MINECRAFT - LESSON 1: HISTORY AND ECONOMIC CONTEXT
KEY INFO:
//Minecraft is a sandbox game.
//It was developed by the Swedish based Mojang Studios
//There are two game modes - creative and survival.
//It was created by MArkus 'Notch' Persson.
HISTORY OF MINECRAFT:
//He started creating it in May 2009.
//It was initially seen as a niche product for players with expert knowledge of computers and programming.
//Without the commercial advertising of a mainstream publisher, and no money spent on advertising, the game relied on word of mouth between gamers.
//By April 2011, Persson estimated that $33 million of revenue had been made.
//In November 2011, prior to the game's official release, Minecraft had over 16 million registered users and 4 million purchases.
//In 2011, Minecraft was released across multiple platforms. Pocket Edition was released for mobile devices at roughly the same time.
//By 2012, it was available on Xbox 360 and Xbox Live.
//It was created originally using Java, which was a piece of readily available open source software within the gaming community, giving it the advantage of being cross-platform: it will run on Windows, Mac OS X and Linux.
//2014 saw Minecraft Acquired by Microsoft for 2.5 Billion, just 5 years after Persson began.
ECONOMIC CONTEXT:
//Markus Persson (Notch), released what he initially called 'Cave Game' back in 2009.
//It was attractive to people who liked to code and design worlds. It was mostly a tool for creation at that point, not a game.
//Once it took off, the creator released it in an updated format as Minecraft, which was very basic.
//The early days of Minecraft were very important for the modding scene.
//This allowed gamers to customise games to their liking, adding new quests or features and even update the graphics to some degree.
//It also has very limited visuals (pixels and basic blocks), allowing it to process user requests much faster than if it were using high-end graphics.
//Before the end of 2009, several modes had been added to Minecraft. they include Survival, INDEV, and INFDEV.
//More people watch more YouTube videos about Minecraft than any other game.
//Rather than YouTube views levelling off for the 5-year old game, they're growing rapidly.
//The videos are not the 'official' videos on the Mojang YouTube channel. The vast majority of it's YouTube views com form videos created not by the company, but from fans. This is known as earned media, because it's essentially free to the brand.
//Mojang put out a few versions of Minecraft while they had the publishing rights, releasing a free to play version on the PC known as classic Minecraft on the PC, along with the full version that had most of their publishing power behind.
//Microsoft bought the game and the brand from them a few years later, pushing it into a publishing frenzy.
//They put Minecraft onto their systems, Xbox 360 and Xbox 1, later bringing it to Playstation and WII U. It's even on mobile platforms and Windows 10.
//It has expanded beyond it's single-game roots, Microsoft tasked Telltale Games with creating Minecraft: Story Mode, a single player, story-based game that plays mostly like an Interactive Story.
//The Occulus headset will take this to new levels with developing technology.
//Microsoft continues to support the base game, releasing new skin packs, which offer new looks for the major characters. players can dress up like holiday favourites, as well as pop-culture icons. No matter what fan base a person belongs to, they are likely to find a Minecraft skin to suit them.
//Minecraft market place is the ultimate one-stop online shop.
//Microsoft has used it's connections to synergise with other companies, such as Lego; a film is planned with Warner Brothers for release in 2022. Merchandise is everywhere.
HOW DID MINECRAFT'S CHANGING ECONOMIC CONTEXT AFFECT IT'S PRODUCTION, DISTRIBUTION AND CIRCULATION?
HELPFUL LINKS:
Minecraft Movie
Minecraft Blog
//Minecraft is a sandbox game.
//It was developed by the Swedish based Mojang Studios
//There are two game modes - creative and survival.
//It was created by MArkus 'Notch' Persson.
HISTORY OF MINECRAFT:
//He started creating it in May 2009.
//It was initially seen as a niche product for players with expert knowledge of computers and programming.
//Without the commercial advertising of a mainstream publisher, and no money spent on advertising, the game relied on word of mouth between gamers.
//By April 2011, Persson estimated that $33 million of revenue had been made.
//In November 2011, prior to the game's official release, Minecraft had over 16 million registered users and 4 million purchases.
//In 2011, Minecraft was released across multiple platforms. Pocket Edition was released for mobile devices at roughly the same time.
//By 2012, it was available on Xbox 360 and Xbox Live.
//It was created originally using Java, which was a piece of readily available open source software within the gaming community, giving it the advantage of being cross-platform: it will run on Windows, Mac OS X and Linux.
//2014 saw Minecraft Acquired by Microsoft for 2.5 Billion, just 5 years after Persson began.
ECONOMIC CONTEXT:
//Markus Persson (Notch), released what he initially called 'Cave Game' back in 2009.
//It was attractive to people who liked to code and design worlds. It was mostly a tool for creation at that point, not a game.
//Once it took off, the creator released it in an updated format as Minecraft, which was very basic.
//The early days of Minecraft were very important for the modding scene.
//This allowed gamers to customise games to their liking, adding new quests or features and even update the graphics to some degree.
//It also has very limited visuals (pixels and basic blocks), allowing it to process user requests much faster than if it were using high-end graphics.
//Before the end of 2009, several modes had been added to Minecraft. they include Survival, INDEV, and INFDEV.
//More people watch more YouTube videos about Minecraft than any other game.
//Rather than YouTube views levelling off for the 5-year old game, they're growing rapidly.
//The videos are not the 'official' videos on the Mojang YouTube channel. The vast majority of it's YouTube views com form videos created not by the company, but from fans. This is known as earned media, because it's essentially free to the brand.
//Mojang put out a few versions of Minecraft while they had the publishing rights, releasing a free to play version on the PC known as classic Minecraft on the PC, along with the full version that had most of their publishing power behind.
//Microsoft bought the game and the brand from them a few years later, pushing it into a publishing frenzy.
//They put Minecraft onto their systems, Xbox 360 and Xbox 1, later bringing it to Playstation and WII U. It's even on mobile platforms and Windows 10.
//It has expanded beyond it's single-game roots, Microsoft tasked Telltale Games with creating Minecraft: Story Mode, a single player, story-based game that plays mostly like an Interactive Story.
//The Occulus headset will take this to new levels with developing technology.
//Microsoft continues to support the base game, releasing new skin packs, which offer new looks for the major characters. players can dress up like holiday favourites, as well as pop-culture icons. No matter what fan base a person belongs to, they are likely to find a Minecraft skin to suit them.
//Minecraft market place is the ultimate one-stop online shop.
//Microsoft has used it's connections to synergise with other companies, such as Lego; a film is planned with Warner Brothers for release in 2022. Merchandise is everywhere.
HOW DID MINECRAFT'S CHANGING ECONOMIC CONTEXT AFFECT IT'S PRODUCTION, DISTRIBUTION AND CIRCULATION?
HELPFUL LINKS:
Minecraft Movie
Minecraft Blog
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