As any child worth their (blocky) salt knows, there are two main modes in Minecraft: Creative and Survival. Minecraft: Story Mode isn’t a third way to play that game, even if it sounds like it should be.
Instead, it’s a brand new, separate game based on the world of Minecraft. It’s an adventure game, comparable to the point-and-click adventures parents may have played when they were younger.
Developed by Telltale Games, working closely with Minecraft creator Mojang, it tells the tale of hero Jesse – who can be a boy or a girl according to preference – and their friends, setting off on a quest to save the world.
That world does look familiar: this adventure game is set within the world of Minecraft, complete with zombies, creepers and a pet pig named Reuben – and plenty of other knowing references to the original game and its culture.
The actual gameplay involves watching the story play out, and occasionally choosing a response from multiple-choice answers when another character asks you a question or expects an action. There are also some fight and puzzle scenes.
But really, this is about the story, with each choice your child makes affecting the way other characters interact with Jesse – and often also taking them down a specific path within the game’s branching narrative. Sometimes, the right choice is obvious, but other times, it’s a real dilemma.
Minecraft: Story Mode will tell its story over five episodes, delivered over the coming months. This first episode has around two hours of gameplay. On PC and Mac, you pay for the five episodes up front – it costs around £20.
On iOS and Android, you pay for the first episode upfront – it’s £3.99 on iOS and £3.92 on Android – and will then buy the other four as in-app purchases as they are released. We haven’t yet seen how the pricing works on consoles, but the game is available for Xbox 360 and Xbox One, as well as PlayStation 3 and PlayStation 4.
If your children are Minecraft-mad, we think they’ll love this new game. The experience of playing it is a bit like watching a video from a YouTube star like The Diamond Minecart or Stampy, except your child gets to influence the action regularly.
Minecraft: Story Mode costs £3.99 for iPhone and iPad from Apple’s App Store, and £3.92 for Android from the Google Play store. You can find out how to buy it for other platforms from the Telltale Games website.