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SALT LAKE CITY — There's no story line to it and the graphics are not that great. Despite that, over 9.3 million people have bought the PC or Mac versions of the game Minecraft. Now, some schools are starting to use it in class.
It's a game of creativity, building and survival, and it attracts players of all ages. Michael Hughes, with Gamerz Funk in Taylorsville, said he has seen kids and adults come in to play it. Some play to see what they can create, and some play just to play.
"You've got some players that are there for the adventure aspect of it," Hughes said. "It's a huge world to play through."
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Brothers Chris and Spencer Burton, both in their mid-20s, are avid Minecraft players. They like the game because of the extraordinary level of freedom gives its players by allowing them to build and do just about anything a player can imagine.
"It's discovery. It's building. It's really productive and that can be incredibly engaging ... If (family time) starts to be excluded because the child is so focused on the game, then we've got a problem." — Douglas Goldsmith, executive director of The Children's Center
"I like this game a lot because it pretty much lets me do whatever it is I like to do," Spencer Burton said. For Chris Burton, the game is a platform he can use his creativity to learn to build. One of his friends, who attends architecture school in California, said teachers suggested to students to check out the game.
"They suggested it just to learn, to build and do things," Chris Burton said. "You can do anything on Minecraft."
His friend's school isn't the only institution utilizing Minecraft for educational purposes. In fact, the Viktor Rydberg School in Stockholm, Sweden, now requires students take a class in Minecraft. Also, some university students in Queensland, Australia, recreated their classroom and took lessons through the game after severe flooding hit the city.
When it comes to kids playing the game, parents have said their children are glued to the game. But Douglas Goldsmith, executive director of The Children's Center, said that may not be always be cause for concern.
"It's discovery. It's building," he said. "It's really productive and that can be incredibly engaging."
But, like with anything, there are some warning signs parents need to look out for. Goldsmith said playing the game should never get in the way of doing their homework or spending time with the family.
"If that starts to be excluded because the child is so focused on the game, then we've got a problem," he said.
