HoloLens was key driver of Microsoft’s Mojang acquisition

HoloLens was key driver of Microsoft’s Mojang acquisition

by | May 7, 2015 | Minecraft News | 0 comments

17ee7b6c04a0b118d27030754cc67da4Augmented reality tech was a big reason behind last year’s surprise takeover

Back in September, Microsoft swooped for Mojang and purchased the Minecraft developer for $2.5bn.

Now the corporation’s new chief executive has revealed that HoloLens was a key driver in that acquisition.

The augmented reality technology was unveiled earlier this year, with the only gaming application demonstrated so far being a version of Minecraft that spans across the user’s living room.

In an interview with the New York Times, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella said this device was a big reason behind the acquisition of Mojang.

“Let’s have a game that, in fact, will fundamentally help us change new categories,” he said. “HoloLens was very much in the works then, and we knew it.”

Despite the intriguing premise of HoloLens, Nadella is keen to avoid predicting what impact the technology will have, pointing to recent innovations that didn’t prove to be as influential as their creators expected.

“I don’t want to overhype it like Google Glass,” he said. “I want us to be deliberate about what it is.”

HoloLens was key driver of Microsoft’s Mojang acquisition

‘Minecraft’ club building at Olean Public Library

‘Minecraft’ club building at Olean Public Library

by | May 5, 2015 | Minecraft News | 0 comments

OLEAN — The children at the Olean Public Library shouted with enthusiasm when they found out they would build a battlefield or statue for their Minecraft Club project at the club’s final session Wednesday.

The new “Minecraft”-based event, which was held every Tuesday in April, will be offered again at 3:30 p.m. Tuesdays in June, said librarian Sheryl Soborowski. “Minecraft” is a video game that gives players almost complete freedom to shape the virtual world around them.

Soborowski said that in addition to fun, “Minecraft” promotes Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts and Mathematics skills for players of all ages.

The free program was open to kids ages 6 to 14 and regularly attracted about two dozen youngsters. The youngsters used 16 laptop computers owned by the library, while others brought their own devices. The laptops, which are also used for adult tutoring, can access the Internet.

Librarian Jennifer Stickles said Wednesday’s challenge, picked at random by one of the children, asked the youngsters to build a battlefield or statue with “Minecraft.”

“We did one challenge a week,” Stickles said, noting the youngsters were able to pick from two challenges Wednesday because it was their final session.

Soborowski said the battlefield could be built from anything available in the vast array of “sandbox” inventory available through the game.

“It can be anything completely spawned from their imagination, which is what ‘Minecraft’ is all about,” Soborowski explained. “They can decide to make it a Civil War battlefield, a science fiction-based battlefield, and make aliens to match their battlefields” within a variety of backdrops.

A teen volunteer with the program, Jonathan Miller, said he was making a statue in a battlefield from materials provided through the game.

“You can do whatever you want,” Jonathan said. “There are millions of people (who play ‘Minecraft’), and each one has their own ideas for this game.”

His partner at the next computer, Ryan Dutcher, said he was creating a Civil War battlefield with Union and Confederate soldiers.

“It’s fun, yeah,” Ryan said while barely looking up from his computer screen.

Danielle Kielar of Olean said her daughter Lauren and twin sons, Thomas and Brennan, enjoy the program because of the other children at the event.

“They meet other kids who like ‘Minecraft’ … and it gets them to learn new techniques” on the computer, Kielar said.

Sarah Zalwsky said her son, Manoah, attended the session because he enjoys playing “Minecraft” at home.

“I love it because it gives him a chance to interact with other kids,” Zalwsky said. “They make new friends, and it keeps their minds going.”

Lori Tupper said her two boys, Jack and Oliver, 8 and 7 respectively, enjoy “Minecraft” because “it’s the huge craze right now.”

