Minecraft is now available for cross-play on any device

With the launch of Microsoft’s new Xbox One X gamers got an update on the latest Minecraft news — chiefly that Minecraft is now available across any device.

As part of the company’s big show at E3 Microsoft talked about the latest Minecraft update.

The “Better Together Update” unifies console, mobile and Windows 10 versions of the game.

The new update also features better graphics and cross-platform support to let Windows 10 and mobile Minecraft players play the game together.

As part of the update, Minecraft is ditching any special branding associated with Minecraft for Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, mobile games or VR — they’ll all just be known as “Minecraft”. There’s a ‘Minecraft: Java Edition’, which is the original PC game (still supported).

The unified branding is designed to let buyers know they’re all getting the same game, that they can play with anyone no matter what device they’re using, the company said.

Supported devices for unified game play include:

• Windows 10
• iOS
• Android
• XBox One
• Nintendo’s Switch

If players own Minecraft for mobile or VR, they’ll get an update for the summer. Minecraft for Xbox One or Nintendo Switch owners will get a new update for free, and the existing worlds that gamers have created are going to be available on the new game.

The new update also means that any downloadable content will be available across all devices. So a pack bought on mobile will also be available on Xbox and Windows 10 editions too.

As an additional added perk, Minecraft is throwing in a server browser to its latest update. Launching with four servers, Lifeboat, Mineplex, InPVP and Cubecraft — which lets players join public servers that have monthly users numbering in the millions according to the company.

It’s different from Minecraft Realms, which are privately cloud-hosted servers available for smaller groups.

Finally, there’s a new graphics pack for 4K viewing — better lighting, shadows, and water effects, the company said.

Minecraft is now available for cross-play on any device

For years, the Electronic Entertainment Expo has been an event that caters to trade professionals, but this year the showcase in Los Angeles was open to the public for the first time. Fans who were able to snatch up tickets got an inside glimpse of a Disneyland for gaming.

For those who were unable to go, here are highlights coming out of E3 over the past few days:

Microsoft had the biggest announcement, as the tech giant officially revealed the newest member of its console family — the Xbox One X. It’s not exactly the fourth generation of the device; it’s more of an upgrade to the existing systems. It’s a console built for 4K televisions with HDR (high dynamic range), the bleeding-edge screens of today.

HDR displays more colors than predecessors, upwards of a billion at last count. That gives images a more realistic, rounder look. And that’s what made games pop off Microsoft’s screen, with BioWare’s “Anthem” and Turn 10’s “Forza Motorsports 7” turning heads.

These games show off the potential of the Xbox One X, but to actually enjoy the technology, players may have to sell their first-born. A 4K TV with HDR costs more than $700, and the Xbox One X costs $499. It’s a pricey proposition, but an investment in technology that is supposed to hold up through five years from now and perhaps beyond.

Sony’s briefing focused on games and highlighted the company’s dominance. The PlayStation is indeed home to some of the best software on the planet, a fact highlighted by its three tentpole games for the upcoming year: “Uncharted: The Lost Legacy,” “Days Gone” and “Horizon Zero Dawn: The Frozen Wilds,” an expansion of possibly the best new IP this year.

What’s interesting is that two of Sony’s major releases, and a few others, focus on stronger female characters. Gone are the days of the old sexualized Lara Croft and male-only avatars. Character’s such as Aloy from “Horizon Zero Dawn” and Chloe Frazer from “Uncharted” are often more complex and daring than any female characters in the past.

There’s even diversity, with Janina Gavankar, an actress of Indian descent, playing the lead role of Iden Versio in the single-player mode of “Star Wars Battlefront II.” When it comes to games with customizable avatars, “Far Cry 5” and “Forza Horizon 7” include female options, as well as males.

Sony’s event also spotlighted a bright future, headlined by what’s likely to be the best “Spider-Man” game ever made. A new “God of War” and “Monster Hunter World” look like legitimate rebirths of long-running franchises. The wait for these games will be excruciating; some won’t see the light of day until 2018.

Not to be outdone, Nintendo unveiled big news, too. Riding the wave of the successful Nintendo Switch launch, the venerable video game company announced more support for the console.

Nintendo has leaned heavily on its portfolio of beloved franchises, and some of its major announcements here focused on those. The biggest news was the resurrection of “Metroid.” Samus Aran is returning in a big way with “Metroid Prime 4” on the Nintendo Switch and a remade version of “Metroid 2,” a title that was originally released for the Game Boy, on the Nintendo 3DS.

Also announced was a new “Pokemon” for the Nintendo Switch, which could further boost the console’s success. That news, along with stronger support from third-party developers such as Ubisoft and Psyonix (creator of “Rocket League”) bode well for Nintendo.

But the game carrying E3 for the company was “Super Mario Odyssey.” Coming later this year, Mario’s latest adventure features a magical hat called Cappy, which can take over enemies and objects. If Mario throws it on a frog, he becomes the frog. If he tosses it atop a Bullet Bill, he becomes that character, flying through the air. Cappy seems to be the main mechanic for the game, opening up interesting possibilities and a fresh take on the “Mario” franchise.

Microsoft At E3: The Xbox One X, ‘Minecraft,’ and other highlights

Calling all blockbusters: for a short time, this Xbox One S Minecraft bundle is on sale for $200 at Ebay.

If you’re looking for a late father’s day gift that’s friendly for the kiddos or just because, right now is the right time to grab it. This is one of the lowest prices we’ve seen on a new Xbox One S yet, so snag it before it sells out. Online consumer electronic store Newegg is running the sale. Did we mention there’s free shipping too?

The $50 price cuts to the Xbox One consoles prior to the Xbox One X reveal just ended yesterday; this sale does not seem related.

The Xbox One S is the second iteration of the Xbox One console. It’s 40 percent smaller, has 4K media output, and HDR gaming and movies. It’s intended for the casual gamer who prefers a little more portability and finer details in their games than the original Xbox One could offer. Make sure to check out our review here.

The recently announced Xbox One X isn’t for the average joe however; it’s a beastly machine meant for the most hardcore of gamers. For more on that iteration of the Xbox One, head on over here.

$200 Xbox One S Minecraft Bundle Available Now

Nintendo E3 2017: Minecraft On Switch Requires An Xbox Live Log-In

Have you played Minecraft? Sorry. Yes. Of course you’ve played Minecraft – it’s the videogame equivalent of asking if you’ve ever played Tic-Tac-Toe or hopscotch. It’s this gaming generation’s most ubiquitous title, available (initially freely) on everything from PCs to low-end smartphones to the newly announced Xbox One X. It took an age, but Microsoft even eventually saw fit to bring it to its own mobile OS, hoping the Minecraft brand’s licence to print money would rub off on the flailing smartphone platform.

For the hardcore fan (of which they’re many – the game’s been bought more than 100 million times, and inspired Microsoft to buy the game outright for $2.5 billion), they’re probably seeing Minecraft blocks in their sleep, playing the game religiously and spending almost as much time trawling the pages of YouTubers and Twitch streamers for the latest news and builds in the game.

It’s easy to see what’s made Minecraft so popular, an alchemical mix of simplicity and creativity. Gamers are given free reign to use its block-based building system to create essentially any structure they can think of, from simple shacks to complex minecart systems and even a working in-game smartphone.

Although it’s since spawned many imitators over the course of its eight-year life, it was massively refreshing upon release, a taste of what an infinite digital LEGO box could be like – other brick-based games are available.

