Minecraft Pocket Edition tweaks the gameplay of the indie hit for Android devices, starting with the Xperia Play.
Screengrab courtesy Mojang (click to enlarge)
Developer Mojang released a portable version of its indie smash-hit Minecraft for Sony Ericsson’s Android-fueled Xperia Play gaming cellphone Tuesday.
Minecraft Pocket Edition, built specifically for mobile platforms, will only be available for the PlayStation-branded Xperia Play at first. The game will make its way to other Android devices “in about a month’s time,” Mojang told Wired.com in an e-mail.
The company is also considering a version for iOS platforms but does not have any specific release plans.
In Minecraft, which Mojang says has 12 million registered users, players are thrown into a randomly generated world made of Lego-like blocks where they can collect materials, build structures and forge weapons. At night, the monsters come out. Players must then hide in shelters or use weapons to ward them off until the sun starts shining again.
Minecraft Pocket Edition features the same robust crafting system that has allowed hard-core players to construct crazy creations like full-scale models of the starship Enterprise and re-creations of Bioshock’s underwater dystopia, Rapture.
Unlike its desktop counterpart, Pocket Edition will not feature nightly monster raids. Mojang says this will make the atmosphere more relaxed, as is suitable for a portable game.
Like the desktop version of Minecraft, Pocket Edition will receive a steady stream of updates. Monsters will likely be added once the company listens to consumer feedback, Mojang said. But some Minecraft elements won’t work as well on a portable device.
“A night-and-day cycle is something we are hesitant towards, since you have a much shorter time span when playing on a mobile device,” said Mojang in an e-mail. “Imagine you have a five-minute bus ride to play on and it’s pitch dark the whole time.”
But Pocket Edition isn’t meant to be a portable replacement for your PC. Mojang says this version of the game will have exclusive features.
Pocket Edition players can share their personal worlds with other players with a Wi-Fi connection. Mobile users can also visit each other’s worlds and play together — as long as they’re connected to the same local network.
Social features will eventually be added as well, said Mojang, though it did not give specifics.
Minecraft Pocket Edition is available on the Android Market for $7.
John Mix Meyer is Game|Life's intrepid intern/mascot. When not following the sadistic whims of his editor, he plays videogames and sleeps.Follow @Hexjackal and @GameLife on Twitter.
