Does anyone here have any experience with the game Minecraft? My 9yo is interested in it, and I understand there are different places you could get the game from such as Steam or direct from the minecraft site. Is there any known advantages/disadvantages to either? Anything specific as a parent I should be aware of with this game?
I purchased and downloaded Minecraft for Mac directly from their website with little issue or hassle in about 5 minutes (though I can see having it tied to a steam account being convenient if you have one already) a couple of weeks ago. There are some alarming parts that I was not totally expecting (monsters attacking during the night in the world, and Endermen, which make some really creepy sounds), but otherwise the game contains no blood or gore. This game does allow you to connect to multiplayer servers (provided you already have the server information) and there are no filters on text chat while in-game, however. I'd suggest doing a quick search for parental reviews of the game or checking their wiki for further information.
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Playing in peaceful mode removes hostile monsters, and basically sets the game to "have fun playing in the sandbox!" Absolutely safe for a young'un.
Connecting to persistent servers is a bit more iffy. Since each one is run by players, and not the folks at Mojang, there's really no "authority" protecting everyone's good time. I would recommend researching the community on any prospective server before connecting. You can also host your own, and only give the server info out to folks you want on your server; other kids in the peer group.
All said, it's really an excellent tool to encourage creativity and problem solving skills. You can do amazing things with the redstone circuitry, pistons, and other mechanical objects within the game. Check youtube for minecraft videos related to mechanical clocks, hidden passageways, automated harvesting . . . It's crazy cool.
If you have xbox 360 there's an arcade version available.
Don't have it, I am looking at the PC version. Thanks everyone for the tips!
Anything specific as a parent I should be aware of with this game?
The game is pretty innocent. But I think the best advice would be to try it out yourself for a couple of days, so you know what you're getting into.
There's even a free trial to let you check it out a little bit if you don't want to buy it before you've formed an opinion.
Just be aware that the game can be pretty addictive. If you blink and suddenly realize it's two days later, don't say we didn't warn you! ;)
Your concerned about Minecraft for a 9 year old?
O.o
Seriously, he gets more violence out of Pokemon, which is specifically targetted at him.
Minecraft is basically First-Person Lego, so on that end you can be certain your kid will enjoy it, while at the same time get a lot of creativity going. The interface and gameplay are both extremely simple, which makes it ideal for kids of pretty much any age, and it is the pinacle of emergent gameplay, meaning there is always something new to do.
Now, it does have several survival elements, such as getting killed by zombies, starvation, arrows or falls. You can turn these off by plaing in Creative Mode, which makes the game entirely about building things, in case you want a calm game. While it does indeed look cartoony, the combination of factors can make the game give you sudden scares at times, so depending on how you feel about this, you perhaps would prefer to use Creative at first. It also avoid creatures that can be frustrating by either killing you and taking your stuff or exploding and destroying your creations.
Then there is the multiplayer aspect, which although very entertaining (I personally keep a persistent server where a bunch of friends play regularly), has its own share of issues, namely the chance of meeting unpleasant people and potential frustration from other people's intervention (whether malicious or not). It is entirely optional, however, and on the good side you can easily set up LAN games or private games online if you want your kid to play with a friend, relative, or even with yourself.
Finally, as Slaunyeh mentions, it is important to consider the game is highly addictive an a huge time sink, albeit a very entertaining one. I'm a grown man -or I like to pretend I am- and sometimes I can get caught for long stretches of time building piston machines or just roaming around the world.
Other than that, it is a great game, both for oldies and kiddies.
Thanks Klaus that was extremely helpful. Thanks also to everyone else who responded. Awesome advice from the paizo community as usual.