Block rocking beats

Its simplicity is key. Limiting the game world to blocky objects not only meant it could run on a huge number of devices without taxing a high-powered GPU, it also aesthetically separated it from the pack.

Bold, colorful and far removed from the grim-dark shooters that can dominate the gaming landscape, you could go as far as using the so often-misappropriated description and apply it to the Minecraft style: it was, it is, iconic.

Which makes Microsoft’s E3 Minecraft announcement of a new 4K-optimised ‘Super Duper Graphics Pack’ so groan-worthy. Designed to spruce up the Minecraft visuals in a way that takes advantage of the growing graphical grunt of 4K gaming systems (including, of course, Microsoft’s own Xbox One X) it gives Minecraft a significant makeover.

“Dynamic shadows! Directional lighting! Edge highlighting!” boasts the Minecraft blog, all coming as a free update to the game in the Fall of this year.

This all seems to be missing the point. It’s never been about the polygon count. It’s never been about the fidelity of the shadows, or the number of visible blades of grass. Minecraft’s appeal and its charm lay in its lo-fi chic.

You’re not drawn in by what the game presents to you (at least visually), but what you can present to the game through your creations. The simpler the palette, the more amazingly unexpected the eventual culmination of your greatest Minecraft works.

Mona Lisa overdrive

From humble beginnings come great achievements, and that simple original Minecraft aesthetic points to the promise of your imagination, rather than how many ones and zeroes are being pushed under the hood of your machine.

It’s like saying you’re going to give the Mona Lisa an HDR makeover –  wholly inappropriate, not simply because it’s anachronistic, but also because it undermines the quality of the original work. Or, to use a more recent example, take the Star Wars: Special Edition remasters – tweak a beloved work too much, and you risk diluting the homebrewed charm of the original.

In Microsoft’s defence, it does state that this in an optional look, “just one aesthetic vision for Minecraft – not THE vision for Minecraft,” according to Marsh Davies, Minecraft’s Creative communications manager.

“Our beloved pixels are going nowhere – and we’re thinking about ways to give you more choice over your game’s look in the future.”

And Microsoft did make one undeniably positive Minecraft announcement at E3 – the chance for cross-platform play for the game, expanding the ways gamers can play together, no matter what console they own, prefer or can afford.

Minecraft is a long play for Microsoft, with arms reaching out to education and design sectors as well as gamers. So it must evolve for it to survive long term. But while that’s being supported by smart moves like cross platform play, the Super Duper Graphics Pack suggests it may be losing sight of what makes Minecraft so special in the first place.

• E3 is the world’s largest exhibition for the games industry, stuffed full of the latest and greatest games, consoles, and gaming hardware. TechRadar is reporting live from Los Angeles all week to bring you the very latest from the show floor. Head to our dedicated E3 2017 hub to see all the new releases, along with TechRadar’s world-class analysis and buying advice about the next year in gaming.

Minecraft 4K graphics upgrade is as unnecessary as an HDR Mona Lisa

The Mummy marks the official launch of Universal’s “Dark Universe” of monsters, borrowing from the shared universe models of Suicide Squad and The Avengers. Ever since Marvel Studios concluded Phase 1 of the Marvel Cinematic Universe by bringing together various superheroes from solo franchises to form The Avengers – and earning more than $1 billion at the box office – the shared universe model has grown increasingly popular in Hollywood. While no other studio or franchise has necessarily copied the model laid out by Marvel Studios (introducing solo characters, then bringing them together for a team-up), Warner Bros. has been building its DC Extended Universe and Fox has continued to expand their X-Men universe with spinoffs from its the main series.

However, the idea of a shared universe has expanded beyond superhero movies. After Transformers: Age of Extinction wasn’t as well-received as previous installments of Paramount’s Robots in Disguise series, the studio announced they were turning the Transformers franchise into a cinematic universe. Paramount assembled a writer’s room to come up with a host of stories, which are being turned into Transformers: The Last Knight and the solo Bumblebee movie. Another high-profile shared universe that’s been in the works for a few years is Universal’s world of classic movie monsters, which was recently officially unveiled as the studio’s Dark Universe.

Although it was thought the Dark Universe would launch with Dracula Untold in 2014, in the wake of that film’s disappointing reviews and box office earnings, Universal announced Luke Evans’ iconic vampire would not be part of the studio’s budding shared universe. Instead, Alex Kurtzman’s The Mummy officially launches the Dark Universe that will continue with Bill Condon’s Bride of Frankenstein – the star of which has yet to be cast, though Angelina Jolie was being eyed for the role – and eventually include films for Russell Crowe’s Dr. Jekyll/Mr. Hyde, Johnny Depp’s Invisible Man, and Javier Bardem’s Frankenstein’s Monster. The Dark Universe will also add Van Helsing, The Wolf Man, and Creature from the Black Lagoon, and Kurtzman revealed there are plans to bring in the Hunchback of Notre Dame and Phantom of the Opera in coming years.

In terms of specifically how The Mummy sets up the larger Dark Universe, Kurtzman’s film introduces Crowe’s Dr. Henry Jekyll (as well as his alter-ego Mr. Eddie Hyde) and the organization he heads called Prodigium, which is positioned to be the common thread among all the shared universe installments. Though the specifics of the private organization are unclear, Dr. Jekyll lays out their intentions to research, hunt, and eradicate evil from the world. Jekyll even goes into a theory that evil itself is a pathogen and, if that’s the case, it must have a cure – which, of course, ties into his own condition.

The biggest Dark Universe tease in The Mummy, however, arrives in the final scenes. After Tom Cruise’s Nick Morton willingly accepts the Egyptian god of death, Set, into himself, he kills the mummified Princess Ahmanet (Sofia Boutella) – who had previously been positioned as the Dark Universe’s Mummy character – and essentially becomes Universal’s modern Mummy. Then, in a final voiceover conversation between Jekyll and Jenny Halsey (Annabelle Wallis), they discuss that Cruise’s character is now half man, half monster, with Nick forced to constantly battle the evil Set within himself. And, as Jekyll teases, one day Prodigium may need a monster to fight another monster.

The Mummy’s ending – particularly Jekyll commenting that Prodigium will need Cruise’s new Mummy to battle a force of evil later on – is strikingly similar to S.H.I.E.L.D. director Nick Fury’s recruitment speech to Tony Stark in the post-credits scene of Marvel Studios’ Iron Man, which laid the groundwork for not only The Avengers but the entire MCU. The implication of Jekyll’s comment is that the Mummy will return within Universal’s Dark Universe, but not necessarily in a direct sequel. Since we know this is a shared universe of classic monsters, and Prodigium will be the thread tying them all together (as S.H.I.E.L.D. was in Phase 1 of the MCU), Kurtzman’s film is setting the stage for The Mummy to return in the Dark Universe as an anti-hero fighting against a bigger evil.

At this point, it’s not exactly clear where the Dark Universe is headed. Universal has so far only confirmed a handful of solo films, and comments from franchise producer Chris Morgan indicated each monster reboot is a “standalone” entry in the series, though they are interconnected. Given the parallels between the ending of The Mummy and the post-credits scene from Iron Man, it seems as though future Dark Universe installments may be origin stories for the various characters, and the rebooted classic monsters will assemble one day for some kind of team-up.

