News
27 CommentsFez and Minecraft assets swiped by iOS game Ace Block Jump
By Michael McWhertor on May 10, 2013 05.10.13
Developer Polytron found its Fez art assets appropriated — alongside art from Mojang's Minecraft — in the recently published iOS game Ace Block Jump, a $0.99 app from a developer that also appears to have borrowed its very name, Infocom Games, from someone else. Ace Block Jump is described as a "pixel based shooter game" in which players seemingly shoot Minecraft-like versions of Street Fighter's Blanka, the Power Rangers and Robin from DC Comics. "The first action game, in which we mixed PIXEL and MINECRAFT style ( PIXELCRAFT )," Infocom Games writes on iTunes. "The most exciting and amusing game ever, specially in this new style." Infocom Games' previous iOS titles include Block Craft: Iron Ops and Ace Combat: Block Sniper, games done in the Minecraft visual style that borrow...
News
2 CommentsMinecraft: Xbox 360 Edition update 11 fixes minor issues, adds messages
By Samit Sarkar on May 10, 2013 05.10.13
Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition developer 4J Studios began rolling out title update 11 for the sandbox game today, fixing a few minor problems and making the game a bit more talkative. Your Minecraft world will be fuller after installing this patch, which increases the overall limit of paintings and item frames, Villagers and Snow Golems in a world. The update also reduces the volume of the sound a Ghast emits. And the game will now offer a few more message pop-ups for particular situations. Here's a full list of the patch notes, as seen on the Minecraft Forums: Fix for explosion lag issue on clients in an online game. Fix to remove any Fireballs hanging in the air in a save game. Fix to only show the spawn limit message to the player attempting to spawn something. Fixed the...
Deals
1 CommentSerious Sam games half off on Xbox Live this week, Battlefield 3 DLC half price next week
By Samit Sarkar on May 07, 2013 05.07.13
This week's slate of sales on Xbox Live Marketplace includes half-price discounts on the Serious Sam series, Microsoft's Major Nelson announced today. From today through May 13, the four Serious Sam games on Xbox Live Arcade are each available for 400 Microsoft Points ($5), 50 percent off their usual price. That includes Serious Sam HD: The First Encounter, Serious Sam HD: The Second Encounter, Serious Sam 3: BFE (screenshot above) and Serious Sam Double D XXL. Jewel of the Nile, the add-on for Serious Sam 3: BFE, is also on sale for the same price. This week will also see the release of two skin packs for 4J Studios' Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition, the 1st Birthday Skins Pack for free and the Battle 'N Beasts Pack for 160 Microsoft Points ($2). And Pocketwatch Games' Monaco: What's...
News
3 CommentsApple reveals top 50 apps of all time, counting down to 50 billion downloads
By Alexa Ray Corriea on May 03, 2013 05.03.13
Nearly 50 billion apps have been download from Apple's App Store, the company announced today. To commemorate the approaching milestone, Apple revealed the 25 most downloaded apps in both the paid and free categories. Topping the paid apps list is the original Angry Birds, followed by Halfbrick Studios' Fruit Ninja, Lima Sky's Doodle Jump, Cut the Rope and Angry Birds Seasons. Words With Friends sits at number eight, while Angry Birds Space is tenth and PopCap's Plants vs. Zombies is number 12. Angry Birds Star Wars also makes the list at number 18, and Minecraft Pocket Edition takes the twenty-third spot. Facebook sits at number one on the free apps list, followed directly by Pandora Radio, Instagram, YouTube, Skype and Words With Friends Free. Twitter's application is eighth with T...
News
2 CommentsMinecraft Xbox 360 headed to European retailers June 28
By Emily Gera on May 01, 2013 05.01.13
The Xbox 360 edition of Minecraft is headed to European retailers on June 28, Microsoft confirmed today in a statement to VG247. This upcoming disc version of Minecraft will also include a free 48-hour Xbox Live trial, which will give all players the chance to access the game's online co-op. This follows last month's announcement of a delayed release in North America. The title was scheduled to hit retail shelves on April 30 at a price point of $19.99; however, Major Nelson revealed the retail release would be delayed until June 4 in order to ensure the latest content updates would be included in the physical copy of the game.
