I like games that go beyond the linear path and allow you to be flexible rather than lock you into one style or one type of game. Minecraft may not be the most visually stunning game but looks are not everything. A game (and most gamers struggle to call this a game) that is engaging is far better than a visual great looking game. I like to use the movie analogy, some movies bank on their visual elements only to let story go to hell. While they make money they are not really than enthralling.
Now, does Minecraft have any story? Well the answer is no, but that is the beauty of it. You can make the game anything you want. You can build alone, build with friends, go on adventures, slay monsters and even battle dragons. The beauty of it is that you can play it like you want and how you feel on the day. One day you can be building your dream home, only to abandon it and go mining for materials the next.
To me that means I can experiment and not having any goal except the one I think about as I am playing or I think about 5 minutes before I start playing.
There are other aspects of the game I love:
- Building - I for one remember the days of Lego and Meccano (yes I am that old). You are given a box of blocks and your creation is only limited by your imagination. Some of the things people have invented in Minecraft just astonishes me. One of the first experiences I had with the game was listening to a group of young kids talking about how they built their creations (and showing each other their creations). I have heard stories of groups of people co-operating across the world on virtual building projects. Just look in Youtube at the Top 5 videos to see what I mean. Some of these creations are built by kids as young as 10.
- Play time - Most commercial games are rated by the number of hours you take to complete them. Once you have paid your $90 and completed the game you rarely go back to it. Minecraft has no real completion, only how long you can give up before you stop playing it. You can literally play for months and years on the same map. When you have had enough, just generate another randomly. Some of the worlds generated are also stunning.
- Extensions - One of my most favorite games (Doom, Total Annihilation etc) all had the ability to extend the game. Some games have DLC but Minecraft you can download a large selection of mods that completely change the game around. This would extend the life of it beyond its vanilla game. You are not forced to even play with any mods. The only issue is that mod installation is pretty technical buy Jeb has announced that they will making that standard in future releases.
- Community - I have watched the community the last year or so and they are such a diverse set of people of all ages and backgrounds it amazes me. You must remember this game has no tutorial and no help. The community has videos, web sites to help the new player. The developers are close to the community and that seems to make a big big difference. I cannot tell you the number of hours I have laughed listening to the Yogcast, Hat Films (Good Day!), CaptainSparklez, TotalBuscuit and others playing the game that it has added a lot of fun to playing it. There are lots of fun videos on Youtube to prove that.
- Technology - My last point is biased (as I work for the Big O) but I am glad that Mojang chose java to write the game in. It is cross platform and has encouraged a lot of new young java developers to get creating exciting mods. It just shows how you can extend the game by the vast range of mods for the game.
All and all I have been playing Minecraft for over 6 months now and I am not anywhere near stopping playing or getting bored. When I think I am I just generate a new world.. oops I better start on it.
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