Not only does this mirror the model of a shared universe laid out by the MCU, the concept of a team of villains joining together at the behest of an organization working to fight evil is reminiscent of Warner Bros’ DCEU entry Suicide Squad. And, in fact, if the Dark Universe continues to establish each of its monster characters as conflicted anti-heroes like Cruise’s Mummy, Universal’s shared universe is poised to become a more longform version of the DCEU’s villain team-up. There’s even an argument to be made, if one was so inclined, that there are broad similarities between Cruise’s character and June Moon/Enchantress (Cara Delevingne) – they’re both interested in exploring historical sites and become possessed by forces of ancient evil that give them unimaginable powers, after all. (Whether that makes Dr. Jekyll the Dark Universe’s Deadshot or Amanda Waller is up for debate.)

Of course, based on the characters already confirmed to appear in Universal’s Dark Universe, there’s also a comparison to be made between the burgeoning shared cinematic world and The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen. The comic series created by writer Alan Moore and artist Kevin O’Neill sees a number of literary characters team up to battle evil, and was adapted to the big screen in the 2003 movie of the same name. Dr. Jekyll and the Invisible Man are the most obvious characters that appear in both the League of Extraordinary Gentlemen and the Dark Universe, but if Universal reboots Dracula again, the studio could potentially introduce Mina Harker, a character from Bram Stoker’s original novel who is a member of the League. Mina Harker did appear in the present scene at the end of Dracula Untold, so it would seem Universal does have plans to introduce the character in the Dark Universe.

So, if Universal’s shared universe brings its anti-heroes together, they could become a modern live-action version of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, though it should be noted that 20th Century Fox owns the movie rights to Moore and O’Neill’s comic series. The studio even hinted at a potential reboot of The League of Extraordinary Gentlemen as recently as 2015. Still, the Dark Universe isn’t exactly the same as the League (which is a good thing considering Universal is already facing a potential lawsuit from Warner Bros over the Dark Universe title), though the concepts may be similar.

All this is to say, Universal’s Dark Universe seems to be borrowing aspects of other shared universes to construct its new monster-focused reboots, which may be what winds up weighing the franchise down. Early reviews for The Mummy indicate the franchise isn’t bringing anything fresh to Hollywood or the now incredibly popular business of shared universes. Instead, the method of picking and choosing from what has worked before (though some would argue Suicide Squad didn’t necessarily work very well as a standalone film), is obvious to moviegoers who have been showing up for shared universe installments for almost a decade.

While the Marvel Cinematic Universe may be the gold standard of shared universes, other studios deliberately haven’t replicated it exactly. Instead, Warner Bros, Fox, and Paramount have built their cinematic worlds in ways that make sense for their characters and brings something new to the table. Although it may still be too early to truly know where Universal’s Dark Universe is headed, the blatant teaser at the end of The Mummy sets the stage for a shared universe with inspirations from The Avengers and Suicide Squad. However, without offering much of a different spin on those concepts aside from the use of classic movie monsters rather than superheroes, it remains to be seen if Universal’s Dark Universe will actually be able to rival the MCU and DCEU.

How The Mummy Sets Up The ‘Monster Avengers’ of Dark Universe

The critics agree that Wonder Woman is the best-reviewed film in the DCEU, but the good news for everyone is that Diana’s origin story makes Batman V Superman even better as a result. Those who found Zack Snyder’s Justice League lead-in not to their tastes, and the changes to BvS‘s Ultimate Edition not much of an improvement, Wonder Woman may remain the only DCEU movie they enjoy on repeat viewings. But if the showdown between DC’s biggest icons seemed like a promising, or at least interesting but ultimately flawed story, the depth and added weight behind Diana’s character may improve the film more than one might expect.

With Wonder Woman flying past $300 million box office already – and possibly on pace to make more money than Man of Steel – some fond of Diana may wish to simply look forward, not backward (and that includes the Wonder Woman Amazons returning for Justice League). Having gone to the trouble of seeing what new connections, ideas, DCEU themes, and specific plot clarifications arise thanks to Wonder Woman, we have to recommend that curious fans see if the points on our list catch their interest.

Needless to say, there will be plenty of DCEU SPOILERS in our look at How Wonder Woman Makes Batman V Superman Better.

“Gods Hurl Thunderbolts”

For reasons that should be perfectly obvious to anyone who has seen Wonder Woman, the scene in which Alfred addresses the apparent changing of “rules” in torturing criminals carries some new meaning. When Alfred corrects his employer and states that things have most certainly changed, it’s impossible to hear the following words the same: “Men fall from the sky. The gods hurl thunderbolts.” Considering that Wonder Woman‘s own history of humanity’s creation includes both those exact features, it pairs the final battles between Diana and Ares, and Superman and Zod. In the former fight, the bout itself is based on literally hurling thunderbolts.

Alfred continues to explain that when the gods do battle on Earth, or make this plane of ‘mortals’ their backdrop – as Ares, and Zod have – the result is that “innocents die. That’s how it starts, sir. The fever. The rage. The feeling of powerlessness. It turns good men cruel.” It’s a little eerie how much this claim resonates, since the notion that men are inherently “good,” and that they grow “cruel” only through a hunger for power (all stemming from envy, anger, and hate) are the basic thesis statements of Wonder Woman.

Unfortunately, the pattern has begun all over again with Bruce in particular – adding further fuel to the idea that men don’t need to be directly steered by Ares to be corrupted… unless you argue that Lex Luthor is now the one manipulating events, and trusting that all key players will react, and attack, as he assumes. More on that later.

“You Know, Dad Was Born in East Germany”

Wonder Woman may end with Diana saving the day, and The Great War ending in a ceasefire, but the wars of man were already set in motion. Even if we know that Diana didn’t “turn her back” on the world, she does admit to turning away from it with Ares defeated. It’s hard to blame her, considering how the so-called ‘good guys’ she was fighting alongside in her own solo movie handled Germany upon their defeat in World War II (which spun out of Germany’s defeat in World War I). In short, dividing the country up into sections each conquering country could claim – with East Germany falling under Soviet rule until 1990. By then Lex Luthor’s father had already spent his childhood in the controlled region, “marching in parades, waving flowers at tyrants.”

The likely history, then, is of Lex’s father growing up in the forgotten mess left behind by foreign powers. Only in adulthood did he clearly leave for America, have a son, and grow his empire in that child’s name. Consider how Lex views even virtuous heroes or ‘defenders’ as far darker than most realize, and you’re pulling at a compelling thread. Also of note: Germany largely lost the war Diana fought in by trying to knock out one superpower (France) before their other neighbor (Russia) could attack. Damaged, but aggressive and power-hungry trying to outsmart threats on either side… well, that describes Lex just as well.

The Metahuman Thesis

As manic as he may be in pursuit of power and authority, you have to hand it to Lex Luthor for realizing that Superman wasn’t the only superhuman to have walked the face of the Earth throughout history. The Kryptonite weapon he proposes is intended to deter more than just the Man of Steel, since he believes “there are more of them… the metahuman thesis. More likely than not, these exceptional beings live among us. The basis of our myths. Gods among men upon our little blue planet here.” We learn later in the film that he’s already found proof of one immortal Greek warrior woman, but it’s a solid theory to begin with, since we now know that it’s correct on even its most fundamental assumption.

If Diana would be defined as a “metahuman” due to her being the daughter of Zeus, then it stands to reason many other gods, demigods, and children of gods were similarly shifted from history to myth. Hercules seems just as likely a candidate proving Lex’s point, and may even be referenced in a Wonder Woman easter egg. But if you go one step further and assume that Zeus, Ares, and the rest of the Olympian Gods were also shifted from actual figures to ‘gods,’ Lex may give another hint towards the Gods of Apokolips actually creating the Greek Pantheon.

