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Minecraft is so open-ended that it can be molded into almost any genre. But the way I play fits entirely within this. I play in survival mode mostly to make th

Minecraft is so open-ended that it can be molded into almost any genre. But the way I play fits entirely within this. I play in survival mode mostly to make the world feel more grounded, but I sleep every night and rarely explore caverns. The game is mostly me building living spaces, mining for supplies, mapping the world, and collecting items. It's really satisfying.

danbolt 7y ago
I wish more AAA games industry designers recognized this about a lot of players.
- hinkley 7y ago
  My read is that he's also treating this as an exploration game, and that at least has some traction in AAA games. I mean people are still playing Skyrim for Pete's sake.
  - munificent 7y ago
    It's only about 10% exploration for me. I rarely venture anywhere without a map. I have a very bad sense of direction in real life, and that applies to 3D games as well. I don't know if you've ever been lost before, like really lost lost. It is a panic-inducing experience. Most 3D games trigger that same sensation in me and are just totally unfun to play. When I play Minecraft, I obsessively map the area, and I keep a textfile with coordinates of interesting places I find. Even so, I still spend like 90% of my time right around my main building or in the mine below it.
    - mFixman 7y ago
      I used to play Minecraft when it was released in ~2010, before there were maps or beds. I remember building pillars in my constructions and other interesting places so I would be able to spot them from afar. It felt like a nice way to not get lost while still feeling like part of the game.
  - danbolt 7y ago
    My big takeaway is for game developers (myself included) to expand (but also be critical of!) what "play" looks like for video games.
  - hnzix 7y ago
    I've replayed Skyrim on PS3, PS4 and now Switch and I'm still finding corners of the world that I missed (I try not to fast travel now).
hadem 7y ago
Out of curiosity, what do you mean by "mapping the world"? I haven't played Minecraft in a very long time, but I thought there was a built in map of some sort? I'd like to hear more as it sounds like we have similar play styles!
- drdeca 7y ago
  There is a map item you can make which adds areas to it when you are holding it and in those areas, which depicts other areas as black. Not sure if filling out these maps is what they meant.
- munificent 7y ago
  There are map items, but you have to carry them to the region in order for them to get filled in.
filoleg 7y ago
>I play in survival mode mostly to make the world feel more grounded, but I sleep every night and rarely explore caverns. I feel like that's what makes it feel so satisfying, engaging, and "real". You sleep every night and do only the "peaceful" world-building kind of things. But even when you sleep, you know there is still a whole world of caverns and action out there happening, even as you are ignoring it, that you can glimpse into and participate in whenever you want. Which is what makes it really engaging and believable, as the world goes on even without your participation. Imo this is the same effect that makes some movie or book universes feel more "real" (but is achieved in different ways than with videogames, due to the medium itself). Their universes are built in such a way, it makes you believe that the world out there is still going on, even after you turn the TV off or close the book.
arsome 7y ago
It's interesting, for me minecraft is one of the few games that gives me a feeling of intensity, I go spelunking all night because I can't resist the temptation of more diamonds though, the punishment for death is fair but harsh enough to make it feel scary, even playing FPSes, MMOs, etc I don't get that feeling of intensity from anything except Minecraft and PUBG. I keep telling myself I'm doing it all so I can build something really great... but I never build that thing. I think what makes minecraft great is that you can switch between spelunking, combat, farming and building so seamlessly and they all integrate with eachother well so when you get sick of one you just pick up the next.
- munificent 7y ago
  Another genre you might like is roguelikes. Classic roguelikes have permadeath where if you die, you lose that character forever. In a role-playing game where you have invested dozens of hours in a character and may have gotten very lucky with some incredibly rare treasure, it can be a really intense feeling to be in an epic battle with losing all of that on the line. I've had more pulse pounding game intensity in a turn-based roguelike with ASCII graphics than in any other game I've ever played.
  - arsome 7y ago
    I find death in roguelikes too punishing and unfair, it diminishes that effect for me greatly. I'll never be able to feel intensity for it because I don't feel like I ever manage to accomplish anything worth saving before I die in them so I just run headlong into combat with whatever garbage I have, die and quit out. I'm yet to find a roguelike where I can feel like I made serious progress without dumping many hours into learning all the mechanics. It's a fairly narrow window of punishing but fair that allows me to feel any intensity at all from games, most I just feel are too easy or too hard to produce it. I can enjoy the crap out of easy ones, just not for the intensity, but hard ones like roguelikes I just give up on quickly. Dark Souls seems much less punishing to me than most roguelikes in this sense.

