Minecraft Dungeons

Unlike Minecraft, Minecraft Dungeons does not feature an open world nor mining or building. Instead, it is a point-and-click hack and slash-styled[1][2] dungeon crawler, rendered from an isometric perspective.[3] Players explore procedurally generated and hand crafted dungeons filled with randomly-generated monsters and also deal with traps, puzzles, bosses and finding treasure.[4][5] There is no class system; players can use any weapon or armor they wish.[6] The game includes a four-player local and online multiplayer.[7]

Minecraft Dungeons is set in the same fictional world as Minecraft, known as the "Overworld", consisting of rough 3D objects—mainly cubes and fluids, and commonly called "blocks"—representing various materials, and inhabited by both peaceful and hostile mobs. Unlike 'Minecraft', the game features a linear, story-driven campaign, and cutscenes.

The opening cutscene tells the story of a villager named Archie, who was driven away by his people. While searching for a new home, he was forced to leave every village he found due to Villagers not allowing him to live with them. One day, Archie stumbled upon a powerful artifact known as the Orb of Dominance, which granted him magic powers but also corrupted him. Now known as the "Arch-Illager", he sought vengeance on all those who wronged him and subjugated numerous villages with his newly acquired army. Players assume the role of heroes who embark on a quest to defeat the Arch-Illager while liberating oppressed villages, fighting monsters, and completing various quests. Ultimately, the players face the Arch-Illager in his castle and destroy the Orb of Dominance, freeing Archie from its influence. Rather than punish Archie for his actions, the players show him kindness and forgiveness and quickly befriend him. As the players and Archie depart, the Orb is shown to be rebuilding itself. It is then found by an Enderman who picks up the orb and goes into the End. The last scene in the cutscene shows an Endersent climbing out of the portal. In the game, after defeating Archie, players unlock new difficulties that make the game more challenging but provide better rewards.

Dungeons is developed by Mojang Studios for Xbox One, Windows 10, PlayStation 4, and Nintendo Switch using Unreal Engine 4.[8][9] Console ports are being done by Double Eleven.[10]

With the continued success of the original Minecraft, Mojang thought about other possible games that could bring something new to the Minecraft universe.[11] Experimenting with different ideas, the game was originally meant to be a single-player dungeon crawl game, inspired by The Legend of Zelda series, for the Nintendo 3DS.[11][12] However, as the game began to take shape, these elements were changed or removed. For example, after adding in multiplayer features, the development team realized that these changes made the game more fun.[13] According to game director Måns Olsen, the game was inspired by Diablo and Torchlight,[9] as well as co-operative first-person shooter games like Warhammer: End Times – Vermintide and Left 4 Dead.[11]

One of the primary challenges the development team faced was figuring out how to adapt the gameplay of dungeon crawl games like Diablo into the world of Minecraft. Since Minecraft characters did not have any special innate abilities, Mojang had to think of alternatives to things such as character class that would normally be found in games of that genre. Their solution was to focus on creating weapons and armor that the player could make more powerful through enchantments, allowing the player to explore their creativity through customization.[12][14]

In addition, Mojang wanted to streamline the traditional dungeon crawl game experience into something more accessible. Olsen remarked that other games in the genre "are approachable to some degree, but they're typically games with very deep, interconnected systems", and that they wanted to make getting into Minecraft Dungeons "super easy" yet "instantly familiar".[15] The decision to not allow building or crafting, a staple of the original Minecraft, was also made in order to focus on the core dungeon-crawling experience.[11] To give more experienced players a challenge, the team added options to change the game's difficulty, which would reward players with better equipment and new secret content for playing on harder difficulties.[14]

Minecraft Dungeons was announced on September 28, 2018, during the Minecon live streaming event.[16][17] A video showcasing gameplay was released during E3 2019.[18]

Minecraft Dungeons was released on May 26, 2020, after being delayed from its original April release date[19] due to the COVID-19 pandemic.[20] The closed beta for the game ran for a month from March 25 to April 24, 2020.[21][22]

After the initial release, the game was supported with several downloadable content (DLC) expansions packs that each added new dungeons, weapons, items and artifacts.[23] The first expansion, titled Jungle Awakens, was released on July 1, 2020.[24] It was followed by Creeping Winter on September 8, 2020,[25] Howling Peaks on December 9, 2020,[26] Flames of the Nether on February 24, 2021,[27] Hidden Depths on May 26, 2021,[28] and Echoing Void on July 28, 2021.[29] An Xbox Series X/S-optimized version was released alongside the Flames of the Nether update.[30] On July 28, 2021, the same day that Minecraft Dungeons: Echoing Void was released, Minecraft Dungeons, Ultimate Edition was released with all 6 DLCs and access to all Hero Pass Cosmetics.[31]

In March 2021, Mojang announced an arcade version of the game associated with collectible cards.[32] Officially licensed from Mojang and Microsoft, it was created by developer Play Mechanix and entertainment company Raw Thrills. The gameplay was changed into a beat-em-up format, similar to games such as Golden Axe. It debuted at Dave & Buster's restaurants sometime in May 2022.[33]

Minecraft Dungeons received mixed to positive reviews from critics, according to review aggregator Metacritic.[34][35][36] Critics generally found the game fun and charming,[1][41][42][44][2] complimenting its visuals[38][1][42][44] and music.[44] Some were divided on Dungeons's simplicity[43][42][45] and the procedural generation system used to generate loot and dungeon layouts.[43][39][40][1][2] Most reviewers were critical of the game's short story mode and perceived lack of depth.[43][1][38] Shacknews called it "a fun, laid back dungeon crawler for friends to get into."[46] The Hero Edition of Minecraft Dungeons sold 11,450 physical copies on the Nintendo Switch within its first week on sale in Japan, making it the fourth bestselling retail game of the week in the country.[47] The game was nominated for the category of Best Family game at The Game Awards 2020.[48] The game has over 15 million players, as of February 2022.[49]

• Official website