Understanding the Minecraft Metaverse

Gaming is such a multi-faceted form of media these days. What was once merely pixels on a screen can now be manipulated and designed to offer comprehensive experiences that provide something similar to a second life. A means of existing within a digital space. This state of being has a term and is often referred to as a metaverse. Many games offer this in one way or another.

However, certain sandbox games offer a much more realistic and well-rounded experience. Minecraft is one such game and, in this article, we aim to explain just why that is and how you can get involved.

What is Minecraft?

Firstly, you may be wondering what Minecraft actually is. Well, this game, in as few words as possible, is like digital Lego with infinite possibilities.

The developers Mojang created this game as a browser extension back in the mid-2000’s offering fans a means of building whatever they could imagine with 3D cubes within an infinite digital space.

Plus, the game included a survival option and tasked players with feeding themselves, gathering resources,m and surviving the onslaught of deadly creatures within the game.

However, from these humble beginnings, the game has grown exponentially, with thousands of huge, highly populated servers, offering lots of mini-games to peruse, building projects to partake in, and literally colonies of people each with their own roles within their tribe to build toward a monumental goal. All of this from a concept that spans from building blocks, who would have thought?

How is Minecraft a Metaverse?

Well, many different criteria constitute a metaverse.

The first being that one must be able to exist within the virtual universe and experience an existence digitally much as they can in reality.

Well, Minecraft manages to do this through several mediums. Firstly, the player will have a role within the metaverse depending on the server and the virtual world they assign themselves to.

Minecraft has the scope to allow anyone to create their own metaverse. This is because the game is so open-ended and customisable. Meaning that if you and your friends create a server and your goal is to survive and create a new world from the server seed, you essentially have your own metaverse.

Now granted there are more established servers to join but the freedom is there for all. Any server will give you the freedom to create a world of your own vision, build settlements, create a hierarchy, assign roles to players, communicate and socialise with others and survive according to the mechanics of the game. These mimic the core aspects of life and our society today and therefore, this is a metaverse in its own right.

It’s also worth noting that Minecraft if you have access to an Oculus Rift, is a VR-compatible game. Which is a feature that is synonymous with metaverse gaming. This allows one to feel truly one with the world they inhabit and thanks to this Minecraft is a truly immersive experience as a result.

How do Players Interact Within the Minecraft Metaverse?

As mentioned, the main means of interacting within this metaverse is doing your bit within the context of the server you inhabit. If you happen to be in a server that is aiming to achieve a huge build, you will have to do your part each day to reach that goal.

If you are part of a second life simulation server, you will have to play your role, whether that be a farmer, a miner, or a warrior for example. Or if you are in a narrative-driven server with factions and the like, you will have to do your part to role play and make the whole thing as authentic as possible for all players.

The best example of this is perhaps the Youtube videos you will find from popular creators like Dreamz or Tommyinnit. These creators provide fans with full-scale wars within the Minecraft universe. Which is a great way to showcase just how infinite the creative possibilities are within this excellent sandbox title.

What Sets Minecraft Apart from Other Sandbox Games?

Well, firstly, let’s spout off some great sandbox games to compare with. You have GTA, you have Red Dead Redemption, you have Terraria, No Man’s Sky, The Sims, Hitman, Elite Dangerous. Honestly, the list goes on and it’s endless. However, why Minecraft has been so successful and enjoyed the longevity that it has is simple. This game has infinite possibilities and it is constantly evolving.

The modding community is excellent, the player base is huge, the gameplay mechanics such as the ability to build and the Redstone functionality offer so much to players. Plus, thanks to intuitive and creative servers like Hypixel and many others, there are new and interesting ways to play this game. We need only mention game formats like the popular Hunger Games mode to get that across.

So that is my article on the Minecraft metaverse and how this game offers one of the most popular and immersive gaming worlds ever. What do you make of this article? Was this guide helpful and informative for you? What other topics would you like to see from us in the near future? Let us know in the HackerNoon Community and as always, thank you for reading.

This article is part of The Gaming Metaverse Writing Contest hosted by HackerNoon in partnership with The Sandbox.

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