danbolt 7y ago

I wish more AAA games industry designers recognized this about a lot of players.

hinkley 7y ago
My read is that he's also treating this as an exploration game, and that at least has some traction in AAA games. I mean people are still playing Skyrim for Pete's sake.
- munificent 7y ago
  It's only about 10% exploration for me. I rarely venture anywhere without a map. I have a very bad sense of direction in real life, and that applies to 3D games as well. I don't know if you've ever been lost before, like really lost lost. It is a panic-inducing experience. Most 3D games trigger that same sensation in me and are just totally unfun to play. When I play Minecraft, I obsessively map the area, and I keep a textfile with coordinates of interesting places I find. Even so, I still spend like 90% of my time right around my main building or in the mine below it.
  - mFixman 7y ago
    I used to play Minecraft when it was released in ~2010, before there were maps or beds. I remember building pillars in my constructions and other interesting places so I would be able to spot them from afar. It felt like a nice way to not get lost while still feeling like part of the game.
- danbolt 7y ago
  My big takeaway is for game developers (myself included) to expand (but also be critical of!) what "play" looks like for video games.
- hnzix 7y ago
  I've replayed Skyrim on PS3, PS4 and now Switch and I'm still finding corners of the world that I missed (I try not to fast travel now).

hadem 7y ago

Out of curiosity, what do you mean by "mapping the world"? I haven't played Minecraft in a very long time, but I thought there was a built in map of some sort? I'd like to hear more as it sounds like we have similar play styles!

drdeca 7y ago
There is a map item you can make which adds areas to it when you are holding it and in those areas, which depicts other areas as black. Not sure if filling out these maps is what they meant.
munificent 7y ago
There are map items, but you have to carry them to the region in order for them to get filled in.

filoleg 7y ago

>I play in survival mode mostly to make the world feel more grounded, but I sleep every night and rarely explore caverns. I feel like that's what makes it feel so satisfying, engaging, and "real". You sleep every night and do only the "peaceful" world-building kind of things. But even when you sleep, you know there is still a whole world of caverns and action out there happening, even as you are ignoring it, that you can glimpse into and participate in whenever you want. Which is what makes it really engaging and believable, as the world goes on even without your participation. Imo this is the same effect that makes some movie or book universes feel more "real" (but is achieved in different ways than with videogames, due to the medium itself). Their universes are built in such a way, it makes you believe that the world out there is still going on, even after you turn the TV off or close the book.

arsome 7y ago

It's interesting, for me minecraft is one of the few games that gives me a feeling of intensity, I go spelunking all night because I can't resist the temptation of more diamonds though, the punishment for death is fair but harsh enough to make it feel scary, even playing FPSes, MMOs, etc I don't get that feeling of intensity from anything except Minecraft and PUBG. I keep telling myself I'm doing it all so I can build something really great... but I never build that thing. I think what makes minecraft great is that you can switch between spelunking, combat, farming and building so seamlessly and they all integrate with eachother well so when you get sick of one you just pick up the next.

munificent 7y ago
Another genre you might like is roguelikes. Classic roguelikes have permadeath where if you die, you lose that character forever. In a role-playing game where you have invested dozens of hours in a character and may have gotten very lucky with some incredibly rare treasure, it can be a really intense feeling to be in an epic battle with losing all of that on the line. I've had more pulse pounding game intensity in a turn-based roguelike with ASCII graphics than in any other game I've ever played.
- arsome 7y ago
  I find death in roguelikes too punishing and unfair, it diminishes that effect for me greatly. I'll never be able to feel intensity for it because I don't feel like I ever manage to accomplish anything worth saving before I die in them so I just run headlong into combat with whatever garbage I have, die and quit out. I'm yet to find a roguelike where I can feel like I made serious progress without dumping many hours into learning all the mechanics. It's a fairly narrow window of punishing but fair that allows me to feel any intensity at all from games, most I just feel are too easy or too hard to produce it. I can enjoy the crap out of easy ones, just not for the intensity, but hard ones like roguelikes I just give up on quickly. Dark Souls seems much less punishing to me than most roguelikes in this sense.