Minecraft

[Robert Maxwell]

Don't let the graphics fool you, this game isn't a basic 8-bit game, it is resource intensive. It frequently uses between 1-1.5GB of RAM when running, and it frequently suffers framerate issues when exploring new chunks. Making the graphics look better would just make an already resource hungry game even worse and it would have even greater difficulty running on older PCs. Presumably, it will be optimised in beta so as not to be quite as resource-hungry as it is now, but by that time changing the graphics would be a mistake as they have come to be part of its charm. A more detailed creeper skin wouldn't be able to express the same sense of threatening sadness that the current skin does.

Very true. Notch has also said that, even though they've hired an artist, the game's graphics will not become higher res or anything. It makes my Pentium 4 desktop chug already, even with the graphics turned down. It's really not hard to see why considering it's pushing a lot of polygons and has a completely deformable environment. I've noticed if you change the flow of any water it really nails your CPU--the water calculations seem to be pretty intensive. The light calculations are also known to cause some issues which are being worked on.

Yeah, my home machine is pretty old, so I have to keep the draw distance on short, or else it really chugs at times. It can be kind of annoying since I can't see the sun too well, but the alternative is mistiming jumps on normal, which can be deadly if you're inching down a mineshaft.

I also litter my path underground with copious amounts of torches. In fact, I even like to put a door at cave entrances, just to prevent that slight chance of a creeper wandering in behind me...

I put torches all over my caves, too. Whenever I feel like I'm lost deep inside a cave system, I dig my way to the surface and set up a lighted entrance so I can find it again in the future. I need to make signs so I can label routes within the mines, though. Too easy to get lost as it is.

 

[Canadave]

^ Yeah, signs are a damn good idea. I wasn't carrying enough wood on my last subterranean expedition to make good use of them, but I definitely will next time.

 

[What's his face]

Awesome base, but beware when buliding with wood - if you put fire or lava (torches are okay) anywhere near that stuff, you could be out a roof! The heat from fire and lava can set flammable blocks on fire, even from a bit of a distance.

No kidding

I was trying to clear a tree out of the way so I could build a house. I decided to set it on fire instead of taking it apart, cube by cube.

Anyways, this happened:

Whoops!

 

[Sephiroth]

i've only played the freebie version *with a laptop keyboard and control pad, I think i'm gonna buy a USB mouse* and the way I tend to play is to strip mine and then build up a fancy base

 

[JarodRussell]

Oh I know such a self-directed game with much better graphics than that.

Don't let the graphics fool you, this game isn't a basic 8-bit game, it is resource intensive. It frequently uses between 1-1.5GB of RAM when running, and it frequently suffers framerate issues when exploring new chunks. Making the graphics look better would just make an already resource hungry game even worse and it would have even greater difficulty running on older PCs. Presumably, it will be optimised in beta so as not to be quite as resource-hungry as it is now, but by that time changing the graphics would be a mistake as they have come to be part of its charm. A more detailed creeper skin wouldn't be able to express the same sense of threatening sadness that the current skin does.

Wait, very low graphics AND ressource intensive? LOL.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Oh I know such a self-directed game with much better graphics than that.

Don't let the graphics fool you, this game isn't a basic 8-bit game, it is resource intensive. It frequently uses between 1-1.5GB of RAM when running, and it frequently suffers framerate issues when exploring new chunks. Making the graphics look better would just make an already resource hungry game even worse and it would have even greater difficulty running on older PCs. Presumably, it will be optimised in beta so as not to be quite as resource-hungry as it is now, but by that time changing the graphics would be a mistake as they have come to be part of its charm. A more detailed creeper skin wouldn't be able to express the same sense of threatening sadness that the current skin does.

Wait, low graphics AND ressource intensive? LOL.

...and your point is?

 

[JarodRussell]

Don't let the graphics fool you, this game isn't a basic 8-bit game, it is resource intensive. It frequently uses between 1-1.5GB of RAM when running, and it frequently suffers framerate issues when exploring new chunks. Making the graphics look better would just make an already resource hungry game even worse and it would have even greater difficulty running on older PCs. Presumably, it will be optimised in beta so as not to be quite as resource-hungry as it is now, but by that time changing the graphics would be a mistake as they have come to be part of its charm. A more detailed creeper skin wouldn't be able to express the same sense of threatening sadness that the current skin does.

