| Author | Review |
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This review has 65 positive votes and 13 negative votes. Please log in to vote. |
Minecraft is a retro designed sandbox game that looks a lot like a classic 90’s FPS similar to Doom or Marathon(minus the guns) but has a plethora of practical elements. Amazingly, everything in the game can be interacted with and must be dug up, chopped, or mined if you wanna get anywhere. The unlimited freedom is extremely addictive, and while it's not pretty to look at, Minecraft actually has immense depth to it…
At first I didn’t know what to expect from this game. I had never heard of it before and after playing the tutorial level I wasn’t sure what to make of it. It wasn’t until I had made myself a wooden shovel and started to dig at the ground under my feet that I realized it's potential. I had dug a hole so deep that I couldn’t see the sun anymore and when my shovel broke from wear and tear; I realized I would have to dig my way back up with nothing but my hands, and I was hooked.
I quickly realized that, while there is no story or any real direction to help you move forward, the depth of this game is only limited by what you choose to do in it. You start out with nothing except the ability to mine everything around you, and trust me, you will be mining EVERYTHING. If you want to get anywhere then you’ll be mining resources to construct tools that will help you mine resources faster and construct better tools and it’ll pretty much play out like this for the first several hours. Sure, this might sound boring but once the sun goes down you’ll be forced to stop mining and start surviving. Nightfall brings out an onslaught of killer creatures that range anywhere from bumbling zombies to exploding green things dubbed “creepers”.
Some of the best game-play comes from the creativity of the player. You can literally change the layout of the game world in any way you see fit. The game makes you feel successful when you build your first shelter and survive your first night, but when you build a giant mansion with 16 rooms you’ll feel like a god! The possibilities are endless and I can imagine wasting countless hours of digging never-ending holes and building giant skyscrapers for many months to come.
Now, I’ve never played Minecraft on the PC before but as far as I can tell the controls work great. Other PC games that move to consoles have had huge problems with their control schemes, The Sims for example, but everything on the Xbox 360 is simple and any complicated action can be done with just a few button presses.
Minecraft doesn’t rely on pretty graphics or an engaging storyline, but it’s immense freedom to do whatever your mind desires is what will keep you playing until you realized you have forgotten to eat, sleep, and go to the bathroom. However, I have to warn you that Minecraft is definitely a LOVE IT or HATE IT game. It’s definitely not for everyone, and at 1600 MSP($20) it can be a difficult buy(I had a hard time deciding if it was worth it).
Thankfully the fun won’t end anytime soon since Minecraft will likely require frequent updates to bring it up to par with it’s PC counterpart. Not to mention the countless possibilities for DLC.
As I said before, this is a LOVE IT or HATE IT game so download the demo before you buy it. Also, if you are one of the many who are looking forward to playing this game with a friend in split-screen then you better have an HDTV too because it won't work otherwise.
4 STARS OUT OF 5 |
Leo Ascendent
206,363
TA Score for this game: 479
Posted on 26 May 12 at 01:09, Edited on 25 December 12 at 05:23 |
This review has 21 positive votes and 2 negative votes. Please log in to vote. |
Alright, before I go into the game, I would like to say I've never played the PC version, nor do I plan to do so. I've been playing the X360 version quite often since its release. But since I have far less knowledge than those who play it on the PC, I apologize in advance for mislabeling or simply being wrong.
EDIT: I've updated parts to reflect the new Creative and Survival modes, but left the original intact.
Story
There isn't one, you're 'The Player', simple as that, you explore the world of Minecraft, build and destroy, destroy and build. That's honestly all there is to Minecraft, it may seem limited, but that's only true if you have a very small imagination (so yes, I'm saying if you get bored of this easily, you're about as fun as a wet mouse).
Minecraft is all about designing and building whatever you can think of, don't believe me?
While I'm sure there are some Mod Tools that make these tasks easier, it still proves the point. Updated versions now have 'Creative Mode', which allows you to spawn blocks and other goodies whenever you want, making daunting tasks much easier to tackle.
If you dislike grinding ANYTHING, this will not be for you. I've spent 3/4th of my time mining blocks, trying to find those elusive diamonds and trying to build stupidly long rails, and I'm far from finished. Luckily, once you find some better materials, grinding is much easier.
There's a tad bit of survival in here too. At night, monsters come out to wreck havoc (unless you're playing on 'Peaceful'). They can be warded off with light, and shelter (i.e. a house). The monsters will pursue you until you enter a 'Safe Area' (again, house), you die, kill them or run far enough away.