How Wonder Woman Makes Batman V Superman Better

In a packed Captain America: Civil War, Chadwick Boseman’s T’Challa stood out from the crowd, drawing both critical praise and fan adoration. Next February, audiences will get to see him lead a movie of his own. Today, Marvel released the first trailer for Black Panther, which is slated for a February 16, 2018 release. Already Twitter is abuzz with praise for the film’s visuals and cast, as well as eager speculation over the plot itself. Even with months left before the film’s release, the hype is incredibly, incredibly real. Below are twelve things that the trailer revealed that excited us the most.

Wakanda World-Building

Director Ryan Coogler and cinematographer Rachel Morrison look to have outdone themselves crafting the rich and beautiful world of Wakanda. The trailer is striking not only in it’s use of color but also in the way it visually establishes Wakanda. The culture of the country easily comes through in this one teaser alone, and one can only imagine how magnificent it will be in the final film. The blend of tradition and technology is well-balanced, and the production design is equally stellar. Much like the world of Asgard and then nine realms in the Thor films, Coogler and the Black Panther team faced a challenge in bringing the fictitious Wakanda to life. It seems they have more than risen to the challenge.

Costume Design

Another stunning element of the visuals in the trailer was the standout costume design. From Erik Killmonger’s (Michael B. Jordan) armor to the regalia worn by Wakandan leaders, such as the pictured above character played by Isaach De Bankolé, the costumes match the setting perfectly. The costumes were designed by Ruth E. Carter, a two-time Academy Award nominee who’s work ranges from historical films such as Amistad, Malcom X, and Selma to genre films such as Serenity. She has most definitely outdone herself here, and the film looks to have Marvel’s most stunning costumes yet. Could some awards season buzz for costume design be in the movie’s future?

Wakandan Technology

One of Wakanda’s greatest secrets is that it is perhaps the most technologically advanced country in the MCU’s. This is due in part to Wakanda having a rich store of vibranium, the metal that makes up Captain America’s (Chris Evans) shield. Audiences got a taste of Wakandan technology in Civil War with T’Challa’s powerful Black Panther suit, but Black Panther will bring a new level of futuristic technology to the Marvel ‘verse. There’s a reason that Ulyesses Klaue (Andy Serkis) says that the country was called El Dorado by explorers. Of course, not everything is perfect in Wakanda….

Michael B. Jordan as Erik Killmonger

The trailer gave us a first look at Michael B. Jordan’s villainous turn as Erik Killmonger, an exile from Wakanda determined to overthrow T’Challa’s rule. This marks the third time that Jordan and Coogler have teamed up; they previously worked together on Fruitvale Station and Creed. An Entertainment Weekly article on the trailer said that Coogler is hesitant to reveal the background for Killmonger yet, but that in the comics it is one of the darkest villain origin stories. Marvel movies have often struggled with crafting compelling villains to match their heroes, but between Jordan’s talent and that tease, Killmonger might emerge as one of Marvel’s most frightening and effective villains. He’s also not the only villain to appear in the trailer; we get a brief glimpse of Winston Duke as M’Baku/Man-Ape, as well as M’Baku and Killmonger locked in combat. T’Challa will need all the help he can get to take on this crew of villains.

Black Panther Trailer #1 Breakdown

Fans of Brendan Fraser’s The Mummy movies disappointed by the Tom Cruise reboot may be in luck – an Easter egg suggests Rick O’Connell, Imhotep, and co. are still canon.

Although the Dark Universe is ostensibly based on Universal’s 1930s classic monster films, the instigating creature – the resurrected Mummy – is better remembered for a previous remake. Back in 1999, Stephen Sommers delivered one of the best summer blockbusters of a disappointing decade by taking a character best known for being an easy last-minute Halloween costume and putting it in an Indiana Jones-hued action-adventure.

Fun, creepy and full of great characters, The Mummy was a massive success, leading to two direct sequels and spin-off series The Scorpion King that, despite not being great, still ran for four movies between 2002 and 2015. There were once talks of a fourth film in the main series, but they died with the emergence of the Dark Universe (and its scathing reviews). Or did they?

The Mummy 1999 Easter Egg

The Mummy 2017 is mostly very removed from what’s come before. It’s set in the modern day (the previous remake took place in the 1920s), moves the action from Egypt to England (with the instigating tomb in Iraq), and while its villain is, again, primarily motivated by using one of our heroes to resurrect an ancient force, the story goes off in a completely different direction.

But Alex Kurtzman isn’t totally ignoring the O’Connells. In the film’s second act, Tom Cruise’s Nick Morton finds himself the headquarters of Prodigum, a secret organization that collects and catalogs rare antiquities related to a variety of strange creatures. When he discovers their motives aren’t totally pure he gets in a tussle with Russell Crowe’s Dr. Jekyll (or rather his dark side) while Annabelle Wallis’ Jenny Halsey tries to find a way to break them up. When scrabbling for a weapon, she uses one of the Prodigum’s acquisitions – a golden book with a strange lock.

This is the Book of Amun-Ra, a mythological item first introduced in The Mummy ’99. It was one of two essential MacGuffins in the film along with the obsidian Book of Death; the latter was able to resurrect ancient forces, while the former sent them back to the afterlife. The golden version was seemingly lost forever in sequel The Mummy Returns when it’s dropped it into pit of scarabs in Hamunaptra, the City of the Dead.

Of course, even though the Dark Universe appearance looks to be the same prop, or at the very least a near perfect recreation, it’s more intended as a neat easter egg for long-time Mummy fans. But could it be something more? Is Kurtzman actually saying the original films happened in continuity?

Why Brendan Fraser’s Films Are In Canon

The big difference between Fraser and Cruise’s Mummy is that while the former was just a rollicking one-off summer movie (initially), the latter is the springboard to one of Universal’s biggest gambles, a shared universe that – if box office and critical failure doesn’t crush it first – will unite Morton (now a Mummy) and Jekyll with Frankenstein, the Invisible Man, the Wolf Man, the Creature from the Black Lagoon and maybe even the Phantom of the Opera and Hunchback of Notre Dame. As such the film is full of setup for the future, with easter eggs and world building galore. Is the Book of Amun-Ra part of it?

Here’s where those aforementioned differences between remake series come into play – there’s very little if anything to contradict the two Mummy films being in the same timeline, with different cursed Egyptians, tomb locations and, indeed, magic explanation, all separated by the better part of a century. To say that Fraser’s films work in Dark Universe going forward is very simple; the writers just need to make sure they don’t contradict a few simple things. To be sure, it’s not even hard to explain the Easter egg; the Book was lost, not destroyed, and as a pivotal artifact is unlikely just get left to the sands of time. If Prodigium really is as maliciously far-reaching as presented, they’re sure to have hunted it down at some point – the Imhotep incident may even be what instigated the organization.

In fact, this would be a rather nice move for other remakes to follow through on – because these are contemporary, action-based versions, it’s not too damaging to pay homage to the 1930s classics and other efforts by making them officially in-continuity. Imagine Frankenstein saying he’s following work of an ancestor or the Invisible Man being a hereditary affliction. Heck, while the film itself is despised, people would surely be pretty excited to have Hugh Jackman’s Van Helsing pop up (if The Mummy hasn’t already introduced another version of the character). Ironically, the only film that couldn’t work in this vein due to the character’s immortality is Dracula Untold, once intended to be Dark Universe’s progenitor.