News
8 CommentsNotch unveils free ceiling-inspired Unity game called Drop, playable now
By Jenna Pitcher on Apr 29, 2013 04.29.13
Minecraft creator Markus "Notch" Persson unveiled Drop, a free Unity game available to play now, the developer revealed on his Twitter account. According to Notch, the game was mainly inspired by a section of ceiling in his apartment, as well as Fez's ending and Super Hexagon. Gameplay consists of gamers typing in the corresponding blinking letters on the screen and pressing space or enter to advance. Bonus points are awarded if more than four letters are entered at a time. The game speeds up if the wrong letter is entered and it's game over if a letter leaves the screen. According to Notch's Twitter, he shared Drop's code with game developer Mike Bithell, the creator of Thomas Was Alone, who then built an Oculus Rift version of the game.
News
0 CommentsMinecraft Papercraft Studio update adds mobs, apps now on sale
By Samit Sarkar on Apr 26, 2013 04.26.13
The latest update to Minecraft Papercraft Studio, the iOS app from 57Digital that lets you print out your avatars and turn them into real-life models, brings in Minecraft mobs to augment your papercraft collection. The version 1.2 patch, released today, adds 26 mobs including friends and enemies alike, such as creepers, pigs and sheep. In addition, the app now supports armor and has improved menu navigation. Along with updating Papercraft Studio, 57Digital has dropped the price on its Minecraft apps by $1 for the next week: Papercraft Studio, Skin Studio and Minecraft Explorer Pro are each available for $1.99 in the U.S., £1.49 in the U.K. and €1.79 in Europe.
Culture
0 CommentsMuseum of Art and Digital Entertainment constructs Oakland in Minecraft for OMCA exhibit
By Jenna Pitcher on Apr 26, 2013 04.26.13
Oakland's video game museum, the Museum of Art and Digital Entertainment (MADE), has recreated Oakland in Minecraft as part of an exhibit at the Oakland Museum of California this weekend The Oakland Museum of California approached MADE to put on an exhibit as part of the Museum's customization gallery. Rather than exhibiting "static games showing off how developers can customize ideas," MADE wanted to get "creative interaction" out of the attendees. MADE hired Minecraft artist, HuskerGirlKC, to help recreate the city alongside other other builders in the child-safe Paradise Minecraft Server. The organization considered using Team Fortress 2 for the exhibit as an example of how "gamers can customize their games, and make something entirely new in the process," but they deemed it too...
Culture
4 CommentsMojang and Jazwares team up to build MInecraft toys
By Dave Tach on Apr 19, 2013 04.19.13
Minecraft developer Mojang partnered with toy manufacturer Jazwares to produce toys and electronics based on the popular blocky world-building game, according to a press release from Jazwares (PDF link). The worldwide agreement between the companies will first produce products like action figures, plush toys and papercraft, which will be available for the 2013 holiday season. "We are excited by our new partnership with Jazwares," said Mojang CEO Carl Manneh. "This partnership will help give our community a new way to interact with the game they love." Jazwares has produced products based on everything from Star Wars and WWE to video game properties like Sonic the Hedgehog and Mortal Kombat. Last year, the company announced a partnership with PopCap Games to produce merchandise based...
News
5 CommentsMinecraft developers make Time's list of 100 most influential people
By Alexa Ray Corriea on Apr 18, 2013 04.18.13
Mojang's Markus 'Notch' Persson and Jens Bergensten have made Time magazine's list of 100 most influential people in the world for 2013. An introductory post by SimCity designer Will Wright praised the pair's work on Minecraft, calling the game a "wonderful combination of accessibility and depth, allowing for complex output with simple input." Wright wrote that Mojang's game is introducing children to computer programming as one of the "clear landmarks" along the path towards teaching them coding. Wright watches his son play Minecraft, noting how immersive the community surrounding the game has become. "He spends half his time playing and the other half watching video tutorials other players have made about making cool things with Minecraft," he wrote. "It's a community actively...