The notorious Creeper is my favorite, I don't know what the fuck it is, but it will wreak you if given the chance. If the Creeper gets to close, it will explode, damaging (or most of the time, destroying) everything in a large radius.
My 1st conception on what the Creeper might look like in a rounded world, not very scary. The 2nd is better, but I have no picture.
Graphics
Well, this game is basically Lego's, therefore the graphics aren't impressive, but they aren't trying to be. Everything looks great (considering the pixels are the size of those on the original Game Boy), if you are very picky about graphics, and playing anything before 2005 makes your eyes bleed, then you won't like this game.
Controls
The controls are very simple and straight forward, one button allows you to jump, the other cycles through your inventory, attack enemies, place item, etc. There really isn't much to say about them, the controls are like the graphics, old as hell.
Voice/Sound/Music
There is little in the area of voice, maybe grunts, but that's it. Sounds sound, well, old school, but that's good, considering the game. The music is annoying sometimes, as it constantly plays, but luckily, it can be turned down/off if the player desires.
Other
I read this would feature online play, but my experience makes me believe you can only play with friends, as I have not seen a single game in the 'Online' section (except for one, and if the 'Friends Only' thing is true, this guy must've been hacking or something....)
The game offers splitscreen (if you have an HDTV) which I haven't been able to utilize yet, but the thought of playing this with my friends is pretty entertaining.... oh the things we could build.
As many know, the game is VERY limited compared to the PC version, the designers have said they'll EVENTUALLY release an update that'll bring it up to version.
“We’re aiming to update to the major PC releases – first one will be the equivalent of the PC Beta 1.7.3 version”,
As stated earlier, the current version has a few goodies such as 'Creative Mode' and 'Survival Mode', as well as new items and enemies. The game is much more addicting now, however ACHIEVEMENTS CANNOT BE EARNED IN CREATIVE MODE.
Overall
Minecraft is a fun way to blow $20 (£13 for those on the other side of the pond), with hours of fun and with major updates coming, at some point, it's well worth the price.
4.5/5 (rounded down because I can)
Pros
- Plain simple fun
- Exercises your creative muscles
- Hours of entertainment
Cons
- Rather simple
- Splitscreen requires an HDTV
- Will get repetitive
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ViagraFish
212,330
TA Score for this game: 479
Posted on 29 June 12 at 22:40, Edited on 13 July 12 at 18:50 |
This review has 11 positive votes and 2 negative votes. Please log in to vote. |
This game is as big as your imagination.
UPDATE: As if there wasn't enough to do in this game already there is now an update out which has added several things to the game, the main thing being pistons, a mechanism used to push a block one space in a different direction which can be used to create hidden rooms and other interesting creations.
I was new to the game as I was unaware of it untill it came to 360 so I can't compare this with the pc version. The game is amazing. You can build nealry anything you set your mind too, all you need is a high patience level and a good imagination.
You can mine various materials (if you can find them) by using various pieces of equipment which you make from the resources you mine the equipment do have a certain durability and will break sooner or later due to general use. Once you have the materials you can use them to build anything you set your mine too. As well as building materials you can kill various animals for food, wool and leather.
As well as building you have various circuits you can make from a material called red stone. You can use it to power switches for doors and mine cart tracks etc.
There are various difficulty settings which range from no enemies at all to lots of powerfull enemies more then willing to make your life a misery.
The landscape can be completley random or you can enter a 'seed' which will generate a land suited more to your needs. The lands range from mountains to forests to snow covered plains to beaches. Under the surface of the land there is just as much to explore as above as there are lots of ranom caverns to explore which can contain anything from coal to diamonds and even lava.
If the vast land you start with isn't enough you have the ability to build a portal which takes you to the nether. A plain home to a new kind of enemy and another character which will leave you alone as long as you leave it alone. and lots of lava and other materials not available in your main world.
As well as all of this you have the ability to play with other players on xbox live which can improve your experience (or annoy you depending on who you get  )
It is all topped off with a very plesant sound track which makes the game even nicer.
Overall it is an incredible game and I reccomend anyone to try it but be warned, it can be very addictive.
5 out of 5.
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AK Phoen1x
28,325
TA Score for this game: 479
Posted on 29 May 12 at 14:38 |
This review has 2 positive votes and 6 negative votes. Please log in to vote. |
Build almost anything! Minecraft for xbox is really cool. Get a group of friends( ) together and make your world grow faster. Protect yourself and your buddies at night and watch out for those creepers!
