Minecrafting it Up!

I've never been really big into video games. There are games I enjoy once in a while (I will destroy you in Mario Kart - that is, as long as you don't throw a blue shell at me), but I have never spent a lot of time playing them. I just don't enjoy games that I'm bad at, and because I don't enjoy playing I never actually get better; it's a vicious cycle.

My boyfriend is a gamer, and he's been trying to find a game we can play together on our iPads or phones. We have tried several different things, but nothing stuck. Nothing, that is, until Minecraft.

If you haven't already been introduced to the fun that is Minecraft, I suggest you check it out. It's a PC game where you start out with nothing then use different materials you collect to create a whole world. You cut down trees to get wood, use the wood to craft tools, use those tools to get stone, use the stone to craft more tools, use the new tools to mine iron, use the iron to make better tools, and on, and on, and on. The world in which you play, while not actually infinite, is ginormous enough to give the impression that it is. You can basically go anywhere and create anything.

This game is perfect for me. There are no complicated controls to master so I avoid the flailing about that usually happens when I play games. Not to brag, but I've totally avoided spending the huge amounts of time stuck in corners that is my usual experience with first-person games - I'm looking at you Skyrim. The game lets me be creative, but at the same time the creativity happens within consistent and well-defined rules so I always know what to expect. You can even download a mod that will give you a little map in the corner of your screen, thus getting rid of the only issue I had with the game: I always got lost when I went out exploring. As a bonus, my guy looks like The Hulk, so that's awesome.

The boyfriend and the kid also love the game. Currently we have a world that we're all playing in together. We've created an elaborate home base, complete with a farm and a corral full of sheep and pigs. In fact, the boyfriend is playing now, and it looks like he's expanding our fortifications. I better wrap this up and get back to the game. He might need my help with that new level he's adding.