to have no idea what Minecraft is?

[MortifiedAnyFuckerAdams]

Anyone care to explain it to me? It appears on threads loads and seems loved by young and old.

Im intrigued.

[GobbySadcase]

It's a peculiar hell that has taken over DS1's life.

[BrainSurgeon]

YANBU I don't know either but I'll ask DS (aged 5) and let you know

[BoosterBondageSapphire]

DH and DS love Minecraft.

They build we little houses with pits of fire and use diamond swords.

(The annual is £2 in Sainsburys for any mini-minecrafters or Mnminecrafters)

[Dillydollydaydream]

My ds 7 and dd10 love it. I don't get it, it looks all pixelated and crap getting old

[BerstieSpotts]

It's a game where you're deposited in a world made of square cubic blocks. Each block is a different kind of material (sand, dirt, rock etc). You have to "mine" these blocks to get the materials, and then you can use the materials you have gained to make things like tools, building materials, boats, mine carts and track, etc. Some of the blocks are harder to find than others, like certain metals and gems etc, so you have to dig underground to find them.

But basically, it's a giant sandbox game which means the play is open-ended and you can do whatever you want with it. Build stuff to look pretty, build a working farm/mine/etc, play a huge multiplayer game, people have built puzzles to solve, or recreated famous or fictional places.

[HettiePetal]

It's a sort of build your own world game. They use cubes to make buildings & they can explore other places that people have made - and there's combat & collecting stuff...and strange square sheep!

I think that's what it's about. DS loves it.

[MyLeftElbow]

Minecraft is brilliant. It's a sandbox game where you build, explore, mine and fight baddies. There are pretty much no limits to what you can build.

My son and I have a multiplayer server of our own, it's fab! :D

[HettiePetal]

Or....what Bestie said :)

[thebody]

mmmn my 24 and 23 year dss play it in down time.

my teen girls and I have tried it and were bored to extinction.

[BerstieSpotts]

I think it's great! It's one of the better games for children, IMO, because it teaches you about the properties of different materials and how they interact (okay, it's limited, but still introduces them to ideas they wouldn't naturally come across.) It's slower-paced than most other games, they have to be patient as sometimes it takes a long time to find what they want, the music is calming and it has similar benefits to lego etc in terms of creative building (actually, DS gets more out of minecraft currently, because with lego he always wants instructions.) Obviously you don't get the tactile experience of building something, but that's why you don't want them on computer games ALL the time.

It can also be a good introduction to computer coding because there are mods for it, and when you get really engrossed in this kind of game (sandbox games, see also The Sims) there is more incentive to use and search for and possibly even create your own mods, to get it to do that thing that you want it to do but isn't built into the existing game code.

I think the graphics are an excellent reminder that graphics are less important than gameplay!

[thebody]

BerstieSpotts are you my son??

[SilverApples]

Both DS and DD love Minecraft. DS seems to be building a world in collaboration with friends ATM, and his 18th birthday cake was Minecraft-themed and made by his sister. Who is 4 years older.
It's a lasting passion for them!

[AnneOfCleavage]

sovery you have to download it - costs approx. £16 hopwever if you want to use multi player it's another £4 or so but so far we've just done the download and DD age 9 is quite happy with that. She has created several worlds and plays with the one most suited to her mood when she logs on. She facetimes her friends and they play together although they can't see each others unless one tilts their ipod/ipad at the PC to show the other iyswim. Seems we may have to buy the multiplayer one quite soon.

[BerstieSpotts]

no, but same age. DP is mad into it too (more than me, I get bored) Sometimes we have family minecraft days with DP on his computer, DS on mine and me on the laptop.

I think it will last a long time. I'm still playing games which came out 9 or 10 years ago, I think minecraft will go the same way.

[EyeOfNewtBigtoesOfFrog]

It's fantastic. Don't dismiss it as being "just a computer game" that's turning their eyes square - it's so creative and interactive, it's as far as you can possibly get from mind-numbing. My 8yo DS build the most mindboggling creations.

His HT (who is nearing retirement, so I can't expect her to take naturally to all the computer stuff) calls it "Mind Craft" and is convinced it's mainly a series of books. She's very pleased it has taken over the school :)

[ConfusedPixie]

I'm really intrigued by it. It was about when I was younger but was for the super nerdy teens! I may have a go today now that boss has told me to stay at home

[BerstieSpotts]

The mobile (tablet and phone) minecraft works on different servers so you can't do multiplayer between them.

I'm not sure if you can make an iPad minecraft world and an Android minecraft world "talk" to each other or not. DP set it up so that his phone and tablet could play it at the same time. The version on the tablet is also more limited than the computer version.

[EyeOfNewtBigtoesOfFrog]

I've never actually played it, I'm not great at computer games - but I have osmosed vast amounts of the lingo. DS chats to me while he's playing about redstone, creepers, mobs etc and I chat back like I know what I'm talking about.

[nokidshere]

I have children in the house from 3 yrs to 15 yrs boys and girls and they all love it and would spend every waking minute on it if allowed!

[Retropear]

I'm sure my boys play with others on a Kindle Fire from their Ipod Touches but don't quote me.Goes over my head.

[Sunnymeg]

There is a Minecraft app for android, which according to DS is not the full game, but is good enough. I expect there is for iPad as well. The app costs about £5 I think. I tried to download the full game to his tablet, but it wouldn't let me, so I think the app is the way to go. It is a single player game, so you can't hook up online with friends.

[gottasmile]

So could I download it onto the desk top computer? On the tablet it only had the pocket version (which I assume is not the full game).

Ds would like it too, but I have no idea how to get it for him! He uses the desk top we have in the kitchen.

Is there a link anyone could guide me with? [ever so grateful smiley]