Everyone knows the mega hit game, Minecraft, is back with another series. It’s the new strategy game ahead of release on April 18th, Minecraft Legends.
And before the release, we were given the opportunity to experience Minecraft Legends in advance. Minecraft developer Mojang Studio held a hands-on preview event in Tokyo, Japan. At the site, I was able to experience the campaign mode and PVP mode over regarding 2 hours, and in the case of PVP, reporters and creators from each country divided their teams and played 3vs3.
Two completely different experiences, campaign and PVP
Although it is regrettable that I had to play and interview at the same time at the given time, I might not experience both the campaign and PVP satisfactorily. Especially in PVP, I had to leave for an interview right following playing the first part for a while, so I guess I only got a taste of it.
However, following playing for an hour, the campaign mode was surprisingly immersive. First of all, there is a Korean dub! Here, the overall flow of the story continues without interruption.
Instead of showing one scene and then changing the background following dark to show the next scene, it’s just that all the scenes are linked together. Missions and missions, stages and stages are not disconnected, but the missions of the campaign are progressed sequentially as the story continues in one huge map.
There is no disconnection, so a high sense of immersion follows naturally. However, it seems that the interest from the game play process was greater than the story part. That’s why it’s so fun to play in the beginning.
In other words, in the case of the campaign, rather than the feeling of playing a strategy game, I strongly felt that I was playing a sandbox, action, strategy game mixed with many things. Although it seems like I only experienced the very beginning, it definitely feels quite different from the strategy game genre I’ve known before.
Interestingly, the campaign mode and PVP mode provide completely different early experiences. If the campaign mode is geared towards gradually adapting to the game and experiencing the various contents of the game sequentially along with the story, in the case of PVP, it was possible to experience agile and colorful strategies.
In the case of PVP, it is a mode that can draw completely different strategies for each player and team. In the PVP mode, which can be played with up to 8 players and 4vs4, the team shares the entire situation in the game, including all resources and buildings. Therefore, it is absolutely necessary for all team members to become one and communicate in real time.
Also, since the game is played on a single map in real time, each team must play very agilely. For example, in the beginning, each role is divided, someone collects basic resources, someone builds a castle, and someone attacks piglins to collect lapis lazuli. I mean like
In this hands-on, the PVP play time was not long and only one game was played, so I mightn’t check out a lot of different plays, but even in that short time, each team showed completely different strategies.
The side with Korean members gathers resources at a rapid pace, builds a castle in an instant, gathers troops in the early stages and destroys the opponent’s castle, while the side with Australian and Southeast Asian reporters turns the game into a long battle and fights enemies from a distance. A lot of resources, troops, and buildings appeared in the second half, including cannons that attack the castle.
Certainly, in the case of PVP mode, the aspect of ‘strategy’ was revealed very strongly. Furthermore, in a many-to-many situation rather than 1vs1, the need for communication and cooperation was as high as the strategy.
However, this also means that the in-game situation is dynamic, and the play method is not difficult. It’s clear from the fact that those who only experienced the very basic, basic steps through the campaign didn’t have too much trouble developing their strategy even following playing the game.
Oh, and the most important thing is that the whole game was played very amicably, unlike the perception given by ‘PVP’. Everyone I met at the site was the first person I saw that day, and even though they were from different nationalities and even spoke different languages, they all had a lot of fun playing the game. In a nutshell, unlike strategy games where you usually have to stare at the monitor very intently and require quick movements, I was able to have a much lighter experience.
Fun and unique with a 3rd person strategy game
I think this probably has a lot to do with the characteristics of Minecraft Legends. Minecraft Legends is a game that properly combines the genre of ‘strategy’ while including Minecraft’s unique graphics, world view, and characteristics.
Isn’t the most important thing in a strategy game to think regarding the most efficient way to win? And how to portray that concern in each game is also very important. Instead of packing a lot into the process, Minecraft Legends gave players a lot more options at the cost of significantly lowering the barrier to entry.
It’s not shallow depth. I think you can just say that the depth of the river gradually deepens without end. First of all, it’s very easy to get your hands on, but it’s not just cute, cute, and easy, but I think you’ll be able to experience more and more diverse strategies. Very simply, someone will build a castle to defend their village, while someone will assemble a combat unit and charge directly to defeat the enemy.
And the characteristic aspects of Minecraft itself have been saved quite a bit. In particular, free construction and collecting resources for construction are indispensable features of Minecraft. Of course, we’ve brought it much more conveniently to fit the aspect of being a strategy game.
The graphics are also Minecraft’s unique block graphics that look simple, but the quality itself is much higher than the original. Of course, personally, it was a little difficult to distinguish between stones and non-stone resources, but anyway, it is much smoother and visibility is improved.
The way the game is played, that is, the operation itself, is very simple. It may also be connected to the feature mentioned above, ‘low entry barrier’. Collecting resources, building, fighting, and moving are all very easy. It’s unique nonetheless. This is because it was centered around a third person character. You have to move the character directly to collect resources, move the character directly to construct buildings, and directly move the character to fight.
Looking at the map in front of your eyes, looking at the resources and how to use them as efficiently and quickly as possible is not the center. First of all, to do something, you must move the character and go through everything from one to ten, so you can focus more on one thing.
I have one character, and with this one character, I have to mine resources, build buildings, draw combat units, attack piglins, and defend the village. Although this part is a strategy game, it is different from traditional strategy games. You can also feel the action side through characters that can move and attack directly. Even these characters have stamina levels, so they naturally die when they run out.
And personally, the pleasure of ‘construction’ is greater than I thought. In the case of construction, it is not completely free because it is not block-oriented, but once given, you can create as much as you want. At what angle and what shape to build the walls, where to place the gates, whether to focus on defense, whether to increase the type of resources to make a quick attack, etc. It ran.
In addition, the controller, keyboard and mouse all provide the same very easy operation feeling. Of course, in RTS, I thought that the keyboard and mouse operation were much more comfortable, but the controller operation was not uncomfortable at all. I wonder if this is also because moving the character directly and proceeding with everything is the center.
Minecraft Legends has all of these parts put together to create a strategy game that’s unique, yet not difficult to get into, and offers two completely different experiences. Of course, I’ve only played for a very short time, so it’s hard to say much regarding it definitively.
However, throughout the entire play, I didn’t feel much of the chin-and-going difficulty unique to strategy games. I think I was able to enjoy it very casually than I thought. I was able to experience both the campaign and PVP without much pressure. However, this hands-on is not enough to experience something in-depth strategy, so there is regret regarding this.
Minecraft Legends saved the characteristics of Minecraft, but mixed all of them well with Minecraft Legends. Thanks to this, Minecraft fans have been able to play the game more happily, and conversely, even first-time players can enjoy the game without difficulty.
Minecraft Legends from Mojang Studios will be released on April 18th for PC, Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PlayStation, Steam and Nintendo Switch. And with Xbox Game Pass, you can play the game the day it launches.
