Minecraft

Minecraft is a sandbox construction game inspired by Infiniminer,written in Java by Markus Persson and Mojang AB, and featuring music by C418 and paintings by Kristoffer Zetterstrand. It allows the player to control an avatar that can destroy or create blocks on the map, and interact with the Minecraft Environment, which in addition to blocks also includes Plants, Mobs, and Items. The openness of the game model allows players to form fantastic structures, creations and artwork across the various multiplayer servers or on their own single player maps. Other Features include Redstone circuits for logic and remote actions, Minecarts and tracks, and a mysterious underworld called the "Nether". The game is still under development; the current client version is Beta, and the current Survival server version is Beta. A Full Release version of the game is expected sometime in the near future.

Overview
The latest version of Minecraft (Beta) is currently available to players for €14.95 (~ $21) and the complete version will cost €20 (~ $28). Once purchased, the game can be played in a web browser or a downloadable client (the Minecraft launcher). It is also possible to buy gift codes to give Minecraft to other people, for the same price as buying the game for yourself. Minecraft Classic is available to play for free. Classic is a pure sandbox game, with unlimited blocks and no hazards, whereas Beta requires the player to collect resources themselves, has mobs, health and damage, and craftable items. Minecraft Classic and Minecraft Beta are available at minecraft.net; Classic must be played in-browser, but Beta can be played in-browser or downloaded. The full version of the game is due for release on November 11, 2011 (11-11-11), though Notch later stated that Mojang "need to change the release date for Minecraft to be able to get a good venue for MinecraftCon. 11/11/11 is fully booked."

History
Also see Development Cycle

Creation
Notch got the idea for Minecraft after playing Infiniminer with other members of the TIG Source forums in 2009. Other influences include Dwarf Fortress, Dungeon Keeper, and Notch's own previous project, RubyDung.

Pre-Release
When he first started working on Minecraft, Notch had planned for it to just be a small project. For instance, When Notch uploaded the first YouTube video of Minecraft on May 13, 2009, he had not yet decided on a name, and simply referred to it as a "cave game". The name "Minecraft: Order of the Stone" (a reference to Order of the Stick, a web comic and "one of the best things on the internet") was announced the next day, and then shortly after, it was shortened to "Minecraft" as it was much simpler and some people might have thought it was Order of the Stick. The game was finally released for an "early private singleplayer alpha" on May 16. 2009,

Classic
The day after the private release, May 17, 2009, Notch released of 0.0.11a to the public and the game received mention on IndieGames.com the day after that. Creative game mode allows you to build/destroy blocks in a manner in which you can build any sort of object you would like. Players are given an infinite amount of each block to build with. Minecraft classic may be played by going to the Minecraft website and clicking "Classic".

Survival Test
Survival Test was developed and released as a free version of Classic. It was the introduction of Survival Mode used in Indev to the current Beta. In it, the player now had to mine blocks, face Mobs, and had a health bar. If the player were to die, the map was lost, and unless backed up, the user would have to start over.

Indev
Indev was initially released on December 23, 2009 after Notch received requests to let the community try out new features he was implementing in Survival Test. Indev version 0.31 was put to the public at minecraft.net/indev and available only to people who had purchased the game. New features currently contained a more complex and realistic lighting scheme than Classic. Indev received 29 updates after this, gaining a few fundamental features to Minecraft as it went. During its lifespan, some updates were devoted mostly for testing new things, like Torches or Fire. As it progressed, its game play became standardized to that of modern Beta, however with much less features. Like Survival Test, if the player were to die, all was lost.

Planned Versions

 * Release (Possibly 11 November 2011)
 * Pocket Edition (?)
 * Xbox Edition (Fall 2011)

Milestones and Awards
Minecraft was first made available for sale during June 2009 and has since sold over two million copies. It has also won numerous awards including:
 * PC Gamer's Game of the Year
 * 2010 Indie of the Year
 * GDC's Best Debut Game, Best Downloadable Game, and the Innovation Award
 * IGF's Grand Prize and Audience Award.