What Is Minecraft? What You Actually Do in the Game

Minecraft is a sandbox video game where the whole world is made of blocks you can break, collect and place somewhere else. There’s no required goal. You can survive against monsters and work toward the final boss, or switch to Creative and build whatever you can imagine with unlimited blocks.

It was created by Markus “Notch” Persson in Sweden, first released publicly in 2009, and is made today by Mojang Studios, owned by Microsoft. It’s the best-selling video game ever, and in October 2023 it became the first to pass 300 million copies sold.

What you actually do

You start in a randomly generated world: forests, deserts, oceans, mountains, caves. In Survival, you punch trees for wood, craft tools, mine for stone, iron and diamonds, grow food, and build a shelter before night, when zombies, skeletons and creepers come out. Over time you work up to enchanted gear, the fiery Nether dimension, and finally the End, where the ender dragon waits.

In Creative, you fly, can’t die, and every block is free. People build castles, cities, pixel art, and working machines with redstone, the game’s version of electrical wiring.

There are a few more modes for custom maps and watching; game modes explained covers them all.

The two main editions

• Java Edition runs on Windows, macOS and Linux. It’s the original version, with the biggest mod community and the famous large servers.
• Bedrock Edition runs on Windows, Xbox, PlayStation, Switch, phones and tablets, and players on all of those can play together.

On a PC you get both with one purchase. Not sure which to play? Our Java vs Bedrock comparison helps you decide, and the price guide lists what it costs on each platform.

Why so many people play it

It stretches to fit whoever is playing. A six-year-old builds a dirt house and is delighted. A teenager runs a survival server with friends. Engineers build calculators out of redstone. Teachers use Minecraft Education to teach coding and history. And because there’s no story, nobody “finishes” it the way they finish other games.

Is it OK for kids?

Mostly, yes. It’s rated PEGI 7 and ESRB E10+, combat is bloodless, and single-player has no contact with strangers. Online play is where parents need to set limits. Our guide for parents covers the settings.

Getting started

Once you have the game, how to play Minecraft walks you through your first days: wood, tools, a bed, and surviving the first night.