Alex Kurtzman has actually discussed the Easter egg with Digital Spy and while admitting it is primarily just a wink, the director said its ambiguity leading to a discussion such as this is intentional:

“You have to pay homage and tribute to everything that came before. I have nothing but respect for all the films that have been made, and the filmmakers who’ve made them. To deny their existence in any way, I think would have been incredibly rude. So, all of those films are part of the history of the Universal monsters, and as such I thought, rather than say it’s not part of the canon, let’s say, ‘No, it is part of the canon; we’re just taking it somewhere new’.”

When pressed, Kurtzman even jokingly said “Sure! Why not? You’re free to quote that.” Of course, this is all a bit cheap – it’s tying in beloved movies with no purpose beyond appeasing fans – but then who actually expected O’Connell to turn up?

Even if it is just a bit of fun, there’s no avoiding what it means: yes, the Brendan Fraser movies are canon. Now if only we could replace the Tom Cruise version with them…

Brendan Fraser’s The Mummy Trilogy Exists In The Dark Universe

When Wonder Woman arrived in Batman V Superman, fans were dying to know what caused her to spend a full century hiding from the world – a question that her origin movie in World War I promised to do. The film succeeded in showing why Wonder Woman is a better hero than Batman or Superman as the DCEU heads towards Justice League, but with Wonder Woman itself ending on something of an inspiring, victorious ending… fans are starting to wonder if her claim in BvS is a plot hole unaddressed. If Wonder Woman managed to end the war and defeat her enemy, why did she turn her back on mankind for the next hundred years?

It’s a question more and more fans and critics are asking, with even director Patty Jenkins explaining Diana’s words, from her point of view. Still, the movies themselves are what most fans will be seeing, and using to answer this question. Unfortunately, the addition of Wonder Woman’s story only makes BvS better if the audience remembers to reconsider what they used to believe. In this case, Diana’s words – and her reason for being in the movie at all – may have changed in light of her very own movie.

We’re here to help fans understand, and answer the question of Why Wonder Woman ‘Walks Away’ From Mankind After WWI.

What Diana Said vs. How Fans Understood It

To get to the bottom of whether Diana’s pre-BvS story is even a plot hole, we need to go back and pay close attention not to what fans took away or interpreted from her words in Dawn of Justice, but the words themselves. As she and Bruce Wayne stood a distance from Clark Kent’s grave, she let her latest ally know that she was less than optimistic about his mission to unite metahumans in one team. The line is famous now, but here it is, in case anyone’s memory is a little foggy:

“A hundred years ago I walked away from mankind; from a century of horrors. Men made a world where standing together is impossible.”

Combining her claim of “walking away from mankind” a century earlier with the photo of her in World War I, fans inferred that whatever happened during World War I soured her on mankind to the point of abandoning them to their fate. With the majority of the movie seeing Diana tracking down the photograph proving her existence and immortality, and resisting any urge to join Batman or Superman, it seemed safe to assume that was how she had spent the previous century.

She may not have been able to physically leave the world of mankind, meaning she had “walked away from mankind” in the sense that she had lived a secret life, hiding her powers, having had whatever heroic urges brought her into WWI quelled by a brutal war that led into “a century of horrors.” Again, that’s how audiences interpreted the words, with only her appearance in Batman V Superman to inform them. But that’s not the case anymore.

Diana Hasn’t Been ‘Hiding’ – And That’s Important

It should come as no surprise that seeing Wonder Woman only improves Batman V Superman – even aside from the surprisingly detailed Diana story running through the movie. Mainly, it’s the obvious benefits of seeing how Diana turned from a wide-eyed, optimistic crusader for worldly protection into the wiser, stoic, more guarded woman we see in the modern DCEU. But in terms of actual, material links between Dawn of Justice and Wonder Woman, there is none more obvious or misunderstood than the daguerreotype photograph taken of Diana, Steve Trevor, and their band of brothers. The photo that Diana was chasing down in the previous movie, for what fans could only assume was the sake of secrecy and privacy, having spent a century avoiding detection.

But in Wonder Woman, it’s suggested that Diana’s entire motivation may have been misunderstood. It turns out Diana needed Steve Trevor in whatever form she could get, even if it meant a photograph she had possibly never seen (considering what happens to the village shortly after). When Bruce sends her the original, she replies to him with an email, thanking her ally for “bringing him back to me.” (Editor’s note: we assume she means Steve, and not director Zack Snyder’s cameo in the photo.)

In this new light, some of the original assumptions have to be questioned. After all, Diana is happily employed at The Louvre in Paris, implying her attempts to ‘hide’ from the world may actually be limited to ‘keeping people from knowing I’m an immortal demigoddess.’ So if Diana is making friends, remembering loved ones, and going to work like the rest of humanity, what did her claim of “walking away from mankind” after WWI mean? And why was she resisting the urge to jump into combat alongside two American superheroes?

Why Diana (Really) Stopped Being a Superhero

With no horrifying defeat, no disillusionment unresolved, and defeating her enemy, Ares, with her belief in the power of love… why did Diana walk away from mankind? Why, if she killed Ares, did war continue? Why did World War II happen? And why didn’t she show up to stop it? These are the question being understandably thrown around by viewers, and the ones that some outlets and critics are actually pointing to as DCEU plot holes, mistakes, or continuity errors. That’s far from the truth, and viewers need only to remind themselves of why Diana left Themyscira in the first place to understand the reality.

She explains to Steve and her mother, just as it was explained to her, that the Amazons exist to defeat Ares. She believes what she was taught: that Zeus created Man to be good, and Ares corrupted them into doing terrible things. Zeus created the Amazons to pull mankind back from the corruption of Ares. After the death of the gods, Zeus concealed the Amazons so that they could return to defeat Ares once and for all, should he arrive to corrupt and destroy mankind once more.

He did. So Diana left Themyscira to make good on the Amazons’ duty. She did. At which point… well, her job was more or less done, and the Amazons’ duty fulfilled. Seeing her defeat Ares by claiming she “believes in love” and in the goodness of mankind may lead the audience to assume she’s accepted the mantle of their protector, but she’s neither a human nor a ‘superhero.’ She’s saying it in opposition to Ares, who believes mankind is evil at heart and therefore should be utterly erased from the Earth. Wonder Woman believes that mankind shouldn’t be written off, or at least that Ares is seeing only the worst of them – as she has, as well.

So she follows the destiny and duty of her people, and rids mankind of the corruption of Ares. With her job done, and no home to go back to… Diana began to live a life of her own, apparently keeping her secrets and powers to herself. Remember: there were no other superheroes at the time, and as far as we know, no other supernatural or superhuman threats ever came to humans for decades. She simply stepped back, and let mankind continue on as it chose to.

Ares revealed just how little pushing or seduction humans needed to commit horrors while wrapped in the Lasso of Truth, so Diana knows that the story she was fed as a child isn’t entirely true. Men are good. Men are evil. But taking on the task of overseeing the planet on a micromanaging scale wasn’t what Diana planned, nor was it ever her duty (or right, to be honest). And the century that followed clearly convinced her that Ares saw at least some of the truth of mankind.

Why It Doesn’t Really Matter

In the end, the distinction here is only a ‘plot hole’ or ‘inconsistency’ if viewers limit their interpretation to explicitly what is shown on screen. Even Wonder Woman‘s director has denied a continuity error, explaining that ‘turning away from mankind’ just as likely means Diana realized humanity needed to save itself, or that she couldn’t save everybody from the reality of mankind.

