Minecraft is the best-selling video of all time, having sold even more copies than Super Mario Bros., Pac-Man, Tetris, Animal Crossing: New Horizons, and The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim combined.
Mojang, the company behind Minecraft, has become an industry titan with a single title and has no intention of ending their undivided support for the game.
This game has only become more popular since its release in 2009.
Why Is Minecraft So Popular? (Top 10 Reasons)
Fans of Minecraft have plenty of positive things to say about the game, with many players having enjoyed the game for years or even over a decade.
Just like the player base, Minecraft has become a vastly different experience from what it originally was in the best way possible.
Minecraft is often credited for the popularization of sandbox games, which are video games where the player can change the world around them according to their creative choices.
This title is also responsible for popularizing the survival genre, which is where players must gather resources to eat and build tools or shelters.
Minecraft is best known for its blocky and simplistic art style, which has become clearer and more vibrant as the game has aged.
The Mojang team clearly has a lot of passion for this project and is always excited to show the community the new content that they add to the game.
That same passion is shared throughout the community, from the Minecraft YouTubers of the world to those who create their own texture packs and other modifications.
Minecraft may be a 13-year-old game, but the fan base only continues to grow.
1. New Adventure With Each New Save File
Minecraft is able to maintain a feeling of freshness by allowing the player to create new save files, called worlds, whenever they feel like they need a change.
Each world is randomly generated, which means that each play session is going to feel different from the last.
The way a world is formed is based on a random 64-bit number called a Seed.
If the player wants to play on a fresh version of the world, they can use the same Seed to get the same world normally.
Seeds tend to change when there is a new update, especially if the update pertains to world generation.
The Seed will use noise functions, values that are randomized by considering nearby values, which will determine everything from the placement of biomes to terrain height.
By ensuring that each chunk and block is randomized, players are unable to guess where different biomes or materials may be located.
The noise functions now ensure that the biome locations make sense, meaning you won’t likely see the tundra next to the desert.
Players can experience a variety of playstyles thanks to the random world generation.
Even different spawn locations help vary what a player needs to do to survive or how they’ll need to design their builds based on the world around them.
Players are free to start a new save file because one can have many.
Some players like to have worlds that are for multiple players and worlds that are just for them.
You can have as many worlds as your system has storage for, which varies depending on the type of console and the age of that system.
Worlds that haven’t been used in a long time will have their screenshot grayed out.
2. Multiple Ways To Play
There are three main game modes in Minecraft: Creative, Survival, and Adventure.
Since players get to decide what type of game they want to play, it helps keep the game interesting and allows players of all skill levels to enjoy the world of Minecraft.
The creative mode was one of the original modes that Minecraft came with.
In this mode, you are given unlimited access to all the types of blocks, resources, and mobs that the game has to offer.
Players in this mode are unable to take damage and can float around the world as they please.
Most players use this mode to create elaborate builds, like castles or even recreations of real-life locations.
The second game mode is Survival, which takes away the player’s ability to float freely and gives them a health and hunger bar.
In this mode, tools help improve destruction speed and allow the player to collect certain materials.
Players will have to find and gather the materials they need to create buildings, tools, or even potions.
Since the only objective of this version is to stay alive, players can give themselves their own goals.
While most people start by finding or building shelter, other players may want to go straight into caves to find rare materials or hidden ruins filled with treasures.
Not only does the player need to keep their character healthy and fed, but they will also need to defend against all the malicious mobs that spawn at night like creepers, zombies, skeletons, and phantoms.
The final gameplay mode is Adventure, which is normally story-based or is meant to show what can be built in Minecraft.
In this mode, the player is only able to interact with certain objects and isn’t able to destroy any blocks.
3. New Content Added Constantly
Minecraft is an extremely influential game and has changed the way that game developers view their older games.
The gaming trend of adding new content to video games to extend their lifespan was pioneered by Mojang with Minecraft.
When Minecraft was first released to the public, there were only 36 blocks, and the rarest material you could find was gold.
