Manic Digger is probably the most popular and functional Minecraft clone currently available. I have not played it but it’s a hit in the ICT rooms at lunchtime, even though its some way from the more polished Minecraft.
At first, Manic Digger appears to be a very sold Minecraft clone. The block types are very similar to those in Minecraft and so is their appearance, however those in the know (students) say that crafting is a bit awkward. And that my online colleagues is the limit of my knowledge. As you may guess I have little knowledge of what crafting actually means but as will most communities, there is a wiki for that. The Manic Digger Wiki goes on to summarise the key Minecraft features missing, some quite important for extend play but it’s not stopping the lunchtime thrust.
- Monsters – but from looking tonight, I think they are planned.
- Tools and weapons
- Boats
- Doors (Testing/Nightly Builds)
- Signs
- Chests
- Beds
- Flowing water (Testing/Nightly Builds)
- Fire (At least, one that burns;Testing/Nightly Builds)
- Map generator – cliffs. (Testing/Nightly Builds)
- Redstone circuits
- Crafting interface
- Custom servers and mapping tools
What I learnt from the students.
It is fun. We work on stuff together. It’s fast. Much faster than Minecraft.
Apparently, pressing F2 increases your move speed, a whopping 10x the normal speed. Manic.
The main criticism is that it wasn’t – well Minecraft.
I’m no expert (we gathered that) but I do know engagement and the students were definitely engaged, and I think it was largely due to the multi-player feature. Collaboration on steroids and a huge dose of SMSC.
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