As part of its continuous evolution, Minecraft is releasing Minecraft Earth, a shared augmented reality (AR) game that will have kids outside creating their own worlds, collaborating with others and crafting items to contribute to AR worlds.
Minecraft Earth’s Debut
Microsoft and Mojang’s Minecraft Earth joined the ranks of Niantic superstar Pokemon Go and Harry Potter: Wizard’s Unite as they released their own version of augmented reality gaming last week on an early access version. In addition to the US market, the game has been making rounds, opening up availability in nine other countries (it was released first in the UK) on both the iOS and Android marketplace with hopes of being fully polished and finished in the coming months.
The game was announced back in May as a collaboration between Microsoft and Minecraft creator Mojang. At Minecraft 2019 (the conference for fans devoted to all things Minecraft), superfans were ecstatic about their fan-favorite computer game coming into AR fruition.
Some Ins and Outs of Minecraft Earth
Is a game that’s meant to be played outside the best release strategy? Both of Minecraft’s major competitors were released in the summer months when kids (the main demographic) were out of school and more likely to be active outside. Fans will be watching to see if the game makes waves against its competition in the early release stages, or if things will boom for the game later with the arrival of warmer months.
Minecraft Earth appears to be targeting their current users. Gamers will need to have an already established Microsoft or Xbox Live account to set things up after you download the game from the app store of their choosing.
The game itself seems to mirror its competition. Gamers arrive in a digital world and are able to tap onto things, interact and connect. Users will be able to change character skins (appearance options) just as they do in other games. Skins aren’t based on character level and are customizable, however early users are saying it’s easier for them to do so on mobile.
From here, gamers go out and forage items to build new worlds. Adventures ensue requiring items to be collected, built, or purchased with real money.
Thumbs Up Components
Minecraft Earth has a couple of big pluses going for them. The user doesn’t face limitations to the number of items they can carry, unlike their competition. Users can also play the game from home (still on their mobile) to can create build plates, which help players make their own designs.
Both Pokemon Go and Harry Potter have had user complaints about fewer available game options in suburban or rural spaces, given the need for location centers necessary for gameplay and progression found in games like Pokemon’s PokeStops and Gyms. Hopes are Minecraft’s differences with allow users to progress in building worlds, potentially alleviating some of these frustrations.
Whether or not Minecraft Earth will be as successful or popular as its competition is something the game world will be gauging. In the meantime, check out Minecraft Earth’s trailer below: