Minecraft 15th Anniversary: The End, Enchanting, and Notch’s Exit

Minecraft 1.0 turns 15 on November 18. The full version came out in 2011, and it gave players a final boss, potions, and magic gear. Here is a look back at what changed, who built it, and where the game went next.

The Day Minecraft Left Beta

Minecraft was formally released on November 18, 2011 for personal computers. The Minecraft Wiki says version 1.0.0 arrived during MINECON 2011, the game’s first fan convention.

Players had already been building for a while. Wikipedia says the first public build went out on May 17, 2009 on the TIGSource forum. By 2011, the game had a large fan base, and 1.0 was the moment the “unfinished” label came off.

What Version 1.0 Added

The Minecraft Wiki says the update added brewing, enchanting, the End, hardcore mode, breeding and more. Each piece gave players a new goal:

The End and the Ender Dragon: a new dimension with a boss fight. Players needed eyes of ender to find the way in, so the game finally had a clear last challenge.
Brewing: brewing stands and potions, built from items such as Nether wart and blaze rods.
Enchanting: a way to give tools, weapons, and armor special powers.
Hardcore mode: a harder way to play where one mistake counts.
Breeding: a way to raise farm animals instead of only finding them.

The wiki also lists the dragon egg and nine music discs in the same update. Before 1.0, players mostly set their own goals. After it, the game came with a built-in finish line, and many players still choose to ignore it.

A New Leader Takes Over

Markus “Notch” Persson created Minecraft. Version 1.0.0 was the last version he developed before he gave creative control to Jens “Jeb” Bergensten. Wikipedia says Persson stepped down on December 1, 2011, only 13 days after the full release.

From Indie Hit to Microsoft

Microsoft announced a $2.5 billion deal to buy Mojang, the studio behind Minecraft, on September 15, 2014. The deal included the Minecraft brand. Wikipedia now lists the game at over 400 million copies sold, which makes it the best-selling video game of all time.

Date	Event
May 17, 2009	First public build on TIGSource
November 18, 2011	Version 1.0 releases at MINECON 2011
December 1, 2011	Persson steps down and hands the lead to Bergensten
September 15, 2014	Microsoft announces the $2.5 billion Mojang deal

Why 2011 Still Feels Big

November 2011 was a busy month for PC gaming. Bethesda’s dragon-filled RPG arrived a week earlier, and our Skyrim 15th anniversary look back covers that launch. Both games let players wander first and follow a quest second.

Minecraft’s open design also helps players who need different controls. Our post on SpecialEffect and eye-controlled Minecraft shows how far that idea has traveled. If you play today, which 1.0 feature do you still use the most?

Image Credit: Anna Khromova on Unsplash