Image via Complex Original
What has traditionally separated the PC from other video game platforms is the depth and complexity of game experiences available on a personal computer. Minecraft is an indie title, first released as an alpha build in May of 2009 that took advantage of the PC gamer’s proclivity for these sorts of games.
Minecraft offered PC gamers a simple proposition: “Take this shovel or pickaxe, chop down trees and mine rocks, and then build things.” By September of 2010, Minecraft had become a bonafide phenomena in the video game community. And some of the things Minecraft players have chosen to build can boggle the mind.
We bring you ten examples of Minecraft constructions that will either send you running to the game’s website to make a purchase and get in on the fun, or leave you speechless with awe and maybe a little afraid of Minecraft addiction.
The Reichstag
One of the most popular activities among hardcore Minecraft players is to recreate famous architecture from the real world. The Parisian Arc de Triomphe, the Roman Colosseum, the Taj Mahal and the cathedral of Notre Dame have all been built in Minecraft. Behold an example of one of these recreations, the Reichstag building in Berlin, Germany.
Minecraft Train Switching Station
Minecraft features more than just blocks of material that can be stacked creatively. The game also has simple electrical circuits, mechanical devices like pressure plates, railroad tracks and mine carts. Used properly, Minecraft players can utilize these elements to create functional devices, like this train station with multiple track selection.
Darned if we understand the explanation as to how it works…but it works!
U.S.S. Nimitz Aircraft Carrier
Unfortunately, some of the coolest objects created in Minecraft can’t be made functional no matter how many circuits and switches and gizmos are offered by the game. That doesn’t make them any less impressive for their minute attention to detail, especially when they’re something like this recreation of the U.S.S. Nimitz aircraft carrier.
U.S.S. Enterprise-D
As Chris Hardwick recently told Wired magazine, nerds are all about minutiae. This likely explains the popularity of Minecraft in the nerd community to a large degree. Where there are nerds, there are Trekkies, and therefore it was probably inevitable that someone would choose to build a starship from the Star Trek universe within Minecraft.
The project that has drawn the most attention so far is this construction of the Enterprise-D from Star Trek: The Next Generation. The video above premiered the construction to the world, but check out this video for an update on the progress. We didn’t use the update video to spare you the obnoxious first minute which features a My Little Pony picture while the narrator teases the audience. You’re welcome.
The city of Rapture from Bioshock (sort of)
The underwater city of Rapture from the Bioshock series has become a modern icon in the world of video games, and the Penny Arcade community decided to try building something similar to Rapture within Minecraft. It’s not a perfect copy, but rather goes for the feel of Rapture.
You can see part 2 of the video here, and read about the creation of Minecraft’s version of Rapture here.
The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past Tribute
Tribute is a motivation for some of the most dedicated Minecraft builders, and here’s one that should be near and dear to the hearts of gamers. It’s a recreation of the Light World from the Nintendo 64 game The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past.
Link to the Past was the first Zelda game to feature different worlds that interacted with one another, which would become a staple of the series. If you want to see a preview of the Dark World version of Hyrule that is the other half of this project, you can watch that video here.
U.S.S. Enterprise-A
Okay, we just gave away that we’re Star Trek fans, ourselves, by including two Enterprise Minecraft builds. While the Enterprise-D version has received a good deal of attention, this build of the Enterprise-A has had a lower profile.
That’s unfortunate because unlike the larger Enterprise-D build, this Enterprise-A build actually has a finished interior one can walk around in. That’s a much easier task considering the Enterprise-A is much smaller than the Enterprise-D, but it’s certainly no less impressive.
Arithmetic Logic Unit
Remember how we told you that Minecraft offers simple electrical circuits as one of the tools players can use to build their constructions? Perhaps that created another inevitable build, considering the tech-savvy audience that Minecraft was destined to attract.
This is a video of a 16-bit Arithmetic Logic Unit, or ALU, built within Minecraft. An ALU is a pivotal component of a central processing unit (CPU), and a CPU is what makes modern computing possible. And this Minecraft ALU actually functions.
In other words, it’s entirely possible to build a more complicated computer within Minecraft. We can’t imagine how large that would be, but we have no doubt that someone is going to show us at some point in the near future. We don’t entirely follow all of this, but here’s another video of someone who says they built a 32-bit ALU in Minecraft. Let the computer nerd wars commence!
Big Ball of TNT
Another one of the tools made available to Minecraft players is the explosive called TNT which, just like in the real world, is best used sparingly. Minecraft players often don’t bother exercising this wisdom.
One of the most famous uses of TNT in Minecraft was a 15 kiloton detonation by a player who goes by the handle “Blackdragon.” 15 kilotons, incidentally, is the explosive power of a small nuclear device, like the bomb dropped on Hiroshima, Japan towards the end of World War II.
Blackdragon’s bomb crashed the Minecraft servers, and the only record was a series of stills you can see here. We wanted to see what a TNT explosion in Minecraft looked like while it happened, and so we dug up this video of a “Big ball of TNT.” As you can see, the Minecraft servers had trouble with this explosion, as well, but you get to see a nice “before and after” in the video.
Animal Cannon
TNT isn’t just used for wanton destruction in Minecraft. It’s also a source of energy that can be tapped to power machines if the builder is clever enough to figure out how.
Animals in Minecraft are used as sources of health in the game’s Survival mode, which pits players against zombies and other monsters who spawn in dark caves and come out at night, and as the basis for materials in the game’s Creative mode.
Minecraft animals aren’t just used for constructive purposes, however. They can also apparently be used as ammunition in cannons powered by TNT, as this video demonstrates.
Bonus
Whether you find Minecraft inspiring or intimidating, there’s no denying that it’s entertaining. Minecraft speaks to the power of human inventiveness, our willingness to experiment and the amazing things our ingenuity produces.
If you decide to give Minecraft a try after watching these videos, just remember to be careful when playing with fire, something the builder from this video should have reflected on before capturing this footage.
Dennis Scimeca is a freelance writer from Boston, MA, and a contributor to G4, Gamasutra, GamePro, and The Escapist. Reach him through his blog, Punching Snakes, or follow him on Twitter: @DennisScimeca.