In Peaceful mode no creepers or any other enemies can hurt you. You also regain your health.
So just get some friends create a world and start exploring and you might just come across some gold! Build a crafting table and furnace first.
Minecraft is really fun. Build your house in a brand new world. Although it does have some glitches and lagging I still find this to be a great game!
I give this game 4 stars for alone playing and 5 for multiplaying.
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GoldenfoxxPrime
145,661
TA Score for this game: 479
Posted on 11 May 12 at 19:35, Edited on 11 May 12 at 23:07 |
This review has 22 positive votes and 27 negative votes. Please log in to vote. |
Others have spoken about Minecraft as a whole, so I will not focus on the overall game. Rather, this will merely be my impressions based on having played the PC version for awhile... thus, this is more for players used to the PC version.
I first got into Minecraft only a couple of months ago (around March 2012), so in many ways playing on a v1.6 build is like going back to the dark ages. There doesn't seem to be a hunger bar yet. I'm only assuming that merely eating directly restores health in this environment, which is fine, but since food doesn't appear to stack, carrying around more than a few porkchops might well encumber any spelunking attempts.
The sprint function is also notably absent. My usual method of killing Creepers when I don't have a bow and arrows is to charge swing and then back up out of range. But without being able to run, I feel like I'm intentionally walking into a death trap even being around Creepers here.
My biggest complaint, however, is being unable to configure my controller buttons. I've never been a mouse-and-keyboard kind of player on PC, so I've used Minecontrol on my PC version so I could use my 360 gamepads when I play. My default configuration has been to set Y to jump, X to drop, and Right Joystick Button to Inventory. As a result, I'm constantly entering Inventory on the 360 version rather than jumping. This is the kind of game that absolutely necessitates a controller configuration option, as what feels right to Player One may not feel right at all to Player Two.
Another big problem is that, with the absence of a mouse, Mojang apparently felt it would best serve the player to have a crafting menu rather than a drag-and-drop box. One of the results of this is that the game flat out tells you what you can create at a given moment. This may take a good deal of fun out of the game for some people, the surprise of accidentally finding new constructs is a large portion of the fun of the game. But the bigger issue is that you have to go through a series of what feels (after playing the PC version for so long) like a series of extraneous motions just to create the simplest of items, such as sticks. And even then, there doesn't seem to be an Xbox equivalent of the shift click, either, which on the PC version automatically creates as many of an item as the player has ingredients to make. So if you have 64 pieces of wood and you want to make 4 stacks of sticks, you have to click for each set of four sticks you want.
Also kind of annoying is the tutorial tip box. Upon your first encounter with anything, from dirt to ores to cows to tools, a box pops up telling you what to do with it. Again, this may take some of the fun out of the game for new players, as learning what you can do with what items is part of the fun. But for anyone who has played the PC version for any length of time, the pop-up is in the way and slowing you down. I cannot understand why there wouldn't be an option to simply turn that off.
Another nugget of the PC version that I would like to have seen in some way incorporated here is the use of character skins. I've downloaded a considerable collection of custom skins from Marvel and DC characters to Muppets to Star Wars outfits to use in my PC versions, and I enjoy changing them up often. There doesn't appear to be any means of integrating it here, though, so it appears we're stuck with plain ol' Steve. At least this is merely a cosmetic issue, but since there are entire smartphone apps and websites dedicated to custom skin creation, a lot of potential players may be turned off by the seeming absence of the feature here.
Other than these issues, however, the game appears to be a mostly-intact port. It's certainly worth playing just so I can play Minecraft on my 50" flat screen rather than a computer monitor. All of the most basic things that make Minecraft so much fun to play are still here, and it would have been a difficult task to screw up so badly than Minecraft just ceased to be fun. This game is proof positive that great graphics aren't required to make a great game (in fact, much of the charm comes directly from the cheesy, pixelated 8-bit look--higher resolution might even ruin characters like the Creeper). Mutiplayer is present, although I haven't tried it yet, and this is massively important as the real reason I got into Minecraft was to be able to hang out with a large group of friends in a shared world. I believe this version only supports 8 players), but the restriction isn't game-breaking unless you're wanting to incorporate your entire 20-player PC server group here.
In short, if you're already playing the PC version, there isn't any great reason to move over to the 360 version, unless you have a separate group of friends with whom you wish to hang out. For new players, I'd still probably recommend just trying the PC version instead, at least until this version is caught up with the PC's current build. But it's Minecraft, and it's merely an earlier build and not a bad port, so I give it four stars just because of it's potential.
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