Minecraft Fans Gather For Minecon In Paris

Minecraft fans gather for Minecon in Paris By Mark Ward Technology correspondent, BBC News in Paris

Thousands of cheering, stamping or whooping fans. Pounding dance music. Slickly produced and edited videos. Dry ice machines. Spotlights that move across a stage. Giant screens hang overhead.

This is not rock music.

This isn't a surprise PA at the nightclub of a boy band.

This is not the start of a blockbuster film or a new car.

This is Minecon - the international convention for Minecraft creators and players - a videogame set in a world of blocks that has become a worldwide phenomenon in just a few short years.

Free play

Rough industry estimates indicate that the PC version Minecraft has sold approximately eight million copies. But that estimate does not take into account the many who play it in on the Xbox 360, iPhones, Android handsets, on Kindles or on a growing number of other devices. The global Minecraft community is estimated to number around 40 million.

Why is it so popular? Servers

"Freedom," said gamer Erik Christiansen, (known when he plays Minecraft as Torencresent). "You can do anything in the game.

People do many different things. Some people build huge sculptures, palaces, or recreate real-world locations using Minecraft blocks. Others make primitive blocky machines from the materials found around the globe.

And, Mr Christiansen explained that if the thing you wanted was not there, you could create a modification - or a mod - and share it with other players to allow millions of people to do what you did.

He said some of the improvements players suggested also made it into the game's core code. He said that the game's success has been made possible by the constant feedback loop of fans from game to game.

Big stars

Minecon, held at Disneyland Paris in 2012, is where the game's 4,500 biggest fans gathered to meet the other faithful, see in person friends they only know via the game, dress like the creatures and people found in the game and see and talk to Minecraft's creators.

"They are stars," said Danny Gelder, aka Nyloch in the game, an avid player who runs a Minecraft Server for himself and a few of his friends.

It is difficult to disagree, given the reactions the game's creators and curators get when the game's launch ceremony begins. They appear slightly overwhelmed as they blink and smile under a barrage flash photography.

Markus Persson, aka Notch, is the most celebrated programmer. He coded the original game and then made it available online for everyone to play while he worked on improving it.

"When I started making the game, it was going to take six months." he told the BBC later, taking a few moments to sip coffee, sit back and relax backstage.

These moments of silence are rare during Minecon. He cannot walk more than a few paces before someone asks him for a picture, pushes forward a flyer to sign, or raises his hand to give him a high-five.

He has to admit that he is both surprised and amazed at the game’s success.

"I was hoping to see if I could make enough money to make another game - that was the dream goal of it," he said, "but it just kept growing and exploding, thanks to the community,"

His surprise is not only at the volume of copies sold, but also at how large the community it has created.

"There are people who are making a living making things and content for Minecraft which is just amazing to think about," he said.

Some of those others are also stars at Minecon. They are the fans who have made YouTube videos that millions see, coded mods and skins for millions, or created maps that other players use.

They are more well-known for their game and web alter egos (Vareide CaptainSparklez, SethBling to name just a few) than their real names.

They receive a similar raucous reception when they are introduced onto the stage. They are well-known and are often stopped for autographs or photos as they move between the conference rooms at the show.

Serious uses

Lydia Winters, who oversees Mojang and its players' links, said that Minecraft's real strength is its community.

She stated, "The community and the things that they come with, are actually way beyond anything we could have expected or understood."

The fans are also here to hear about what's to come in the game. The next big update for the game, due in January, will tidy up the code that supports a Minecraft resource known as Redstone.

It can be used in the right way to Minecraft blocks to create crude electrical circuits that can be used to power many ingenious devices. Redstone will become more useful and be able to be used for a wider range circuit components.

There's also talk about getting Minecraft running on the bare-bones Raspberry Pi computer. Code to do just that is ready now. Anyone can download the game to their Pi and then take it to their friends to play with them.

Fans can also get advice on running their own server and creating custom maps.

There are also sessions on using Minecraft in serious settings. It is being used in schools already to teach programming, geo-politics, and geology.

Stephen Reid, an educational consulting expert who uses Minecraft in schools, said it was a great success for the same reasons it is so loved by gamers.

He said, "It's mainly all about the process of creating and people love to make." "As human beings, we always strive to do better, to build and to succeed, and Minecraft is exactly like that."

Minecraft sued for user controls

23 July 2012

Minecraft makers reveal new game

25 June 2012

Minecraft maker unveils a new game

April 2012

Vareide - YouTube

CaptainSparklez - YouTube

Raspberry Pi

Danny Gelder (Nyloch)

Stephen Reid