Live Puzzle 2

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Minecraft at 33 million users – a personal story

glossy

construction game World Mojang is a huge success around the world - Here's my take on why he has such an enduring appeal

Earlier this week, the creator of indie hit Minecraft junction revealed a startling statistic - the game that started as a personal project creator Markus "Notch" Persson, has sold more than 33 million copies worldwide, on PC, Xbox and mobile. This combination bulk adventure game Lego building game has attracted players from more than two years without a development budget of several million dollars, or advertising coverage.

First, the success of the game was disconcerting. Its procedurally generated worlds are built from solid blocks, giving the environment and everything in it, simplistic retro look. Initially released as an unfinished beta, players had to wade through software errors and mechanical uncertainties, using the complex craft of game system to build houses and gadgets, but must share information on what worked in the - no tutorial

But really, that was part of the beauty of Minecraft. It is an organic creation, and not just because every time you start a new game in the landscape generated again, but because it has developed in tandem with the game. Game modes, new monsters, new features, new farm animals - many have come and gone, and adjusted and amended and re-- often in response to user feedback, like a giant science laboratory. Very basically, there are two different experiences: creative mode gives you access to all the building blocks and the "monsters" (AI characters) in the world allowing you to build what you want, and survival mode, where for the minerals with which to create objects and weapons, avoiding the explosion lianas, giant spiders and zombies lurk. In this mode, players have all day to explore and build, but when night falls, the monsters are abroad and need to return home to build. Warm and safe.

"Minecraft is designed around a very convincing fantasy," said Chris Goetz, a doctoral candidate in the department of film and media at the University of Berkeley in the LA Times last week . "Playing in the real world is often to explore the unknown world around them and then go home where he feels safe. Minecraft is a place where children can work through these impulses. Utopia is like a child. "

This is particularly resonant for me, and I suspect many other parents of autistic children. My seven year old son, Zac, was confirmed in the range earlier this year, but in many ways we have always known. It has a fairly limited vocabulary and notes noisy situations that fear and confusion social school, it is demonstrative, but has difficulty with empathy. We saw his younger brother, Albie, spent on things like reading and writing. But it's fun and imaginative and wonderful.

And like many children with autism spectrum condition, like Minecraft. From the moment I downloaded the Xbox 360 and gave him and his brother Albie, who was addicted controllers. At first, everything goes through landscapes in random motion attacking the sheep, cows and ducks that feed each other Minecraft world. They gather foreign slums, full of random doors and windows, huge gaps in the walls, strange protruding extensions as sets nightmare of German Expressionist horror film.

now build huge palaces and giant robots living - usually made of gold and crystal. Liberaces are the virtual architecture. They explore the culture of the game systems. Greed to download all the regular updates that add new features, new creatures, new narrative possibilities - devour all

is a beautiful thing to watch, not least because Zac is sometimes the world as we know it inexplicable. Feeling guilty, we often laughed at his constant refrain of "What?" when we talk about or emphasize something you do not understand. He jokes about it too. "I'm no good!" moaned in misery when mishears model or understand something the rest of us immediately. For Zac, Minecraft is a successful creative world still makes sense for you to explore and manipulate on their own terms. If people with autism crave order and control, Minecraft offers, only in an environment that also allows and rewards discovery.

Experience Zac

is, I think, a microcosm of the real appeal of the game: it is completely malleable. Minecraft is not a game really well as a tool, a gamified application design - a line of original prints only part of himself in each project. Recently, staff Mattituck-Laurel Library in Mattituck, New York, built a full version of his building in the game. It is not by madness, as an article School Library Journal reports points:

• Minecraft Each room at the library offers a clue in chests hidden treasure in the virtual shelves. The tracks offer students a summary of the plot, title, author, and call letters - so that children can find books of the physical library.
• Beyond this, Minecraft is still widely used in education. Geography Teachers ensure that children model real buildings or villages physics teachers used to teach simple fluid dynamics and mechanical properties. Minecraft developer Mojang working with an organization called MinecraftEdu, which distributes a special version of the game for schools additional educational tools. The game has also been picked up by the charity of autism, the execution of dedicated multiplayer that autistic children can meet and create all servers. Crafts AutCraft APTTA United States and the United Kingdom are two examples.

Meanwhile, the party is growing. The updates are regular, and a new set of "Mash-Up" has just been released for the Xbox 360 version of the game that changes the landscape, characters and objects to resemble the series of adventure games of action science fiction, Mass Effect.

"It was a great team and everyone has worked very closely effort," said Roger Carpenter, producer Minecraft Xbox. "Many congratulations must go to Mojang to be open to the idea of ??Bioware and let us play with your IP - had a lot of input from all parties has been long in the planning, but we wanted to give something yet familiar once. Xbox, to add new features and grow the concept

"A purchase full game with another party is something that we all liked the idea of ??4J Studios and created shows the utmost care and attention to detail in both games Mass Effect was. perfect at the first exit, a rich and distinctive visual style, especially the appearance level of Minecraft with a rich back-story in which players can feed your creative side. "

New mash-ups should continue and Carpenter says the following has already been developed. I know my kids will enjoy them, even if they do not know Mass Effect - it's just a new landscape to explore. For them will be like going from regular space Lego City.


