Grab that Pickaxe, Grab your wolf, it's time to mine bitches!
Well Minecraft has come to the X-box 360 and let it be said that am somewhat of a fan of Minecraft. I have no shame in admiting to you dear reader that I have spent countless hours slaving away in the worlds made from blocks, creating houses and killing monsters coming my way to destroy my work.Firstly for anyone who is unaware of Minecraft or haven't taken the chance to look to much into it. Minecraft at it's heart is a virtual Lego set. This joke has been passed around since the games inception and it's actually true, even to the point Lego themselves have made a Minecraft themed set of blocks.
Minecraft creator Notch (One with the Hat) and Developer (Jeb) play with the Lego Minecraft Sets
The game starts you out in a randomly generated world filled with rocks, dirt, water, lava, snow, and various trees and animals. You start out with nothing and there really is no goal in the game, rather you set the goal yourself. First things first however, you must build shelter before night comes, for monsters spawn and generally want to make your life as hellish as possible. A good shack and a bed help elimate this problem. The more you play, the more eleborate your building designs come, you start to craft better tools and go on to do bigger and better things than when you first started. The thing about this game is as stated above, there really is no goal to work towards, you have to give yourself projects for there are plenty of avenues in the game to explore. You can build houses, explore caves, build a farm. They even introduced elements such as creating circuits that let you create doors and traps that open when people walk on pressure plates. The possibilities can be nearly endless.
Monsters burn during the day. BURN ZOMBIE!
But now that the game has come across to the console, lets get down to it. Is the port good? Short answer, yes, but there are some things to take into account. Thankfully there is a tutorial mode that welcomes new players to the game and teaches them every aspect of game play. The PC version would just drop you in a world with no explanation on how to play, and leaves you mostly to figure it out yourself or spend an hour scanning internet wiki's in order to find information on how to craft tools. I have read that some people online complain about dumbing down the game but this was seriously needed. While the game is simple to those with a little experience, it can be complicated for newcomers.
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Lack of control customization annoys me.
Playing the game with a control pad is tricky at first. The main system revolves around using the triggers to mine and place items, it takes some getting used to but it works quiet well. My only complaint is that while you can change the controls, they don't offer you complete customization of the control system. You are restricted to three profiles of assigned changes and you cannot change the button system to suit your liking. This is just a minor issue for me.
Game Customization such as character skins and texture packs are sadly missing for now.
There are several things missing from the console version. Firstly, there is lack of creation mode. While this isn't exactly a killer for me, as I never really played on creative, this will be a killer for many. Secondly, the console version is a few updates behind from the original PC version - You're missing things like jungles, hunger, XP, enchanting and potions, but this doesn't bother me to much, you still get to visit and explore Minecraft's version of hell, you still get to play around with redstone circuits. They have stated these elements will come to the 360 soon so hopefully not to long to wait. Also missing is are the user generated modifications and texture packs that radically change the look and feel of the game.
Local Split screen Multiplayer is actually really fun way to play.
However, what the 360 version of this game lacks, it makes it up, somewhat in the multiplayer aspect. Getting multiplayer on the PC version can be a right pain as you have to know IP addresses and requires additional software to run a server, however withing the console port, you are able to play over X-box live with up to 8 players, and play 4 screen local co op split-screen and it makes the experience so much easier. Its actually really fun having a friend sit next to you, helping you build, or even taking swords and striking each other down. The massive downside to this element is that you have to have a HD television. Using a scart lead to connect you're 360 to a television, forget Local co-op. I think this is a MASSIVE deal breaker for many, inducing me. While I run my 360 through my 19 inch PC widescreen, my old CRT television is much bigger and would be perfect for getting on a sofa with friends. I am really hoping this will be fixed at some point.
On the whole I have spent a good few hours playing this port of one of my favorite game, sure there are some things missing from the console version but it's still highly enjoyable as playing it on the PC. If you can't play this on the PC and you have the funds, it's 1600 points on Xbox Live Arcade, check it out as getting the chance to chill on a sofa and just build is a really nice way to play. I will state that lack of multiplayer on standard definition televisions is a major dick move but don't let that discourage you.
