Photo: Toyland
You know how we refer to certain things as being “the building blocks” of other, bigger things? For example, the cells being the building blocks of organic life, or stupidity and ignorance being the building blocks of violent behavior?
Well, Minecraft is a 3D video game that took this thing a little too literally, and so it proposes a world made entirely out of blocks. It’s a right angle extravaganza with graphics that make you regret the last two system upgrades that somehow managed to grip even the younger, more pretentious gamers.
The secret lies in the sand box nature of the game, allowing those playing it to do pretty much anything that crosses their mind - as long as it’s not round. It also offers the kids an introduction to basic programming, a skill that will undoubtedly be of great use to them later in life, if they choose to hone it further.
All in all, the Minecraft game has a huge fanbase and if you haven’t tried it so far, well, don’t, as it will probably take up too much of your time anyway. Successful names such as Minecraft can be real gold mines in real life, so apart from the €19.95 ($26.95) price tag on the game itself, its creators together with Hot Wheels decided to cash in on its popularity in the physical world as well.
Not that Minecraft was lacking in merchandise before. You can get anything, from vinyl figurines to full-size pixelated swords, torches or pickaxes, and even clothes. Of course, Minecraft and Lego make for natural partners, so there are a few themed Lego sets to choose from. But things with wheels? Those are hard to come by in a world where even King Arthur would have had to settle for a square table.
All that is about to change now, as Toyland announces the introduction of the Minecart, a replica of the in-game vehicle that is nothing more than a box on wheels. You can just feel the frustration of the guy designing the plastic wrapping: he simply couldn’t live with the fact that he only had to draw a square, so even though it wasn’t needed, he did more than that.
It’s funny how something so simple and so trolly (come on, designing a world made of blocks can hardly be called “design”) became so hugely popular, proving that a clever mechanism can be much more important than flashy graphics and big budgets. As for the Hot Wheels model car, that’s probably something only a collector would consider buying. And we can understand that. Just imagine stepping on one of these by accident - Lego levels of pain times ten.
The secret lies in the sand box nature of the game, allowing those playing it to do pretty much anything that crosses their mind - as long as it’s not round. It also offers the kids an introduction to basic programming, a skill that will undoubtedly be of great use to them later in life, if they choose to hone it further.
All in all, the Minecraft game has a huge fanbase and if you haven’t tried it so far, well, don’t, as it will probably take up too much of your time anyway. Successful names such as Minecraft can be real gold mines in real life, so apart from the €19.95 ($26.95) price tag on the game itself, its creators together with Hot Wheels decided to cash in on its popularity in the physical world as well.
Not that Minecraft was lacking in merchandise before. You can get anything, from vinyl figurines to full-size pixelated swords, torches or pickaxes, and even clothes. Of course, Minecraft and Lego make for natural partners, so there are a few themed Lego sets to choose from. But things with wheels? Those are hard to come by in a world where even King Arthur would have had to settle for a square table.
All that is about to change now, as Toyland announces the introduction of the Minecart, a replica of the in-game vehicle that is nothing more than a box on wheels. You can just feel the frustration of the guy designing the plastic wrapping: he simply couldn’t live with the fact that he only had to draw a square, so even though it wasn’t needed, he did more than that.
It’s funny how something so simple and so trolly (come on, designing a world made of blocks can hardly be called “design”) became so hugely popular, proving that a clever mechanism can be much more important than flashy graphics and big budgets. As for the Hot Wheels model car, that’s probably something only a collector would consider buying. And we can understand that. Just imagine stepping on one of these by accident - Lego levels of pain times ten.
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