The audience is given enough in her own film, with Queen Hippolyta telling Diana that men are easily corrupted, and that they do not deserve the Amazons’ protection. Assuming Diana took some time off after fulfilling her people’s ancient duty, she would see World War II started by men all on their own – a war that she neither could have, nor was duty-bound to prevent, fight, or win. We don’t know that Diana stopped being a hero in some form or another, but having seen what Ares caused by meddling with humans, we’re willing to assume she decided never to follow in his footsteps. A demigoddess exercising her will over people was the opposite of what she was raised to be.

A Wonder Woman movie sequel could shed some light on how Diana spent the intervening years, and her origin movie’s ending certainly suggests that Superman’s death has stirred something inside of her. But her words to Bruce matter more to the future of the DCEU than the past. She hasn’t walked with mankind for a century, but the time may be coming when she needs to defend it from an enemy far greater than the God of War – the God of Apokolips.

Why Wonder Woman ‘Walks Away’ From Mankind After WWI

The latest DC Extended Universe entry, Wonder Woman, is a triumph for female characters in movies, while this weekend’s big release, The Mummy, undermines any attempt at progress with its final twist. There are a few similarities between Wonder Woman and The Mummy. Even though their source material is vastly different – one comes from the pages of comics, the other is inspired by a 1932 horror movie – both films are positioned as summer blockbusters, and action/adventure films in which their lead characters discover the heroes within themselves. In a larger sense, however, both movies hit theaters with a great deal of pressure on them to succeed for the sake of their respective cinematic universes.

In the case of Wonder Wonder, Patty Jenkins’ DCEU installment arrived on the heels of back-to-back films that received largely negative critical reviews and mixed reactions among moviegoers (those films being Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice and Suicide Squad). As such, many hoped Wonder Woman would be the first DCEU entry that was generally well received by critics and moviegoers alike – which, considering reviews of Wonder Woman and the film’s massive box office, it was. Meanwhile, The Mummy is tasked with being the official launchpad for Universal Studio’s Dark Universe – the shared cinematic world of classic movie monsters that the studio has been planning for years. The Dark Universe was initially thought to kick off with Dracula Untold in 2014, but that film’s negative reception and poor box office made it a non-starter – though Alex Kurtzman’s update on the classic monster isn’t faring much better in terms of reviews for The Mummy.

Of course, there are also a great deal of differences between Wonder Woman and The Mummy, particularly in the way the films portray and treat their female characters. This won’t be a discussion of whether Wonder Woman or The Mummy are themselves feminist films, since labeling any one piece of art as feminist is a tricky business, but an in-depth look at the treatment of the films’ characters (and readers can draw their own conclusions from there). Additionally, though this close of a look at The Mummy’s female characters may not have arisen if it had debuted earlier in the summer movie schedule, in light of the discussion around women in Hollywood thanks to the success of Wonder Woman, a closer look at how female characters are portrayed in a typical summer blockbuster is warranted.

Much has been said about Wonder Woman’s strong female hero – which is to say, Gal Gadot’s Diana Prince is a well-written, three-dimensional superhero with a notable journey from a naive warrior to the more educated protector of mankind. The film’s depiction of Themyscira and the race of all-women Amazonian warriors has been praised for depicting the strength of women. Further, Wonder Woman confronts sexism both within the world in which the film is set and Hollywood as a whole. Even Wonder Woman’s, Steve Trevor (Chris Pine), flips the script on the damsel in distress trope by giving him his own character arc that is tied directly to Diana’s.

To be clear, however, Wonder Woman is an outlier in Hollywood. Data scientist Amber Thomas found that women only spoke 27 percent of the words in the top 10 grossing films of 2016, which included superhero tentpoles like Captain America: Civil War, Batman V Superman: Dawn of Justice, and Suicide Squad. Behind the camera, 2016 also saw a two percent decline in the number of female filmmakers, with only 7 percent of directors in 2016 being women, according to San Diego State’s Center for the Study of Women in Television and Film as reported by THR. Women fared better when it came to being screenwriters, comprising 13 percent. In the case of Wonder Woman, the film is credited to Allan Heinberg with contributions from three other male writers.

The Mummy, however, falls more in line with the statistics laid out above since it was directed by Kurtzman from a script by David Koepp, Christopher McQuarrie, and Dylan Kussman. Contributing to the story of The Mummy were Kurtzman, Jon Spaihts, and Jenny Lumet. As for the cast, Annabelle Wallis’ Jenny Halsey and Sofia Boutella’s Princess Ahmanet are the only two main female characters. Although there isn’t an in-depth breakdown of the cast and dialogue, The Mummy’s lead roles are predominantly men, and Russell Crowe’s Dr. Jekyll has a great deal of dialogue, even telling the story of Princess Ahmanet in a lengthy voiceover. But, it’s how the characters of Jenny and Ahmanet are treated within the story where The Mummy truly fails.

The Mummy 2017 is the Opposite of Wonder Woman

There were few signs that a major blockbuster was about to premiere when “The Mummy” rolled into Manhattan last week. The marquee of the AMC Loews Lincoln Square Theatres had gone blank. The carpet was totally covered with black plastic. Security only let guests past barricades after quizzing them about what they were there to see, and everybody had to walk through two imposing metal detectors.

Inside the theater, Tom Cruise was jubilant, as he stood in front of the crowd. “Hey y’all,” said the 54-year-old actor. He introduced Alex Kurtzman, the film’s director, as well as the cast members, who stood quietly as Cruise delivered a 10-minute improvised speech. “Movies aren’t made by single people,” he said. “It’s a team effort.”

But in the case of “The Mummy,” one person–Cruise–had an excessive amount of control, according to several people interviewed. The reboot of “The Mummy” was supposed to be the start of a mega-franchise for Universal Pictures. But instead, it’s become a textbook case of a movie star run amok.

As Hollywood is playing the blame game on what went wrong on “The Mummy,” which had a measly domestic opening of just $32 million, many fingers are pointing to Cruise. In the same way that he commanded the stage at the film’s premiere, leaving his cast standing awkwardly by his side, several sources close to the production say that Cruise exerted nearly complete creative oversight on “The Mummy,” essentially wearing all the hats and dictating even the smallest decisions on the set. On stage, Cruise admitted his own perfectionist tendencies. “I don’t just make a movie. I give it everything I have and I expect it from everyone also.”

Universal, according to sources familiar with the matter, contractually guaranteed Cruise control of most aspects of the project, from script approval to post-production decisions. He also had a great deal of input on the film’s marketing and release strategy, these sources said, advocating for a June debut in a prime summer period.

With terrible reviews, “The Mummy,” which insiders say cost as much as $190 million to make and more than $100 million more to market and release worldwide, may struggle to make its money back. The film is performing much stronger overseas, where it was Cruise’s biggest international rollout with a $142 million opening weekend. It’s not clear if the movie will break even, and it’s cast a shadow on the studio’s plans for a Dark Universe franchise that’s supposed to feature A-list stars like Johnny Depp (as “The Invisible Man”) and Angelina Jolie (in negotiations for “The Bride of Frankenstein”).

A representative for Cruise didn’t respond to a request for comment. In a statement, Universal refuted that Cruise had a negative influence on the production.

“Tom approaches every project with a level of commitment and dedication that is unmatched by most working in our business today,” the statement read. “He has been a true partner and creative collaborator, and his goal with any project he works on is to provide audiences with a truly cinematic moviegoing experience.”