‘Minecraft’ club building at Olean Public Library

Playable Female Characters Are Important

Playable Female Characters Are Important

by | May 3, 2015 | Minecraft News | 0 comments

Lara-Croft-Female-Characters-650x330Playable female characters in games are currently a novelty. The vast majority of games cast players as a male protagonist, and it doesn’t surprise anyone. However, when a game allows players to play as a woman, it is delightfully surprising – and that’s what’s wrong with it. We shouldn’t be surprised by the presence of playable female characters – we should be surprised by their absence. A study featured on the Washington Post website in August 2014 found that women make up 48 percent of the gaming population, while the remaining 52 percent are male. Adult women also outnumber boys under eighteen in the gaming community. The presence of women in the community is steadily increasing – in 2010, women made up just 40 percent of the gaming population.

Mojang recently announced that Minecraft will be getting a free update that will introduce the character Alex, a female equivalent to Steve. In the post that announced the update, Mojang said, “jolly old Steve doesn’t really represent the diversity of our playerbase.” This is completely accurate, as is shown by the statistics cited above. Mojang knows their audience, and they’re smart enough to realize that a sizable part of their playerbase is made up of female gamers who might not want to play as a man. From a business and customer service perspective, Mojang made a smart move that will undoubtedly attract more players to the game while exciting current players at the same time.

The announcement of Alex sparked headlines like “Minecraft Finally Added a Female Default Character” and “You can finally choose to play as a girl in Minecraft.” The key word that keeps popping up is “finally.” This is something that the community wants. The praise that Mojang has received for adding a female character is an indication that the inclusion of women in video games is a huge step in the right direction.

The Call of Duty series is usually seen as a very stereotypically masculine franchise. As a woman, people are surprised when I tell them that I’ve played nearly every game in the series. “I like to play online matches to blow off steam,” I say, but people are still a bit surprised. Treyarch, however, understands this. I am far from the only woman who plays Call of Duty from time to time. However, there has never been a playable female character in a Call of Duty campaign – until now.

Female soldiers were first announced for Call of Duty: Black Ops III in the game’s announcement trailer. A recent preview by GameSpot’s Chris Watters stated that Black Ops III “is the first CoD game that allows the player to choose the gender of the campaign protagonist, and while there is separate voice acting for both male and female characters, the script is roughly the same.” While 2013’s Call of Duty: Ghosts was the first CoD game to bring playable female characters into the game, this was only available in the multiplayer section of the game. Black Ops III allows players to experience the campaign through a woman’s eyes, and that is an extremely exciting feature.

Game developers have obviously been working on integrating women into their games, and both Mojang and Treyarch deserve the credit that they’re getting. However, the problem here is that a playable female character is news – it’s abnormal. The final reveal in Metroid is still seen as one of the most important and shocking moments in gaming, because it never crossed anybody’s mind that Samus was anything but male. Since then, we’ve seen mostly male protagonists. There are quite a few exceptions that have done especially well. Many RPGs (The Elder Scrolls, Fallout, Dragon Age, Mass Effect, World of Warcraft, Neverwinter, etc.) have allowed female players to play through deep and exciting stories as characters that they can personally identify with. Having the choice between a male character and a female character also provides more role-playing opportunities for players of any gender identity. Games like The Last of Us, Borderlands, Resident Evil, and Alien: Isolation have shown gamers that female characters can be strong and fierce, just like male characters. The recent Tomb Raider re-boot transformed Lara Croft from a pixelated sex symbol into a role model. This is exciting! Things are slowly getting better in some aspects. However, if we want to take this issue seriously and inspire change, we need to keep discussing it – and discussing it means also talking about ways that the situation is not getting better.

I remember playing Forza Horizon 2 last year and being shocked that I couldn’t change the gender or appearance of the driver that’s supposed to be “me.” This isn’t a game like Halo or Gears of War, where the story relies on the protagonist being male, nor is it a game like Metroid or American McGee’s Alice, where the story depends on a female main character. Forza Horizon 2‘s protagonist is completely silent. Characters like this are just lenses through which we see the world that the developers have created. There’s really no reason for these types of characters to be gendered at all. But if someone feels like making the character’s gender clear, the player should at least choose whether they want to play as a man or a woman for the dozens of hours that they will spend playing. In Persona 3 Portable, the player was allowed to choose between a male or female protagonist. The change was so well received that it seemed obvious that Persona 5 would also feature the same choice. Unfortunately, as we have recently been made aware, it seems that the title will do no such thing.

