for a variety of different things, especially with the various couch co-op experiences out of the box out there on the system at this time.

Incidentally, Xbox One is one of the platforms that supports cross-play with “Minecraft,” so these sets can also help players connect with friends on the Nintendo Switch and PC for fun-filled nights of building and crafting. Unfortunately, the game is still not cross-play compatible on Nintendo Switch.

Minecraft: Education Edition is now available on the iPad platform.

The iOS version shares many features found in other versions of Minecraft EDU, including the Update Aquatic package for underwater STEM activities and the Chemistry Resource Pack. It includes a touch interface that is “functionally equivalent to the standard control scheme for the game,” according to Microsoft, which owns Minecraft.

Licensing is being handled through the Microsoft Store, third-party resellers and volume licensing agreements. An Office 365 for Education account is required for deployment. A free trial version will also be available for teachers (maximum of 25 logins) and students (maximum of 10 logins).

A deployment guide and other iOS-specific resources are available on the Minecraft site. Teacher resources can be found here.

CHICAGO (CBS) — Calling all cube creators!

Thousands of families are headed to Schaumburg this weekend for Minefaire. It creates the ultimate Minecraft experience.

The video game allows players of all ages to create and play in their own world.

Popular YouTubers from all over the world are expected to attend. You can fully immerse yourself in the world of Minecraft with a virtual reality experience and Minecraft escape room.

The event takes place Saturday and Sunday at the Schaumburg Convention Center located at 1551 North Thoreau Drive.

Visit the site Minefaire.com for more information on tickets, events and schedules.

Joseph Garrett, a.k.a Stampy Cat, is one Minecraft’s most well-known gamers and now he has two Guinness World Records titles to his name.

The 27-year-old has set a new record for the Fastest time to make and display 10 cakes in Minecraft (PC Edition) with a time of 3 minutes 51 seconds to go with his record for Most viewed Terraria video (9,593,008 views as of 24 April).

Stampy set his Minecraft record when he visited Guinness World Records’ London HQ on 3 April ahead of the launch of Guinness World Records: Gamer’s Edition 2019, a book that features records from games such as Dragon Ball FighterZ,Fortnite and FIFA, and for which he has also written the introduction.

StampyCat – Fastest Time to Make 10 Cakes – article 2
After receiving his title for Fastest time to make and display 10 cakes in Minecraft, Stampy was delighted.

“It feels fantastic to be a Guinness World Records title holder! I grew up reading all of the books and it was always something I was aware of, and I never thought I would actually be in the book with my very own title.”
In his introduction, Stampy shares some of his favourite records from the book, as well as some of his thoughts about gaming and record-breaking.

But on the day of his record attempt, Guinness World Records talked to Stampy about his story and asked what compelled him to become a YouTube gamer and record-breaker!

StampyCat – Fastest Time to Make 10 Cakes-3
While Stampy now enjoys more than 9 million YouTube subscribers, and has racked up almost 7 billion (6,795,708,273) views, it took him a while to achieve success on the platform.

“I did YouTube for a really long time with almost no-one watching! The time people really started watching was when I started doing Minecraft videos. People must have liked something that I was doing because a lot of people started watching,” he said.

The origins of Stampy’s channel stemmed from his creativity and desire to make and edit videos.
“When I first started doing my YouTube videos they were actually a bunch of videos I’d made; just little animations, short films with my friends at school. I was making YouTube videos before I had a YouTube channel – and then finally I had a place to share them!”

In fact, even the name, Stampy, came from one of his earliest creations.
“I decided to call myself Stampy because a really long time ago when I was at school I made an animation with a character called Stampy,” while the cat element to his name came from a skin he just never changed.

StampyCat – Fastest Time to Make 10 Cakes -article3

Stampy’s channel took off when he started creating Minecraft videos, just as the game was launch on the Xbox 360.

The game has grown rapidly, and holds the record titles for Fastest-selling Xbox Live Arcade videogame, Best-selling videogame on non-console formats, Highest grossing indie videogame, and Most wins of the Children’s BAFTA “Kids’ Vote” award for a videogame.

But what can Minecraft attribute its phenomenal success to?

Stampy believes it’s a combination of accessibility and diversity within its virtual world.

“I think the reason why Minecraft has become so popular and stayed so popular for so long is basically because it’s a platform that you can do whatever you want in.

“A lot of people say ‘aren’t you bored with Minecraft?’ and it’s like saying ‘aren’t you bored of drawing – or writing?’ It doesn’t really matter what you’re using, you’re always doing something new.”

Stampy Cat with Gamer’s Edition Editor Mike Plant
Stampy Cat with Gamer’s Edition Editor Mike Plant

After seven years and hundreds of videos on YouTube, Stampy still likes to seek out something new to do with the game to keep his subscribers entertained.

“I keep myself motivated by always trying to do something new, and then, when I do do something new, seeing the reactions and the comments from everyone that watches my videos.”

Though Stampy spends the majority of his time on YouTube creating and managing his own content, he also tries to watch his other favourite gamers when he gets the chance.

“Along with a lot of other people I really like watching Ninja. I’m actually really big into Halo!”

One of Stampy’s main pieces of advice for breaking a record title is doing something you love and enjoy.

“If you want to break a record title, make sure you’re doing it in something that you enjoy. Don’t just look to the games that other people are competing in – look at what you love doing. If you’re enjoying yourself you’re not going to worry about all of the dedication you’re going to need to break your record title.”

If you want to try your hand at record breaking, take a look at our Minecraftreader challenges in Gamer’s, which come with instructions from fellow gamer Callum Knight, a.k.a SeaPeeKay.

Callum Knight, aka SeaPeeKay
Callum Knight, aka SeaPeeKay
It includes something for everyone, and covers all types of gaming from retro to virtual reality. Whether your thing is action RPGs, brawlers, strategy or shooters, you’ll find it in Gamer’s Edition 2019.

In the words of Stampy himself:

“We all share a love of gaming. This is the chance to celebrate the people that make gaming officially awesome!”
Guinness World Records: Gamer’s Edition 2019 is out now! Find out where you can buy your copy
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