Microsoft is gearing up to celebrate the tenth anniversary of Minecraft's release by hosting an event with Mojang looking at the game's history, present, and future. However, the creator who started it all won't be there, and now Microsoft has offered a reason for his absence.

Minecraft's creator, Markus Persson, aka 'Notch,' won't be making an appearance at the anniversary event, despite its focus on the game's history. According to Variety, Microsoft officially explained it chose not to invite the game's creator, stating that Persson's “comments and opinions do not reflect those of Microsoft or Mojang and are not representative of ‘Minecraft.”

The comments in question are most likely a reference to Notch's presence on Twitter in recent years. Notch has gained notoriety in recent times for the controversial and inflammatory tweets he's posted regarding race and gender, among other topics. After selling Minecraft for $2.5 billion several years ago, Notch has had no further involvement with the game and its development. Microsoft and Mojang ultimately have a game to promote, and with the tenth anniversary on the way, Microsoft likely did not want to stir up any negative responses by associating itself with the game's creator at this time.

Many gamers started to suspect that Microsoft was quietly erasing references to Notch in the game as of last month. Minecraft's title screen splash text messages referencing Notch were removed from the game in March without any official explanation as to why, at least at the time.

Although Notch is no longer an active part of the game or Mojang, the Minecraft empire is continuing on, still strong. The game that started it all has seen significant changes in recent years, and fans have continued to tinker with the game's look, revealing how Minecraft looks with ray-tracing, new textures, and various other cosmetic improvements. Minecraft has also spawned spin-off games and a film that's in the works with a planned release for 2022, showing that Microsoft and Mojang clearly still have faith in the game's future.

Minecraft is available now, and its 10th anniversary event will be held on May 17th.

Source: Variety