Minecraft is unifying — and becoming what Microsoft claims to be first ever truly cross-platform video game.
The block-based behemoth, developed by Mojang and recently bought by Microsoft, has 55 million monthly players across a range of platforms, including PC, Nintendo Switch and Xbox. Now, the game is expanding to join these platform players together.
With the Better Together update, Summer 2017 will see a unification of the Minecraft experience, with a new cross-platform multiplayer system and saved data across Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, mobile and Windows 10 PC. Microsoft claims this is the first true cross-platform, cross-console multiplayer game, with saved data, purchased content and world progress that transfers from the old version of Minecraft to the new. In short, this means players will all be able to interact on the same online system — and take their progress with them on the move.
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Jesse Merriam, Minecraft's executive producer, told WIRED that the update will "bring all players together" with "seamless switching of input methods and controllers".
This overcomes the technical hurdles to completely cross-platform games, creating the first platform to unite all players over one system. However, it has not yet been confirmed as to when PlayStation players will join this update. Sony's PS4 is a major rival to Microsoft's own Xbox One.
Aubrey Norris, Minecraft's senior global communications manager, told WIRED that the game hopes to "unite as many platforms as possible, but cannot confirm Sony's participation at this time."
The Better Together update is vast — including a new 'Infinite Worlds' expansion. This gives the player an unlimited amount of land to explore in the game; a significant upgrade from the current 3x3 mile limit. In order to unite these platforms, Better Together is accompanied by a massive server update to accommodate more multiplayer experiences.
Servers such as Lifeboat, one of the biggest mobile-based Minecraft servers, will now act as social meeting places for players on all platforms, with collections of community mini-games. These servers can be accessed by anyone from within the same game session. You can now go from iPad to playing on Xbox, while keeping your game history and server status. These in-game servers are already widely-used but there will now be official support, with new partnerships between Minecraft and its creators • initial partners include Lifeboat, InPvP, Mineplex and CubeCraft.
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Since its initial release in 2009, Minecraft has created possibilities for entrepreneurship. The new vision for the Better Together update is to expand Minecraft to make it easier for creators to use Minecraft's design features.
Merriam tells WIRED that this will transform Minecraft from "a game into a creative platform" with "more opportunities for entrepreneurship."
This focus on entrepreneurship can be seen in the Better Together upgrade of the Minecraft Marketplace feature. Players can now create and share their content directly within the game interface and across multiple servers.
Updates to the Java version of Minecraft will now also be found on Bedrock. These include new MODS, more fossils to excavate, fireworks and banners. The previous format for crafting on Java has been reconsidered to make this easier for platforms — you can now experiment to learn recipes, as well as quickly access these through shortcuts once you've learnt them.
The Better Together update is being described by Minecraft representatives as the first truly "future-facing platform". With the merging of different platform players arriving this Summer, it will mark a new approach to gaming — one that isn't hindered by console, but instead expands across the whole width and breadth of online servers.
This article was originally published by WIRED UK
