| Minecraft | |
|---|---|
| Completionist Info | |
 | |
| Episode Number | 150 |
| Date Released | November 6th, 2015 |
| Completionist Rating | Fini-Play It! |
| Link | Minecraft |
Minecraft is a sandboxindependent video gameoriginally created by Swedish programmerMarkus "Notch" Perssonand later developed and published by the Swedish companyMojang. The creative and building aspects ofMinecraft enable players to build constructions out of textured cubes in a 3D procedurally generated world. Other activities in the game include exploration, resource gathering, crafting, and combat. Multiple gameplay modes are available, including survival modewhere the player must acquire resources to build the world and maintain health, acreative mode where players have unlimited resources to build with and the ability to fly, an adventure mode where players play custom mapscreated by other players and a spectator mode. The PC version of the game is renowned for its third-party mods, which add various new items, characters and quests to the game.
The alpha version was publicly released for PC on May 17, 2009, and after gradual updates, the full version was released on November 18, 2011. A version for Android was released a month earlier on October 7, and an iOS version was released on November 17, 2011. The game was released on the Xbox 360 as an Xbox Live Arcade game on May 9, 2012; on the PlayStation 3 on December 17, 2013; on the PlayStation 4on September 4, 2014; on the Xbox One the next day; and on thePlayStation Vita on October 14, 2014. On December 10, 2014, aWindows Phone version was released. All versions of Minecraft receive periodic updates, with the console editions being co-developed by 4J Studios.
Minecraft received five awards during the 2011 Game Developers Conference. Of the Game Developers Choice Awards, it won the Innovation Award, Best Downloadable Game Award, and Best Debut Game Award; from the Independent Games Festival, it won the Audience Award and the Seumas McNally Grand Prize. In 2012,Minecraft was awarded a Golden Joystick Award in the category Best Downloadable Game. As of June 2015, over 70 million copies had been sold, including 20 million between the Xbox 360 and Xbox One and 20 million on PC, making it the best-selling PC game to date and the third best-selling video game of all time. On September 15, 2014,Microsoft announced a deal to buy Mojang and the ownership of the Minecraft intellectual property for US$2.5 billion; the acquisition was completed on November 6, 2014.
The Completionist[]
Jirard reviewed Minecraft for the 150th episode of The Completionist.
Jirard notes that while Minecraft completely lacks any sort of story, he forgives this due to the nature of the game. Minecraft is meant to have players craft their own adventure, without any narrative to guide them outside of killing the Ender Dragon.
Jirard finds the game’s presentation, unique, and unmistakable. He likens it to Legos. Though he finds the visuals outdated, he realizes this was intended, and its style is needed to make the gameplay what it is. He also praises the size of the world and variation in environments. The sound design is also praised due to its ambience.
Jirard finds the basic gameplay addictive, though he notes the complexities in crafting certain things. He also brings up Survival mode, which he appreciates for keeping the game interesting. He finds the community experience to be the most fulfilling aspect that the game offers.
Jirard looks at the achivements, which help guide the player what to do.
Jirard’s only gripe with the game is the lack of in-game instructions.
Trivia[]
- Jirard brings up his experiences with Peanut Butter Gamer’s Minecraft Hardcore series, in which he was the first to die due to being away from the game.
- Jirard completed the game on build 1.8.8.
- Jirard hosted a Did You Know? Gaming video on Minecraft to coincide with this episode.
- Coincidentally, the episode was released exactly one year after Microsoft's acquisition of the IP.