MINECRAFT – INSTITUTIONS AND AUDIENCES
HOW IS MINECRAFT DIFFERENT TO OTHER VIDEO
GAMES?
Minecraft is a sandbox RPG video game, very
similar to the physical toy, Lego, but with the ability to explore and meet
friends in, whilst still adhering to physical rules. The demographic for it is
children to teens between the ages of 6 – 16, however, the game is so popular
and easy to use that many other ages have found they are able to play it as any character. Some parents
have found it is a great way to be able to communicate with their children,
inside and outside of the video game; “he would call back home and speak to his
young son, but he didn’t really get his full attention for more than five
minutes before the boy ran off to do something else. But when they were playing
Minecraft, he could sit for hours, and they spent that time together.” Having,
in this case, parents able to connect with their children through playing Minecraft
is a really influential thing for the video game industry as it shows how these
games can be suiting for not only a range of age groups, but also as a
communication method. The father was also able to do this as Minecraft is on a digitally
convergent console, meaning it not only allows single player gameplay, but it
also includes multi-player with the ability to communicate in a number of ways,
for example, through audio and direct messaging.
Minecraft has the ability to relax and excite the
user through different options on intensities of game modes and difficulties, the
soundtrack is also soothing for the user, but it also includes sound effects relating
to where you are and what you’re doing; for example, chickens in a field, if ‘creepers’
are coming, when putting blocks down etc. which can again, effect how the user
feels when playing.
Many people have found that this game is
especially good for people with autism (especially those who respond well to ‘it’s
simple visuals, open design and logical, interlocking systems’), as it allows
them to experiment with their own creativity without being told it’s wrong,
this is due to the game not having a story or mission, instead it is “just you
and a world of possibilities.” As well as being a safe space for them to escape
to. Minecraft has also lead children who are on the spectrum to communicate easier
due to a raise in confidence, how much they enjoy it, as well as the ability
they have to express their ideas much easier than perhaps other methods, many
describe it as ‘a revelation’.
“with kids,
they feel it’s their game, not ours. They make up their own rules, they make up
their own structures and how to interact with others. They have this sense of
ownership.” Says Bergensten, a worker for Mojang.
Some are also more likely to respond to it than
painting/drawing/writing as they find they have more patience and are able to
see an end product they like. In this age, so many children are introduced to
technology early on, this allows Minecraft to be used very early on in
childhood. Although Minecraft doesn’t have different levels, users are still
able to find more creative and challenging ways to create things. The game also
allows children with learning difficulties, such as dyslexia, to play easily
due to the easily understandable layout and systems.
Minecraft also teaches users a selection of
skills, from basic to more in depth. Basic skills include building structures
and learning how to make simple things such as beds out of materials they get
throughout. However, the fact that Minecraft also has the ability to encourage
users to learn how to do more complex things, such as code, is also very useful
and something which many other video games are unable to do. Minecraft can also
be used in schools with Minecraft: Pi Edition, which can be set up in
classrooms. It teaches children about subjects such as geography, agriculture,
architecture and physics.
HOW AND WHY WAS ITS APPEAL SO EFFECTIVELY
SPREAD WITHOUT PROFESSIONAL PROMOTION?
The very popular video game has been downloaded
more than 100 million times on PCs, consoles and smartphones since its launch
in 2009, this is due to how well known it is. However, the game started off
very small and only known within gamer communities. Due to the game’s awkward, blocky aesthetic as well as being so
similar to well-known childhood games, such as Lego, whilst also allowing more
creativity, many engaged with it easily. Because of this, there have been a numerous
amount of ‘copycats, all looking to expand on what the game offers, hoping to
attract a fraction of its gigantic audience’ Other creators would find this
annoying and try to disable these as soon as possible, however, Mojang embraced
these versions as they knew nothing would come close to the purity and texture
of their own, describing theirs as “kind of cartoony because of the low
resolution, the low fidelity. But a benefit of that is it allows you to fill
the world in with your own imagination.” Through embracing these hackers and
hobbyists, it increased their popularity as it spread the game to even more people.
Even now, there are still people, who often refer to themselves as ‘modders’,
who modify (mod) the game in order to create different designs, texture maps, items, creatures and even new stories
and adventures, making them available online and able to be compatible to the
actual, original Minecraft game. These mods are favoured by the community and
creators as they know it engages and brings their game to even more people.
Michael Stoyke has even stated that “It’s a game where we don’t stop you – you
can do whatever you want. A big publisher would never have done that.”
A well-known worker for Mojang, Markus “Junkboy” Toivonen, who works in the game’s
merchandising, stated that “When I came on board at Mojang I could see, like, a
billion things I would improve about Minecraft,” he says. “But over time I’ve
grown to respect the naive qualities of the visuals. The communication is so
straightforward and simple, and I now realise that’s part of the appeal. If
someone else had become involved early on and made it pretty, I honestly don’t
think it would have been as successful.”
HOW MIGHT THE MICROSOFT TAKEOVER BE RECEIVED
BY AUDIENCES?
Many gamers
know of Microsoft’s $2.5 billion purchase of Mojang and Minecraft in November 2014, making Mojang,
a previously independent company, owned by Microsoft, a very large brand. Markus
“Notch” Persson, the original creator of Minecraft, was aware that “some
[gamers] would be angry, others would feel abandoned” This was due to the
company, Mojang, being the best of the independent games scene and known as one
where making money wasn’t the goal, instead that making games for fun was.
Both users
and employees of Mojang were disappointed by this decision, and many felt very
betrayed, and as if they’d been lied to as many thought
that Microsoft only bought Mojang because it was up for sale. Markus was fully aware of
this and how he would be labelled as a sell-out and as someone who had
abandoned his ideals in exchange for money, after selling the company and game
to a well-known brand. To try to avoid judgement by colleagues, he made sure all employees were guaranteed their monthly wages for two full years,
whatever happened. Due to the
stress, Markus had apparently even considered disconnecting from the internet
in order to escape and take a break from the expected online abuse.
Although the
takeover was a hugely controversial issue with the gaming community, many kept
on playing, as well as the new people who also joined the gaming phenomenon.
New features are also added, such as new materials, animals and monsters; these
also has a factor to the increase in how many people play it.
TO WHAT EXTENT DO YOU THINK THAT THE
MICROSOFT TAKEOVER INHIBITS THE “BRAND”?
Markus was said to have demanded from the start
of his deal with Microsoft to be able to cut all ties to Mojang as soon as it was
finalized. This added to the change in atmosphere and increased distance
between the staff at Mojang and the management, with many no longer regarding
Markus, Carl, and Jakob as their equals.
According to people who were at the meeting when discussing
whether or not Microsoft should buy Mojang, Matt Booty (from Microsoft)
misspoke several times when discussing the company’s future, and referred to Mojang
simply as Minecraft, then would
quickly correct himself afterwards. This made Microsoft’s reason for wanting
Mojang obvious, they were interested in Minecraft alone, but the only way they
could get to it was through acquiring Mojang too.
I personally feel as if the ‘brand’ of Mojang has
permanently disappeared. I agree with the idea that Microsoft only bought the
company in order to get to the extremely popular videogame, Minecraft. The previous
comfortable and friendly association that Mojang had, with a relatively high
rate of equality in the workplace disappeared with the Microsoft takeover.
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