Minecraft is one of the most legendary games to be released in recent memory. All with very good reason. Ever since it's release, this video game has become a juggernaut that has virtually appeared everywhere such as video games like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate. Almost always maintaining its relevancy, the game has been loved by virtually everyone all over the world and has gotten more popular than ever thanks to the pandemic. Nonetheless, there could be some things that people may or may not know about the game.
As such, with both obvious and not so obvious facts, here are the 10 facts about the game that virtually everyone should know.
10 Development Was Told Openly
When it comes to video game development, most developers tend to be very quiet with how something is being made. This allows for the developers to give their fans a lot of intrigues and only showing snippets of delicious content whether it's through trailers, concept art, or even developer interviews.
However, one of the interesting facts about Minecraft was that the development was open from the start. In a 2011 article by Gamasutra, the Mojang team were very open to feedback from their fans, "From the start, I was very open about Minecraft's development. I talked about it on forums, primarily those on TIGSource, and told people what I was doing and where I wanted to take the game."
9 Based On Luck
Later on in the Gamasutra article, Markus Persson went on to elaborate on how the success of Minecraft was out of pure luck in his opinion. Claiming how "If you're not making a sequel, it's basically impossible to have any idea how well a game will do, especially if you don't have many years of experience like most publishers." All of this really goes to show how much of a wildcard the project was.
8 There Are Multiple Versions Of The Game, With The Original Being Java
Since the original release of Minecraft, there have been numerous versions that have released. The original version that's been created by Mojangs team was created through Java. However, the one that most people have become accustomed to is called Bedrock. Over time, there have also been versions used for a specific reason whether it's for distinctly different consoles or an education model for schools.
7 Currently, There Are Four Distinct Spin-Offs
Minecraft is an incredibly famous work, so it is only fair that the game is able to get a plethora of different spin-offs. One of the most infamous games that came out of these spin-offs was the late Telltales Minecraft Story Mode. A title that is slowly getting delisted. However, the most recent example that came out was Minecraft Dungeons which is a unique dungeon crawler with four-player co-op being possible. This particular title released in May 2020 and allows players to do things they didn't expect.
6 Minecraft In Its Entirety Was Created In Six Days
One of the most extraordinary things about the original Minecraft was the very short development time of the game. It is known that the game was infamously made in only six days. However, in spite of this, the game itself wasn't considered fully finished until two years later. As a result, there have been numerous updates that fully fleshed out the game. Allowing it to become something that is well-loved today.
5 Creepers Were Originally A Coding Error
Sometimes the best things are created strictly out of accidents. The Creepers are a wonderful example of this, as they were created out of a coding error. Originally, Notch was attempting to create a model for the pig, but when this result came about it was only history from there. It became one of the oldest mobs to ever exist within the world of Minecraft and has become one of the most iconic parts of the game.
4 Minecraft's Worlds Aren't Actually Infinite
Although Minecraft is known for its seemingly infinite worlds, the game world itself isn't actually infinite. This makes sense as there are always limits to the game. However, Persson did state in his blog that the game has limits but they aren't hard limits either.
He explains that the further along the player goes in the game, the buggier the world will start to look overall. Still, it really does show how far the game was willing to go.
3 The Ghast's Sound Design Is Based On His Cat
Funny enough, when it comes to sound effects, sometimes things can be created strictly out of what is found lying around. This is essentially what happened with some of the sound effects within the games. The most notable example is the sound effects of the Ghast, where the sound was taken from the cat of Daniel "C418” Rosenfeld who was the music producer of the game. Which is quite impressive and interesting.
2 The Game Was Inspired By A Variety Of PC Games
Just like many legendary video games, Minecraft didn't come strictly out of imagination. After all the best always get a form of influence somewhere. Minecraft, in particular, was inspired by many PC games that helped shape the game to what it is today, with games such as Dungeon Keeper and RollerCoaster Tycoon being an inspiration.
However, perhaps the most notable example is Infiniminer which Persson himself noted as it captured a particular charm that the team was looking for. The game is a mining game with a similar geometric block building gameplay. Perhaps with this game, is where the seeds were planted and where Minecraft really laid its foundation. Which eventually led to the game influencing others.
1 Minecraft Sometimes Gets Its Own Name Wrong
This is a fun easter egg that can be done if the player has played the game 10,000 times. When this is done, the name on the menu will look like there has been an error that has occurred with the name of the game.
For example, rather than Minecraft, instead, the title of the game is "Minceraft" which is a fun rift to the game. Although this doesn't exactly happen all of the time, it is fun elements like this that really make this game seem like a passion project.