It seems that for every step forward, there is a step back. With shadows of Gamergate still floating through the industry, it’s not exactly the best time to be a woman in the games industry, or even a female gamer – but we’re all still here. We love video games. We love the people that create them and the worlds that they craft. And, most of all, we love the way that gaming brings people together. By “we,” I don’t just mean women – this is about the entire gaming community. We have the power to take steps forward, to support the presence of playable female characters in games, to support the inclusion of LGBTQIA+ characters in games, and to support each other through our shared passion.

I’m not calling for any sort of intense action here. I just want to contribute to this crucially important conversation that the entire gaming community should be engaging in. Our love of games connects us, and we can use this bond to change things. If we can stand together as a diverse community with open minds, there is no limit to what we can achieve.

Hopefully, when a game featuring a female playable character is released a few years from now, nobody will be writing articles about it.

Playable Female Characters Are Important

What video game would go in your hall of fame?

What video game would go in your hall of fame?

by | May 2, 2015 | Minecraft News | 0 comments

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Which is better? Minecraft or FIFA? Pac Man or Pokemon? Sonic or Super Mario?

That’s the virtually impossible question that a panel of gaming experts have to answer.

Thousands of fans have voted to produce a list of 15 of the greatest games of all time.

They’ve been shortlisted for the first ever World Video Game Hall of Fame in America.

Here is the full list of finalists:

  • Angry birds
  • Doom
  • FIFA
  • The Legend of Zelda
  • Minecraft
  • The Oregon Trail
  • Pacman
  • Pokemon
  • Pong
  • The Sims
  • Sonic the Hedgehog
  • Space Invaders
  • Super Mario Bros.
  • Tetris
  • World of Warcraft

We’ll know which game’s made it into the exclusive club on 4th June.

You told us which game was your favourite.

Your comments

My favourite game is Animal Crossing: New Leaf because there’s always something new you can do.

Ellie, Pontypridd

I like FIFA because you can make transfers. You can also make your own team and develop it.

Musaab, London

The video game that I would choose to go in the hall of fame is Mario Kart because it’s a really fun game.

Jessica, London

I like FIFA because I love football and I also like Minecraft because you can explore new creatures and new castles.

Zakariya, London

I think Pokemon is the best game because you can catch as many Pokemon as you want.

Oskar, Scotland

Minecraft is my favourite game because you can do whatever you want and you can fight different monsters.

Eddy, Northampton

I love Minecraft, Plants vs. Zombies and Angry Birds.

Finlay

Kingdom Rush because I love the feel you get when you play the game.

Dylan, South Lanarkshire

I think Crash Bandicoot should be nominated. It is the best game ever, I used to play it when I was little and I loved it.

Dwayne, London

I think that it should be Minecraft because it’s like lots of games in one. You can modify it and when you do it’s like playing a completely different game! Definitely Minecraft!

Joe, Scotland

My favourite game is Terraria.

Jack, Basildon

Tekken, Spyro or Dino Crisis are my favourite games but from the list Mario bros has to be the best game because it’s challenging and fun. Even though it’s been around for years it’s still an Amazing game.

Ellys, South Wales

FIFA because I’m quite good at it and it’s just a great game!

Katy, Essex

Sims is my favourite game I’ve been playing it for ages. I had some of Sims 2, all of Sims 3, and now I’m on to Sims 4. I just love it that much.

Paige, Manchester

I think FIFA because it is really fun to play and you can learn new skills from it.

William, Buckinghamshire

My game to make the video game hall of fame is Legend of Zelda Ocarina of Time because instead of following a path you explore a fantasy world.

Daniel

Minecraft and The Sims 3 and 4. I like these games because they’re really addictive and enjoyable.

Caitlin, Pontypool, Wales

My favourite game is not listed but mine is Animal Crossing New Leaf because there’s something new you can do everyday and so much fun I play on it for hours and hours.

Ellie, Pontypridd

I would put Terraria in the hall of game because it is awesome!

What video game would go in your hall of fame?

Into the Minecraft world

Into the Minecraft world

by | May 2, 2015 | Minecraft News | 0 comments

KIDS could get addicted to Minecraft. That is what I have heard. So, I dragged my feet when it came to allowing my daughter to play the game. But eventually, I caved in. This was after weeks that my daughter continuously watched videos on Minecraft, kept singing Minecraft song parodies and constantly begged us to get the game. It was her hard earned prize for improving her reading skill.

At first, I did not understand what the fuss is. I did not like the pixelated squares of everything in Minecraft. And then when you get into the game, there is absolutely no specific objective! I mean, in Plants versus Zombies, you kill all the zombies and Dr. Zomboss. In Clash of Clans, you attack and defend and level up.

In Minecraft, there is no leveling up. Sure there are monsters, but you don’t really have to kill them. And there is even the creative mode where there are no monsters at all.

I was like, “What kind of a game is this? And people get addicted to this?”

But in an effort to understand and guide our five year old in this Minecraft game and hopefully thwart addiction to it, my husband installed the game in each of our iPads. And because we are in the same wifi network, I can create my world or visit the world my daughter created and vice-versa. In effect, as a family, we can share the Minecraft experience.

And that is what we have been doing for several days now. And in the process, it has been an eye opener for me. For starters, I realized that in this game, our roles have been reversed. My daughter is the one guiding us in crafting, telling us the names of the different blocks that you get from mining and warning us of the different powers of the monsters. And she relishes the role! She feels so adult like in being able to discuss the mechanics of the Minecraft world to her parents.

And I was really blown away at how creative she can get in this game. She made waterfalls, cars and multi-level houses for her and her villagers. She created mazes and games for those visiting her world. And with the help of her dad, she made a video of a tour of her world.

And not only that. Through Minecraft, I got a good glimpse of how she understands and processes things. You see, one time she accidentally blew up her massive house and its many villagers and wolves with TNT. She cried and wailed at how sad she was. But later she showed me the grave that she made for those that perished because of her mistake. And she told me she made those graves in order to give her respect to them and so that she will always remember them.

And all these I learned because I played Minecraft with my daughter. My fear that she will be addicted to Minecraft is still there. And I still vigilantly monitor the number of hours that she spends in playing the game.

Some of you might think that it is a game that should not even be played in the first place. Some of you might even think that all types of computer or tablet games should not be played by kids at all.

I would love for my kiddo to play the same outdoor games I played in childhood. But I think that theirs is a slightly different generation in a slightly different world. It would be a futile endeavor to keep her from playing this kind of games. So I will do the next best thing – meet her halfway, play with her, guide her and enjoy the experience along the way.

Cheers to being our kids’ playmate!

Into the Minecraft world

Children dress up in their favorite Minecraft outfits

Children dress up in their favorite Minecraft outfits

by | May 1, 2015 | Minecraft News | 0 comments

B9316812681Z.1_20150427210634_000_GSEAJFQOO.2-0Ten-year-old Jillian and Colby Wagner love Minecraft and are dressed in their favorite Minecraft outfits.

Minecraft is an online video game that allows players to construct three-dimensional virtual worlds out of textured cubes. As they build cities, they combat villains, like the Creeper, an exploding creature whose attack is dreaded by all Minecraft players.

Although their parents, Brad and Jamie Wagner, have to limit the kids’ screen time, they like that Minecraft isn’t your typical video game.

“Minecraft allows the kids to use their imagination with building, and it teaches them survival skills by having them create resources like farms and crops,” Jamie Wagner said.

Jillian and Colby like it because they can play together; collaborating and helping each other build their virtual environments.

“I love Minecraft. It’s my favorite thing to play,” Jillian said.

Jillian and Colby are both wearing Minecraft T-shirts and stocking caps depicting a Minecraft creeper. Both were Christmas gifts from their grandparents. Jillian collects microfigures, and she is holding the Minecraft character Steve on a horse. Colby collects Minecraft Legos and plush toys.

“We wear our shirts to school a lot, but we can’t wear the hat in school, just to school,” Colby said.

Children dress up in their favorite Minecraft outfits