Jeb turned out to be a really good game developer, who was very compatible with how I felt Minecraft should be developed.” “I have this tendency of getting bored or frustrated with things after three to five years. “I think I'm more interested in doing new development of new games, rather than maintaining a game,” Notch told PC Gamer. It also marked the end of Notch's lead role on the project, as he handed over the reigns to Jeb, who remains the project lead to this day. Formally leaving its Beta stage at the Las Vegas MineCon convention in November 2011 (and jumping up to double the price of its initial Alpha release) it continued to be the bearer of new features version 1.0 introduced The End, adding a formal ending to the game. The Java edition was not left behind by any means. Minecraft's formula translated perfectly to touch controls Initially an Xbox 360 exclusive title, it was developed out of house by Scottish developers 4J Studios. Minecraft Pocket Edition wasn't quick off the mark – it has consistently lagged behind mainline Minecraft in terms of features since it was revealed – but it brought Minecraft first to Android (specifically the Xperia Play) and then to iOS.įive days after the reveal of Pocket Edition, yet another C++ branch emerged during a presentation at 2011's E3: the console edition. To truly get Minecraft out to the masses, an entirely distinct branch of the game entered development for the rising smartphone market: Minecraft Pocket Edition, now coded in C++. The complex overheads of Java, not really made for games as heavyweight as Minecraft was becoming, were an impediment on absolutely every other platform. Those mods, while unsupported, extended the game often in a very positive way some (including pistons and horses) impressed Notch and Jeb enough to make their way into the game proper. It had already aided in fostering a growing scene of modders tweaking Minecraft to their own ends, and facilitated cross-platform play between PC, Mac and Linux. Notch's original choice of programming language was, while somewhat awkward, perfect for Minecraft's requirements at the time. The creepy lava-filled underworld of The Netherīut, Minecraft had a pretty fundamental problem: Java. This was a hot property, and it was time for it to spread its net even further. Janumarked the milestone of one million Minecraft accounts registered the wave of hype, and Minecraft's core of accessibility and simplicity, saw 10 million accounts registered just 6 months later. "It's a primal urge – to build a goddamn hill fort – in gaming form." Continued success "Minecraft sits among the very best of games, just because you can play so many games inside it," wrote Jaz McDougall. I never meant for it to do either." Markus 'Notch' PerssonĮven with Minecraft still very much in its early stages (although now playable in its own browser-free client) our pals at PC Gamer magazine made Minecraft its game of the year in 2010. "Minecraft certainly became a huge hit, and people are telling me it’s changed games. The duo was soon joined by business developer Daniel 'Kappische' Kaplan, followed by CEO Carl Manneh, hired (on his own advice) from Persson's previous employer jAlbum, artist Markus 'Junkboy' Toivonen, and coder Jens 'Jeb' Bergensten – and as Minecraft's sales continued to expand, the team would continue to grow along with it. Jakob Porser (left) and Markus Persson, in 2010 “If I wait until the game is done, it's never going to be done because I won't have the money to sustain development.” “I thought, if I don't charge I'll never get paid,” Notch later explained in a 2012 PC Gamer interview. Going Alphaĭevelopment quickly moved towards a paid Alpha version, which required a premium account for access. Within two months, the earliest multiplayer tests were underway, and the speed of development picked up even further. Within a month, Minecraft had sand, water, lava, rudimentary dynamic lighting. Players were fascinated by Minecraft's freedom and its creative nature, so Notch quickly went to work on adding new features. It received an immediately positive response. Pulling in character models from an earlier game idea named Zombie Town, he put the first alpha version of the game, now sporting that iconic name, up for test. "The response was very positive," wrote Notch a few months later, "and I was blown away the framerate, and how well it ran in a browser, so I decided to go for it."
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