Your options for blocks included 16 different wool types, glass, gold, stone, sponge, sand, cobblestone, dirt, gravel, leaves, log, planks, grass, coal ore, iron ore, gold ore, shrub, red flower, yellow flower, red mushroom, and brown mushroom.
There are now more than 150 different blocks, and new block types are being added every few weeks.
Minecraft also has a total of 78 different mobs that you’ll see across Java Edition and Bedrock Edition.
Like blocks, Mojang likes to frequently add new mobs to help diversify the world of Minecraft.
Some of the newest mobs include goats, axolotls, and glowing squids.
Soon, Mojang will also be adding tadpoles, frogs, wardens, and allay.
These mobs were voted on by fans and Mojang staff members to be added to the game during their annual mob vote.
The most recent mob vote had the community voting between two friendly mobs that the player would be able to find and build.
The resource-gathering allay had beaten out the button-pressing copper golem and the darkness-seeking glare.
4. Strong Sense Of Community Among Fan Base
Mojang has managed to create not only a team of game developers that are passionate about their game but also a community that shares that love of Minecraft.
As a member of the Minecraft fan base, there are plenty of opportunities to influence the future of the game.
One of the most popular ways that Mojang allows the community to come together is their annual convention called MineCon.
MineCon has been held nearly every year since 2010 and is something that fans eagerly await.
Not only is MineCon an opportunity to meet other people from the fan base, but it is also an excellent place to find exclusive Minecraft merchandise and meet some of the biggest names in the community, from YouTubers and streamers to members of the development team.
You don’t have to plan on going to MineCon to be excited for the event because Mojang likes to present the annual mob vote at the convention and allow everyone to vote for the mobs online.
They also like to use these conventions to excite players about upcoming updates.
To incorporate all of the online and in-person events that Mojang holds during the convention, they have taken to calling the event the Minecraft Festival.
However, fans still refer to it by its original name.
5. Available On Multiple Platforms
Part of the reason that Minecraft has been able to sell so many copies is that it can be played on a multitude of platforms.
Consoles and previously Pocket edition players will be playing Bedrock Edition and PC players get to have their choice of Java or Bedrock edition.
You can play Minecraft on smartphones, multiple generations of Xbox, multiple generations of Playstation, the Wii U, the Nintendo 3DS, and the Nintendo Switch.
Considering the variety of gamers that the game has always pulled in, Minecraft was one of the video games that popularized cross-platform multiplayer.
This allows players to be able to play with friends online when they may not be able to on other games.
It also makes it easier for players to convince their friends to purchase the game, so they can play together.
When looking to join a game with another player, you will want to ensure that you are both playing the same version of the game.
Java players can’t play on a Bedrock game and Bedrock players can’t play on a Java game.
Since Minecraft is a Microsoft title, you will also need to create a Microsoft account to play online.
You don’t need an Xbox to create or use a Microsoft account.
When starting a world that you intend to be multiplayer, allow the player with the strongest system to create the world.
The native console that is running the world will take the heaviest load and won’t load properly if it gets overwhelmed.
6. Easy To Learn, Hard To Master
Minecraft is easy enough for a young child to sit down and play, but it is intricate enough to be challenging for older players who seek out the challenge.
You can even eliminate all challenges by having new players start in a creative world.
It also takes a lot of practice to make more detailed builds, like real-life replications or creating pixel art from the different colors blocks.
There are even intricate ways of doing simple tasks like farming, gathering wood, or traversing the land.
Players will find that entering the Nether or the End will also offer another level of difficulty.
Both locations are filled with powerful enemies and have only small amounts of food available, so players must prepare accordingly or use what they have sparingly.
One of the most difficult skills to master is redstone mechanics.
Redstone is a material that allows players to electrically charge a variety of machines like light switches, droppers, or dispensers.
Players must be able to complete circuits in order to continually power their machines.
Objects such as redstone torches and redstone repeaters added another level of difficulty to the creation of complex redstone machines.
Some players have even managed to create flying structures, mass farming machines, or even automatic sorting systems.
Redstone masters are able to clear out entire mountains through the use of terrain-flattening devices.
