Minecraft’s pros of Cons

Did I mistype “pros and cons”? No! Because Minecraft actually has plenty of big Cons, and not in the sense you might think (note the capital letter!) They’re not bad Cons either – because here we’re talking BuildCon, MineCon, and beyond! Enough to get a true fan excited, and the casual players interested in the range of activities on show. Here I’ll aim to give a brief overview of some of Minecraft’s biggest conventions, so buckle up for the ride.

MineCon

You’ve heard it all before – the biggest, official Minecraft fan convention out there since the beginning of time… Or the beginning of Minecraft anyway! Each year it makes an appearance in major world locations; Including Las Vegas, Orlando and London. Except 2014, for some reason that may or may not have something to do with Microsoft’s purchase of Minecraft. And each year those officially attending the events get access to a unique MineCon cape to award their efforts! And boast to their friends and Minecraft community, of course.

The first MineCon was technically held in Washington in 2010 as a tiny gathering of Notch and a few dozen fans. The next, official event on 18th November 2011 gained a crowd of over 5,000 attendees to celebrate the official release of Minecraft! From there, things grew steadily each year, with many events including… New feature announcements, costume competitions, guest talks, exhibits, gaming contests and more.

In 2017, MineCon went truly global with an online live stream alongside the usual events, allowing fans from all over to world to join the fun in real time. No cape for those comfy at home though!

BuildCon

Like MineCon, pretty self-explanatory – welcome to the Minecraft builder’s favourite convention! Running for years, these yearly events allow players of all skill levels and interests to come together on a single server and let their imaginations run wild! Events include talks and showcases by talented builders and build teams and (apparently friendly!) build contests. As well as general news and hype around Minecraft’s creative side.

New: Cubed! Convention

Biggest unofficial event, raising money for charity: cubedcon.com & (@CubedCon) / X

Official Community Events

Recently, Mojang also announced the addition of official community-run Minecraft events and gatherings! These are run by Minecraft’s partners in various places all over the world, with a variety of activities from the talented community of Minecraft’s players and creators. Some major events to date are the following…

MineVention is the child friendly younger sibling to MineCon! Featuring relaxed gaming sessions and build battles; Meet and greets with popular gamers; Educational talks, Costume and crafts; And other challenges for the whole family to check out. More info on minevention.com

The MineFaire festival tours the USA, holding many events like above, including live stage shows and merch sales (again, see their website at minefaire.com). And finally, BlockFest is an upcoming festival organised by the likes of MineCon hosts, by and for the gaming community. More info on that one coming soon. And not to forget the many more events that might be coming, so you and I better go and keep on a lookout! See you another time while I go and look…

COVER IMAGE: MOJANG TEAM ON FLICKR (link)