Notes

Minecraft shouldn't ever Feel Clingy, Mojang Says

Mojang continues to be attentive to the success of other survival games.



Just before the latest Minecraft 1.19 (opens in new tab) update launched I asked Mojang what the future of Minecraft looks like. Game director Agnes Larsson and developer Nir "Ulraf" Vaknin weren't willing to talk about specific features in the next major update. It's not a surprise, they're likely saving that for the next Minecraft Live showcase. Instead, we discussed how they're still learning from other competitors in the crafting industry and how they'd like to "keep the magic of Minecraft" for the next 10 years or more.



When Minecraft's alpha version launched in 2010 it brought crafting and survival on the map. Other crafting games include a thousand later-many also made from voxels-Minecraft remains the gold standard in sandbox creativity. It's not difficult for Mojang to become smug after having worn the crown many years, I can imagine that they would become solitary and source ideas only from its own developers and players.



Both Larsson and Vaknin have said that they don't think of Minecraft any better than the rest. (I would, though. I don't want to sound boastful, but it doesn't hurt. However, they do say that they know what makes Minecraft unique and can therefore keep the uniqueness of Minecraft.



Larsson said it was intrinsic motivation. Larsson called it intrinsic motivation.



Vaknin agreed with the statement that Minecraft's success lies in the fact that it requires players to be self-motivated "A number of games are deviating from that, because many players are looking for more direction, and that's okay."



I've played a variety of crafting games for survival over the years. I was recently drawn to Valheim's viking crafting, which I thoroughly enjoyed for several months. I also enjoyed the session-based survival in Icarus and V Rising's vampire crafting for just a few days. Even Valheim, which I was obsessed with for over 100 hours , and was a part of the lobbying for as our game of the year (opens in new tab) in 2021 isn't keeping me coming back the way Minecraft has.
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Vaknin said he's been keeping up with the competition too. He was also interested in how food and hunger in Valheim work. It made me consider food as an element of my equipment as opposed to being able to ignore food systems or treat all food items as equal-in so many other crafting games, including Minecraft. He states, "I spend time thinking about this and wondering if there are any lessons to be learned from it."



Vaknin stated that V Rising has a very unique goal and boss tracking system. He also spoke about the necessity of tracking bosses on the map to find them. "It brought me back to how you find the End stronghold in Minecraft with the eyes of the ender."



Vaknin hopes Minecraft will not chase its players even though it can learn from Minecraft.



"Minecraft isn't clingy at all," is how he put it later in our chat as he compared it to an old friend who will be there for you even if you choose to leave and come back a few months later.



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Vaknin spoke about a typical experience in the Minecraft community: playing heavily for a period of time many years ago, then returning to the game on a regular basis when the mood strikes. That's how I've treated for years and I'm happy to see it's a habit that Mojang is confident in to cultivate.



"So many games that you play can draw you into a bit too much and then you don't want to see it end. I love that Minecraft does not do that. It's very important to me to preserve that."



Larsson said, "One thing we recently added to our guiding principles is that you play Minecraft because it's what you want to, and not because you feel you have to," Larsson added.



As I begin to look ahead to the announcement of Minecraft version 1.20 It's nice to know that the folks in charge are confident enough to keep up with all the most recent trends in survival and crafting without necessarily chasing them.


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