Wait, low graphics AND ressource intensive? LOL.

...and your point is?

That I'll better stick to games with much better graphics and no framerate issues.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Wait, low graphics AND ressource intensive? LOL.

...and your point is?

That I'll better stick to games with much better graphics and no framerate issues.

Suit yourself. I think you're missing out, but to each his own.

 

[TheGodBen]

Wait, very low graphics AND ressource intensive? LOL.

Do you know any other games that can procedurally generate a world up to 8 times the surface area of the Earth and that allow you to completely reshape that world to your liking? The game has performance issues because a) it's in alpha and performance issues are normally cleaned up in beta, and b) it does more than most other games on the market.

That I'll better stick to games with much better graphics and no framerate issues.

Fair enough.

For those that haven't played the game and aren't shallow enough to let the graphics put them off, the game is entering beta on the 20th, so if you want to buy the game, buy it now. Once it's in beta, not only will the price go up, but you'll have to pay for any additional DLC that comes out post release, while alpha purchasers will get it all free because of the poorly worded terms on the site. It's only €10/$15, so you're almost certain to get your money's worth from it.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

Yeah, I paid under $15 for it and it's money well spent. Certainly a better value than most retail games.

 

[Hoser]

That I'll better stick to games with much better graphics and no framerate issues.

Meh. I play it on my netbook with no real issues. It's not that intensive, unless you're playing on a 6 year old machine.

 

[eastman23]

Ok, I can see why this game can be addictive. I finally got around to buying it and started playing a little while ago.

Spent my first night in a nice little hole I dug in the mountain to get some stone. It was starting to get dark, so I sat back and watched... things starting to move around in the distance. And make noise. I plopped down some of the stone I had to seal off the entrance and continued to watch though the little opening over the naturally dug hole in front of my little cave

And then something dropped down the hole right in front me and scared the crap out of me! I stayed as still as I could the rest of the night.

Finally, light started coming, so I decided to see what had scared the crap out of me earlier. And ended up falling down the hole right in front of it. It then proceeded to quickly and efficiently kill me.

 

[Peak]

Today is Beta-day..

 

[TheGodBen]

Does the beta bring any big changes or is it just bringing minor fixes? In fact, has there been any big updates recently on the singleplayer side of things?

I stopped playing about a month ago and I haven't been following update news since then. I'm sure I'll go back to it in the new year, this does seem like the sort of game that I'll be playing on and off until I get a computer that is too advanced to run it.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

I believe getting to beta was all about getting the MP functionality working. Now that it's in beta Notch has talked about working on the single player experience.

I'm still wanting more customization in terms of how things look, like colored cloth blocks. I'm also hoping there will be a substantial modding capability so people can add new mobs, biomes, block types, craftables, etc. To me, that would make this an endlessly extensible game.

 

[TheGodBen]

Apparently, you can now throw the eggs.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

You can throw the eggs? Do they do anything when you throw them? It would be funny if Creepers had a fatal allergy to eggs or something.

 

[Reverend]

^Or better yet, Creepers are attracted to broken eggs so you can bait them in traps or distract them while you make a run for it!

I wouldn't mind a better tool for extensive tunnel digging like a drill or a laser or something. Just to cut down on the time it takes to dig out large projects. Just to make it a challenge to build and not too much of a game breaker it'd have to require some difficult to acquire ingredients...like say a diamond, a fair bit of iron and perhaps some redstone and/or a furnace for power.

 

[Robert Maxwell]

^Or better yet, Creepers are attracted to broken eggs so you can bait them in traps or distract them while you make a run for it!

I wouldn't mind a better tool for extensive tunnel digging like a drill or a laser or something. Just to cut down on the time it takes to dig out large projects. Just to make it a challenge to build and not too much of a game breaker it'd have to require some difficult to acquire ingredients...like say a diamond, a fair bit of iron and perhaps some redstone and/or a furnace for power.

Or make it easier to obtain TNT for mass blasting.

(No, I have not yet built a Creeper trap. Maybe I should?)

 

[Reverend]

^I built one and sealed myself in the "receiving slot" and left the program running all night. Had about 4 and a half full stacks of gunpowder by morning. Still, TNT isn't that useful for digging as it only takes a chunk about 4-6 blocks deep.