That's the point. It is all about Personal
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This Prototype Cartridge of EarthBound Can Be Yours for $15,000

Finally

down to earth is the Virtual Console Wii U

end this year, but if you can not wait, and you have a ridiculous amount of disposable income, an eBay seller is auctioning the last cartridge collection.

This prototype basket down to earth is so rare, you can not assign a rating to the Authority of the video game, except NG-"non-quality". This is because the VGA grades are based on comparison values??, and as unique, this prototype has nothing that can compare.

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Review: Cloudberry Kingdom

What began as a Kickstarter project with $ 20,000 target scarce funding was picked up by Ubisoft, all publishers, and has led to the usual digital platforms.

At first glance,

cloudberry

Kingdom

may not have much to do - and this feeling does not mean never go away, I'm sad to announce - but the real draw is the game endless levels achieved through procedural generation. That, and it is supposed to be difficult.

Press Start: Xbox One designed to be switched on for ten years, and more

Plus, more on the situation of the Wii U, the former EA chief John Riccitiello talking about next generation consoles and news about the multiplayer aspect of Batman: Arkham Origins

A selection of links to games guardian fingers writers.

Xbox

One is designed to be always active for 10 years | Eurogamer.net

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More thoughts on the new generation of digital equipment Foundry:

Our data suggest that the Xbox A design is based on an ambitious writing almost impossible to prove something to the conditions of real life, and that the company has played it safe, putting to First unit reliability. A senior source said that the console was designed with a life cycle of ten years in mind and is designed to be during this period.

In addition, during this time you need to run almost silently to earn their place in the lounge. It is a unique challenge material, so that the company has chosen a great design in which heat dissipation is the first. Microsoft engineers are also aware that the company's reputation for quality equipment is still in the balance after the Red Ring of Death Xbox 360 fiasco quality of construction, which cost the company more than a billion dollars.

---

Exactly What is the gravity of the situation of Nintendo? | IGN

Keza MacDonald consult financial Nintendo

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All this ultimately leaves Nintendo in the result, at idle and is not in immediate danger, but in the possibility of increasing its first real failure in the appropriate console at home - and operating loss of approximately $ 50 million to try to fix. It certainly does not leave Nintendo on their knees. Wii U in isolation, however, is another story: the console is in trouble, and you will have something special in the next six months to turn things

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Batman: Arkham Origins - Invisible Predator Online | GameSpot.com

Here GameSpot interesting new multiplayer mode in the next game Batman:

---

developed by Splash Damage, while WB Games Montreal operates in the solo game, invisible Predator Online is an asymmetric mode three against three against two. Teams three games as gang members or the band members of the Joker, which are jockeying for position and power in Gotham Bane, fighting for a piece of grass. (During the game demo in the card was Blackgate prison, a place which, of course, figure prominently in the next 3DS and Vita game Batman. Arkham Origins Blackgate) The purpose of these groups is to overcome the another, diminishing their returns available through death or take control of checkpoints scattered across the map.

• But these bands have more important things to worry about than the other. As Batman and Robin, two players attempt to thwart the efforts of both gangs to assert dominance in Gotham.

And here's the trailer:

What do you think, fans of the stick?

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Prince of Persia: The Shadow and the Flame; Riptide GP2 – review

Toby Moses reviews the latest games for mobile long time favorite gamer

Prince of Persia experienced a variety of ways - platforms Atari ST classic, swish, action adventure in the third modern person Jake Gyllenhaal horrible movies. The series has mobile

Prince of Persia: The Shadow and the Flame (Ubisoft, iOS, 1, 99 EUR) lies somewhere between the latest iterations and that taxing the 80 early Atari.

essentially a 2D platform game with stylish graphics, Prince maintains vulnerability to sharp things in the old days, but now has some of the most ingenious tricks

Sands of Time

• attempts to time, instead of having to start the level from the beginning. There is some fun to be had here, but the touch controls do not meet obstruct and takes into its own by choosing the virtual joystick option.

With an eye on the past, does not seem so long as the action of the jet ski

Wave Race

players captivated N64 - and now

Riptide

GP2

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Blizzard Breaks For Independence As Kotick Plans $8.2 Billion Dollar Buyout

writes: "Activision Blizzard CEO Bobby Kotick announced this morning that the purchase would lead investor in the company worth about $ 8.2 billion of measurement Blactivision release (what does this never took. nickname?) to become an independent and free from the clutches of her publisher Vivendi, the french entertainment conglomerate Vivendi wrong. was trying to sell Activision Blizzard for years, due to an apparent hate actually make a profit, since the developer of the game has some of the most popular franchises on Earth Kotick has been known for his comments on the use of game franchises and precious stones like this: .. "We a culture of saving the goal was to bring a large number of people at Activision packaged products 10 years ago was to take all the fun of making video games. "

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