Cruise’s controlling behavior comes as Hollywood’s star system is in tatters. In the 1990s and early aughts, studios shelled out big money for the likes of Mel Gibson, Julia Roberts, and Harrison Ford, confident that their names above the title could guarantee ticket sales. In exchange they were offered big perks, hefty salaries, and a sizable share of the profits. Along with the money came the power to veto key decisions. But as comic book movies and special effects-heavy productions took over, top actors found themselves in less demand and with less influence. Cruise has navigated the new landscape better than some–the “Mission: Impossible” franchise still makes money but other efforts such as “Oblivion” have disappointed. Going forward, he may have difficulty exerting the same kind of sway over other films.

It may be the last hurrah for big movie stars, but on the set of “The Mummy,” Cruise acted like the top gun he once was, calling all the shots. Kurtzman had been in the running to direct the project before Cruise signed on, but the actor gave his blessing for the filmmaker to slide behind the camera. They’d established a comfort level when Kurtzman worked as the screenwriter of “Mission: Impossible III.”

In the wake of “The Mummy’s” failure, the decision to tap such an untested director on a sprawling action-adventure seems to have been foolhardy. Kurtzman wouldn’t necessarily rank high on a studio’s wish list for a project this big, given that he’s a producer and writer who only helmed one small feature that debuted to mixed reviews (2012’s Chris Pine drama “People Like Us”). As Kurtzman struggled to adjust to scope of the project, it felt more like Cruise was the real director, often dictating the major action sequences and micro-managing the production, according to sources.

There were other ways that “The Mummy” was transformed from a scary summer popcorn movie into a standard-issue Tom Cruise vehicle. The actor personally commissioned two other writers along with McQuarrie to crank out a new script. Two of the film’s three credited screenwriters, McQuarrie and Dylan Kussman, an actor-writer who played small roles in “The Mummy” and “Jack Reacher,” were close allies of Cruise’s. The script envisioned Nick Morton as an earnest Tom Cruise archetype, who is laughably described as a “young man” at one point.

His writers beefed up his part. In the original script, Morton and the Mummy (played by Sofia Boutella) had nearly equal screen time. The writers also added a twist that saw Cruise’s character become possessed, to give him more of a dramatic arc. Even though Universal executives weren’t thrilled about the story — which feels disjointed and includes Russell Crowe as Dr. Jekyll — they went along with Cruise’s vision.

And the crew fell in line too, behind Cruise as the boss. “This is very much a film of two halves: before Tom and after Tom,” said Frank Walsh, the supervising art director, at a London screening of “The Mummy” this week. “I have heard the stories about how he drives everything and pushes and pushes, but it was amazing to work with him. The guy is a great filmmaker and knows his craft. He will walk onto a set and tell the director what to do, say ‘that’s not the right lens,’ ask about the sets, and as long as you don’t fluff what you’re saying to him … he’s easy to work for.”

Once the film was done, Cruise brought in his longtime editor Andrew Mondshein to piece together the final picture. (The film’s credits also list Gina and Paul Hirsch as editors.) He spent time in the editing suite overseeing the cutting, which everybody agreed wasn’t working. On the lot, there were differences of opinions about whether Cruise’s directions were improving a picture that had been troubled from its inception or whether they were turning a horror film into a Cruise infomercial. Some believed that Cruise had no choice but to assert himself. Given Kurtzman’s inexperience directing tentpoles, Cruise, who has carried heavily choreographed action movies all his life, had to try to rally the troops or risk having the production fall behind schedule.

Universal knew that if it wanted “The Mummy” to compete against the likes of “Wonder Woman” and “Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2” it needed every ounce of Cruise’s waning star power. As the studio scrambled to deal with weak tracking, it released a portrait in late May of Cruise with other actors from the Dark Universe franchise, including Depp and Javier Bardem (who will play Frankenstein). Yet the studio couldn’t even assemble all the actors in the room at the same time, and the image had to be Photoshopped. The Internet reaction to the last-ditch marketing effort was tepid at best. It was another reminder that the big names that once ruled Hollywood are inspiring a lot less love from audiences.

The reviews may have been brutal, but at the premiere Cruise seemed pleased, complimenting everyone involved and portraying the finished film as a team effort. “Jake! Jake!” he shouted at one of his co-stars Jake Johnson. “It was awesome working with you, Jake!”

Inside ‘The Mummy’s’ Troubles: Tom Cruise Had Excessive Control (EXCLUSIVE)

Minecraft is about to enter its final form. In August, the Better Together update will land and unify the game across nearly every platform, from iOS and Android to Xbox One and Nintendo Switch. This unification comes courtesy of the Bedrock Engine, which currently powers all mobile, Windows 10, Amazon Fire and VR versions of the game. Now, it won’t matter which platform your friends use to play Minecraft — every version will be the same, they’ll share DLC and updates, and all players will be able to create new worlds together.

Well, nearly all. The PlayStation 4 and Xbox 360 versions of Minecraft are not included in the initial Better Together update.

“Beginning with Xbox One and Nintendo Switch, we’ll be expanding that code base so that all — the vast majority of our community is united,” marketing lead Emily Orrson says.

The Better Together update brings Bedrock to the Xbox One and Nintendo Switch versions of Minecraft, allowing them to play with nearly every other version of the game. With the update, participating consoles get Realms (the game’s multiplayer mode), plus the newly launched Community Marketplace. Any existing worlds will transfer directly to Bedrock, as will all DLC players have purchased. The Better Together update also brings infinite worlds to Xbox One and Switch, up from the current, limited grid of about 3 miles by 3 miles.

“They’ve been asking for some relief there for a long time, and now they’ll be able to walk right up inside of those worlds and continue generating them infinitely,” executive producer Jesse Merriam says.

But players on PS4, arguably the most popular current-gen console on the market, won’t be moved to Bedrock right away.

“Our goal is to unite all Minecraft players,” Merriam. “Today we’re able to confirm Xbox One and Nintendo Switch, but all of our current-gen partners — we’re interested in connecting all of the Minecraft players. It’s just about what we can confirm today.”

The PS4 and Xbox 360 versions of Minecraft will retain their platform-specific names, while the Java version will formally be named Minecraft: Java Edition, which is what most players call it anyway. So, now, there’s the core Minecraft game and three fragmented editions (PS4, Xbox 360 and Java) that aren’t guaranteed to receive the same updates or cross-platform capabilities as the main version. It’s a welcome step toward unity, but not a complete leap just yet.

“We’re partnered very closely with Apple, Google, PlayStation, Nintendo, Amazon, our VR partners — a lot of that, it just is a lot to make sure we’re always working in everyone’s store and everything else,” Orrson says. “Right now we are doing our best to get everybody connected, but it is work to work through all of the scenarios we encounter.”

Microsoft bought Minecraft in 2014 for $2.5 billion, so it makes sense the Xbox One version is getting some love in the Better Together update. Of course, Sony builds the PS4.

“It’s not for lack of wanting to or effort on our part,” senior global communications manager Aubrey Norris says. “We are in discussions with our partners right now. We want PlayStation and we invite Sony to bring PlayStation players onto Bedrock, but we can’t get any further into — these are confidential discussions.”

Microsoft and developer Mojang are far from done with Minecraft. Better Together is part of a larger push to transform Minecraft into a “creative platform.” Developers want it to be more than a game. They want it to be the foundation for community-driven innovation, connection and creativity.

