Minecon is no more.
Since its inaugural conference in 2010, Minecraft aficionados have flocked to the annual Minecon to meet with like-minded players.
But the scale of the event (and most likely the cost) has led Mojang to cancel the main physical event in favour an “online exclusive show” dubbed Minecon Earth, as well as a series of more local, smaller events in London and Seattle, all taking place next week on 18 November.
In an official blog post from the Minecraft team, Mojang said: “For the past few years we’ve hosted Minecons throughout the world, and they’ve been great! But this year we’re switching it up!
“The Minecraft community is still growing, and there’s only a certain number of players we can host while keeping the friendly, intimate community atmosphere that’s made previous Minecons so special.”
What is Minecon Earth?
Minecon Earth will be an interactive show taking the best bits of previous events and incorporating them into a condensed show “dedicated to all things Minecraft”. The original MineCon, initially called MinecraftCon, began in 2010 in Washington. It was an annual convention held by developers Mojang and was an excuse for players to meet up and discuss the game, take part in events and more.
The first event was a small gathering arranged by founder Notch in a blog post. Minecon 2011 took place in November in Las Vegas. Since then, the event has moved from Paris to Florida and London, among other locations.
How to watch Minecon Earth
The 90-minute Minecon Earth event will be hosted on Mixer’s official Minecraft channel at 5pm GMT on 18 November.
The online stream will be free to watch and will additionally be shown on “all kinds of popular streaming websites” at the same time. Mojang did not expand further, but this is likely to mean YouTube, Twitch and Facebook Live.
Mojang has built a website for Minecon Earth, complete with a retro-looking announcement video below. In the video, it plays on the fact getting tickets to previous events was so difficult and why the firm has opted for a live stream instead. The company said it will share more details nearer the time.
Minecon Earth local events
Mojang is additionally holding a series ofMinecon Earth Tournament and partiesto mark the occassion and is recruiting competitive players for the events.
The London tournament and party are taking place on the day of Minecon Earth (18 November) atQueen Elizabeth Olympic Park and tickets for the competitive part of the day are available now.The main tournament will be Skywars and is being run by Hypixel. The team is also presenting InPVP, CubeCraft, Lifeboat and Mineplex and the winner will get a Minecraft Tournament trophy.Tickets to the party will go on sale next week. Register here.
In the States, Mojang ishosting a day of Minecon Earth at the Seattle museum of pop culture (or MoPOP) where it plans to stream the show LIVE, plus there’ll be a build battle, consoles set up so people can play Minecraft, a quiz and the chance to meet Minecraft developers.
While the main event is being culled, Mojang did say it has partnered with community event organisers at Minefaire, MineVention and Blockfest to host official events that will be similar to what Minecon has been in previous years. These events will feature Minecraft content creators, tournaments and other activities.
Fans can additionally arrange local Minecon Earth events in which they watch the event together.
Image: Mojang
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