7. Community-Made Content Supported By Mojang
While some gaming companies prefer that fans leave game development up to the company, Mojang loves to see the game modification community flourish and loves to allow individual modders to earn money from their creations.
All game modifications must be purchased from the market tab in the Bedrock edition.
Although it forces the Bedrock community to have to pay for access to the modifications, it also allows modders to make a career out of what they love doing most.
The market tab also has skins and accessories made by the community available for purchase.
However, Java players get all the same community-added features for free and have access to even more modifications than Bedrock players.
However, PC players of both Bedrock and Java versions are able to completely change the look of their game through the use of lighting modifications.
One of the best-known graphic modifications is Minecraft RTX, which was developed by Nvidia.
If you’ve ever seen a Minecraft video where the water looks realistic or glass is smooth, the creator of that video is most likely using this game modification.
Mojang acknowledges that game modifications are an affordable way for them to keep Minecraft fresh without adding any more to their staff’s workload.
8. Allows Players To Express Creativity
Minecraft is an excellent way to express your creativity, whether you’re designing the interior of a home or making pixel art.
This is a game where you can live on top of a giant mushroom in a dark oak forest or live on the side of a mountain.
You can customize everything from the way your character looks to the dimension that you live in.
Players are even able to change the color of their sheep or the color of their dog’s collar.
This level of creative freedom has inspired members of the fan base to become architects, interior designers, city planners, or even farmers.
Minecraft is often seen as the digital version of Lego building sets.
Plenty of people who don’t normally see themselves as creative individuals can create beautiful works of art thanks to the simple toolset that Minecraft provides.
While it is easy to see master builders as just people playing a video game, there is an artistic value to understanding how to make good designs, adding proper detail, or creating the appearance of different shapes that don’t appear natively in Minecraft.
The creations that players make in Minecraft are digital 3-D models that often have highly detailed interiors.
Some players build entire worlds based around themes such as Medieval, underwater, fantasy, or even recreate places from movies or video games.
9. Can Be Used For Educational Purposes
Minecraft is used in educational settings to teach children the skills they’ll need in the 21st century when they begin to look for their jobs.
Some of the skills that are focused on during Minecraft educational courses include creativity, collaboration, problem-solving, and computational thinking skills.
Some of the most important soft skills to employers include productive communication, teamwork, self-motivation, and time management.
71% of teachers who have begun using Minecraft for educational purposes have an increase in computational thinking skills.
Minecraft also teaches students skills such as reading, sequencing, and mathematical reasoning.
Some of the topics that can be included in a Minecraft course are sustainability and recycling, writing and language arts, historical events and geography, art and design, space exploration and the planetary system, energy transference, the effect of forces, units of measurement, energy systems, and food production, coding fundamentals, and even Python.
Educational Minecraft has proven to be popular among parents who want to interest their children in a variety of STEM careers and is often used in the homeschooling community.
Minecraft is an excellent way of teaching children that learning can be fun.
Some companies in the business world, including Pepsico, have even started to use Minecraft as a virtual training tool for adults after discovering other virtual platforms to be ineffective.
10. Diverse Target Audience
Mojang prides itself on the fact that its fan base includes the youngest generations and veteran players who have been enjoying the world of Minecraft for over a decade.
Although a majority of the merchandise may be geared towards their younger audience, Mojang has never been one to shy away from the work their older creators have done.
Much like Nintendo, Mojang prides itself on being a family company that has created a game that the entire family can play together.
With the Minecraft fan base getting older, many fans have introduced their younger siblings, nieces and nephews, cousins, and even their own children to the game.
With a single title, Mojang has completely changed the way that games are made and how they’re maintained.
They’ve created a game where longtime gamers and first-time players are both able to thrive.
NEXT: Why Are One-Bedroom Apartments So Expensive? (Top 10 Reasons)
why is minecraft so popular says
Over the next few years, Minecraft will see many changes. Over the last ten years Minecraft has undergone numerous modifications. The game is ever-changing with everyone at Mojang and now Microsoft is constantly working to improve it and make sure that the game remains enjoyable and difficult. You must be watching out for creepers!
Anonymous says
Any cool facts about Minecraft you’d like to share?