Minecraftmay be a long-lived IP, but it has only a handful of games to its name. The originalMinecraftremains the heart of the franchise, whileMinecraft Dungeonsstands as its biggest spinoff from recent years. That’s hardly a bad thing; the originalMinecraftis still a great game after all these years, thanks to Mojang’s steady stream of updates. Still, it would be great to see Mojang exploreMinecraft’s potential through creative spinoffs that feature new game genres. That’s why it’s great to hear that Mojang may have a new patch ofMinecraftspinoffs in development.
According to the LinkedIn profile of Mojang’s Director of Franchise Development, Torfi Frans Olafsson, there aremultiple newMinecraftprojects in the works. Strictly speaking, Mojang hasn’t confirmed or revealed any of these theoretical projects, but the implication at least seems credible. If Mojang really is working on newMinecraftgames, then hopefully those games take advantage of the sandbox game’s reputation for fostering player creativity.Minecraft Dungeonsthoroughly covers the action and exploration sides of theMinecraftbrand, so future spinoffs ought to work in new spaces. Creativity is a core principle ofMinecraftthat deserves more attention from future offshoots of the original game.
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Game Genres That Minecraft Should Explore
Minecraftmay be light on NPCs and characters, aside from friendly villagers, butMinecrafthas the makings of a wonderful social sim game in the style ofAnimal CrossingorStory of Seasons.In these franchises, players get to build a life for themselves, interact with nature, and make friends with local members of their new community.Minecraftmay have more action than these franchises, but its cozy atmosphere and emphasis on player agency makes it perfectly suitable for this type of game. Players mightmove into aMinecraftvillageand slowly welcome formerly hostile mobs into a community that they physically build up themselves.
A game focused on level editing sounds like a great angle forMinecraftto try too. Nintendo has significantly increased interest in level editors thanks toitsSuper Mario Makerline of games, which putSuper Marioparts in the hands of players and encourage all kinds of playable endeavors. Mojang could consider developing a game where players hand-craft smallMinecraftworlds with specific objectives, ranging from puzzle solving to combat trials, and then share them with another, leave comments, compare completion times, and more. In the process, Mojang could introduce all kinds of newMinecraftblocks, mobs, and other tools that enable even more layered level creation thanMinecraftalready permits.
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Why Mojang Should Focus on Creativity
FutureMinecraftgames should play into these aspects of the franchise becauseMinecraft Dungeonsalready covers the action-adventure aspectso thoroughly. Mojang’s isometric dungeon crawler pits players against hordes of both familiar and originalMinecraftmobs, providing a combat-rich experience for fans who want to battle throughMinecraft’s overworld in a new way. Mojang may be tempted to release an upgraded sequel forMinecraft Dungeons,but instead, it should look into a different style ofMinecraftspinoff in order to diversify the range of games available to fans of the original sandbox title. TheMinecraftIP will be more interesting as a whole if it successfully covers a long list of genres.
There’s no telling for now if the rumoredMinecraftspinoffs are real, and even if they are, Mojang may not reveal them for quite some time.Minecraft Dungeonsis still getting updates and events, so otherMinecraftspinoffs may still be in early development as Mojang devotes more resources toMinecraft Dungeonsupkeep. In the meantime, at leastMinecraftfans have plenty of content to look forward to in the base game.The Wild Update is rich with additionsthat’ll improveMinecraftin various ways. Hopefully Mojang has other surprises in store even as it’s working on makingMinecraftitself a better experience.
Minecraftis available now for PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
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