Summary
Naturally, the sandbox lifeblood ofMinecraftis the boundless creativity of players — something not contained to just what can be done with blocks.Minecraft’s status as a multimedia icon would not be possible without community creations outside the game, from endless hours of YouTube content to its vibrant modding community. However, this success might reach new peaks with a cue from Bethesda’s playbook.
Bethesda’s inventory has a similarly involved modding community, one that led to an official venue for them in the vein of the Creation Club forFallout 4andSkyrim. This came after an initial attempt to monetize modding caused outcry in 2015 (thoughthe Creation Club wasn’t without controversy). Compared to 2015’s ‘paid mods’ fiasco, the Creation Club arrived with some notable polish.
The Benefits of Bethesda’s Creation Club
WhilstMinecrafthas a similar program for its marketplace, where creators can sell mod content for a price, it has some key differences when compared to the Creation Club. Firstly, Bethesda has made it clear how the Creation Club has its members employed asexternalFallout 4/Skyrimdevelopers. Mojang does officially onboard creators through their partner program, but it’s less outspoken about the capacity of creators' employment. With entire collectives creating content, such as Blockworks and Rareloot,Minecraft’s marketplace is more in the vein of DMsguild. DMsguild is Wizards of the Coast’s avenue forD&Dfans to sell works that use its IP, which acts as a platform for creator products in much the same way asMinecraft’s marketplace.
With the fanbase’s issues surrounding a lack of substantial content, which came to a head withthis year’sMinecraftmob vote, it would be a good idea forMinecraftto work with fans in a more formal capacity. Not in terms of creating an exact replica of the Creation Club, but to allow independent creators to add swathes of solid mods that significantly impact the game.
The Way Minecraft Handles Mods Presents A Parity Problem
Another issueMinecrafthas in this area is the fact that all of these marketplace microtransactions are quarantined to Bedrock Edition. Bedrock Edition mainly refers to the game’s mobile and console variants, but also to its ChromeOS and Windows versions. The Java Edition has no marketplace functionality. However, practically the entire free modding community exists on Java, whilst modding capabilities outside the marketplace are slim to none onMinecraftBedrock. This has essentially railroaded Bedrock players into paying to make up for the limitations of their system.
Bethesda has made frequent steps to allow for modding parity between PC and console. Not only has it made Creation Club products accessible across versions, presenting them as regular microtransactions rather than a paid railroad, but they’ve made strides in making free mods available for console games, such as withfreeFallout 4mods. Bethesda maintaining a free alternative has gone a long way toward the upkeep of community trust, proving that it has no intention of putting a price tag on all mods. Mojang would greatly benefit from doing the same.
The Creation Club was extremely controversial at launch and by no means does Mojang need to copy it entirely. That said, the prospect of employing fans to produce content whilst providing both premium and free mods on all versions would go a long way. Not only would it further empower creators, it would improve better parity between Java and Bedrock, a goalthat Mojang seems to support. Premium support on Java and free support on Bedrock would really help bringMinecraft’s modding communities closer together.
Minecraft
WHERE TO PLAY
Minecraft is a game made up of blocks, creatures, and community. You can survive the night or build a work of art – the choice is all yours. But if the thought of exploring a vast new world all on your own feels overwhelming, then fear not!Minecraft has no set goal and can be played however you’d like! This is why it’s sometimes called a “sandbox game” – there are lots of things for you to do, and lots of ways that you can play. If you like being creative, then you can use the blocks to build things from your imagination. If you’re feeling brave, you can explore the world and face daring challenges. Blocks can be broken, crafted, placed to reshape the landscape, or used to build fantastical creations.Creatures can be battled or befriended, depending on how you play. The world of Minecraft allows for epic adventures, quiet meditations, and everything in between. You can even share your creations with other players, or play in community worlds!
