OK, it’s been a couple of weeks since I posted. That’s partly down to family life and teething children sapping my will to live energy but mostly down to Minecraft. back in the pre-beta days I was pretty addicted to it but once the map I’d invested all my time in became increasingly incompatible with the game I drifted away from it more and more, and until recently I hadn’t in a couple of years.
Until I heard of Captive Minecraft.
The Farlanders have taken advantage of a new feature – the world border to make a frankly ingenious gameplay concept: you begin the game trapped on a single block, the world border defining a 1×1 area. Each achievement you earn expands the border another half block, opening up new possibilities and taking you closer to the next achievements.
And blow me if it isn’t a compelling feature. More importantly it was a great way to bring me up to speed with all of the things that weren’t in the game last time I played it – breeding animals, hunger, Blazes, The End, enchanting, anvils, and everything else. Just by forcing me to chase achievements and research the new mechanics overcame some of the friction that had been standing between me and picking up the game again.
On top of that the map is custom-made and makes for a fun experience to explore in itself. Playing within such a constrained space is an interesting challenge too. Heartily recommended.
Captive Minecraft 2 is out now too, with a third being teased already, so I think there’s enough to keep me trapped in a nightmare world of punching trees for a while yet.
Also, watch Zisteau playing the first two – utterly compelling: