My oldest daughter is obsessed with Minecraft. She watches videos of people playing sessions, or just goofing around, or maybe they're creating incredibly detailed versions of Grecian coastlines. I have no idea what the appeal is, though I've played with Legos quite a lot and I love building things. The really incredible thing is just how addictive it clearly is. It's amazing.
Good natured ribbing aside, I am amazed such simple ideas catch on and tickle the fancies of people all around the world. It's marvelous. Such things are impossible to predict, though I'm sure lots of people try all the time. Actually, I wouldn't be surprised if there are entire companies whose only purpose is to predict market fads and what should be the next big thing.
Of course, Minecraft isn't the only blistering fad out there. I think there was one about Jewels, then there's Warcraft, and the wonderfully hilarious Angry Birds. What I appreciate is the variety, the non-stop creativity, and the fact that we humans never tire of playing around with toys. Being a writer myself, I'm very grateful for that aspect, because it also means people won't tire of stories either.
I wonder what the spiritual sequel to Minecraft will be? Seems hard to follow something that takes everything to the most basic level and then turns the user loose to have fun. I do remember something called A-Life (Artificial Life) which let the user create electronic life of sorts, which usually just ended up making interesting patterns. It would be neat to see that return in some fashion.
- M
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