The Community Marketplace, which hit Pocket and Windows 10 editions in June, was a big part of this transition, allowing players to search for, buy and sell their own in-game creations.

Servers are also getting some attention in Better Together. These allow players to mess around in completely unique worlds built by dedicated fans. Now, there’ll be a Servers tab next to the “Worlds” and “Friends” tabs at start-up, introducing a whole new community of players to fan-favorite universes like Lifeboat, an endeavor created by a 14-year-old and his dad that boasts 6 million players per month. Initial servers landing on Bedrock are Lifeboat, CubeCraft, Mineplex and InPvP.

One final update makes Minecraft even more self-contained: A built-in crafting recipe book.

“We want to bring the strengths of all the existing crafting systems together,” Merriam says. “Today, the Java edition is really known for discovery and experimentation as you go to the crafting grid and try things out and see what actually turns out to be a recipe.”

The recipe book will allow fans to toggle recipes directly in the crafting grid, eliminating the need to set down the game and find the relevant Wiki page. But, those who like to experiment with recipes are free to ignore the book completely.

“Anyone who’s interacted with a hardcore Minecraft fan will know there’s a lot of pride a kid will feel if they know the recipe for a boat,” Merriam says.

Follow all the latest news from E3 2017 here!

Microsoft will unify most ‘Minecraft’ platforms this summer

If you want to make Minecraft a bigger part of your social life, good news: Microsoft is making it easier for players to join multiplayer worlds.

You already can play with thousands of other Minecraft gamers on customized multiplayer areas called servers, but it’s kind of a pain. Microsoft’s aspirin will come this summer, though, when  Minecraft will get a built-in server browser that makes servers easier to discover and use, said Minecraft marketing leader Emily Orrson. Microsoft announced the move Sunday in conjunction with the massive E3 videogame conference.

“The amount of different ways to play is going to exponentially expand,” Orrson said. Think of it as adding a little more escapism to your escapism.

The server browser is good news if you’re looking for a fresh way to play the game. And with more than 100 million copies of Minecraft sold, it’s a good bet plenty of people will try the servers. Already today millions of people play on servers — more than with some high-end triple-A gaming titles.

Four servers will be available to start: Lifeboat, InPvP, Mineplex and CubeCraft. But more will come later. As with Microsoft’s addition recently of Microsoft’s marketplace to buy assets like character skins and downloadable minigames, though, Microsoft plans to expand beyond the limited number of launch-time partners, Orrson said.

In the blocky virtual world of Minecraft, you survive by digging and harvesting raw materials, “crafting” those ingredients into tools, weapons, and more refined materials, then using all that to survive the nightly onslaught of bad guys called mobs. You can also play in a no-threat creative mode that lets you build everything from fanciful floating castles to working electronic devices powered by Minecraft’s “redstone” circuitry.

Xbox, Switch join Minecraft ‘Bedrock’

The changes come with the “Better Together” update to Minecraft, so named because Microsoft is bringing some relatively isolated versions of the game into the fold. The company builds its “Bedrock” version of Minecraft for Windows 10 PCs, Apple TV, Oculus Rift and Gear VR headsets, and mobile devices powered by Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android.

With the summer update, Minecraft for Xbox One and Nintendo Switch gaming consoles also will become bedrock versions. That means anyone playing with those versions will have access to the same marketplace and server options as the other versions, and that any purchases made on one system will be available to you on the other — as long as you log in with an Xbox account.

That convergence also means playing multiplayer games on a variety of hardware is easier. Any of the Bedrock versions can work together, said Jesse Merriam, Minecraft’s executive producer.

16

The art of Minecraft: Building beauty, block by block

The Xbox 360 and Wii U editions still remain separate for now. So, too, are the original versions for Mac and Windows, built with the Java programming language. All the Bedrock versions now are simply being called “Minecraft,” while the Java-based versions will be called Minecraft Java Edition.

Microsoft’s desire for convergence has its limits, though. Its Mojang studio continues to develop Minecraft Java Edition even as it brings its more advanced features to the Bedrock versions.

“We have no intention to push people one way or other,” said Minecraft communications manager Aubrey Norris.

Minecraft embraces multiplayer worlds so you can escape better

With the launch of Microsoft’s new Xbox One X gamers got an update on the latest Minecraft news — chiefly that Minecraft is now available across any device.

As part of the company’s big show at E3 Microsoft talked about the latest Minecraft update.

The “Better Together Update” unifies console, mobile and Windows 10 versions of the game.

The new update also features better graphics and cross-platform support to let Windows 10 and mobile Minecraft players play the game together.

As part of the update, Minecraft is ditching any special branding associated with Minecraft for Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, mobile games or VR — they’ll all just be known as “Minecraft”. There’s a ‘Minecraft: Java Edition’, which is the original PC game (still supported).

The unified branding is designed to let buyers know they’re all getting the same game, that they can play with anyone no matter what device they’re using, the company said.

Supported devices for unified game play include:

• Windows 10
• iOS
• Android
• XBox One
• Nintendo’s Switch

If players own Minecraft for mobile or VR, they’ll get an update for the summer. Minecraft for Xbox One or Nintendo Switch owners will get a new update for free, and the existing worlds that gamers have created are going to be available on the new game.

The new update also means that any downloadable content will be available across all devices. So a pack bought on mobile will also be available on Xbox and Windows 10 editions too.

As an additional added perk, Minecraft is throwing in a server browser to its latest update. Launching with four servers, Lifeboat, Mineplex, InPVP and Cubecraft — which lets players join public servers that have monthly users numbering in the millions according to the company.

It’s different from Minecraft Realms, which are privately cloud-hosted servers available for smaller groups.

Finally, there’s a new graphics pack for 4K viewing — better lighting, shadows, and water effects, the company said.

Minecraft is now available for cross-play on any device

Minecraft’s latest update brings the mothership build to 1.12 and is substantial enough that it has a name: World of Color. Don’t blame me for the missing U; I’m as upset about it as you are.

Rolling out now for the core Mac and PC build, and presumably destined for the Windows 10, Pocket and console versions at a (possibly much) later date, Minecraft 1.12 overhauls the colour scheme on a number of blocks, gives you options for recolouring many common crafted items, adds two new types of blocks, and officially introduces parrots, probably without the cookie breeding system. In the trailer above, you can see some of the colourful creations the Minecraft community build using a snapshot of this update.

That’s not all, though. According to Mojang, Minecraft 1.12 features a new “advancements” system that will “help guiding your way through the adventure of Minecraft, and can be utilized by creators to make interesting custom adventure maps and mini games”. Maybe it’s just what you’re looking for if you’ve always wanted to get it together and reach endgame but get distracted and confused on the way. There’s also a new recipe book and “knowledge book”, so it’s clearly a good time to be a Minecrafter who loves books.

Here are the full patch notes for Minecraft 1.12: World of Color.

• Added Glazed Terracotta blocks
• Renamed Hardened Clay to Terracotta
• Added Concrete Powder blocks
• Added Concrete blocks
• Updated base color palette
• Added advancements
• Added recipe book
• Added Knowledge Book item
• Added Parrots
• Added functionality to save toolbars in creative mode
• Added text-to-speech narrator
• Added new sounds for the Note blocks
• Added commands relating to recipes and advancements
• Many minor fixes and changes
• Removed Herobrine

Minecraft 1.12 World of Color update brings parrots, an adventure guide system, and more – full patch notes