In celebration of the most befuddling day of the year, Minecraft has constantly expanded through the introduction of hefty updates and snapshots, which are stand-alone patches that typically serve to give players a taste of new features before a bigger content drop.
Aside from general tweaks and polishes for things like graphics and performance, a number of new features have made their way to Minecraft over the years. While the game began as a mostly straightforward survival and crafting title, the inclusion of features like the leveling system, cooperative multiplayer, and numerous unique enemy and friendly NPCs have turned Minecraft into something much larger than it was at the beginning. This is to say nothing of paid DLCs, which have introduced even more complicated gameplay features, building blocks, and secrets to uncover. The game's community appears to have grown in tandem with its features and world, with Minecraft players dissecting various mysteries and theorizing about several in-game implementations online.
For anyone who feels that these new features have overcomplicated Minecraft, a new snapshot released today may offer just what they need. As detailed in the Minecraft blog (via GameSpot) and in a joke "leak" on the Minecraft YouTube channel, this April Fools update strips away countless features, including experience-earning and enchanting. The game's inventory system has also been removed, which the blog cheekily describes as fixing all inventory issues. Those who use the snapshot can instead use the open world as an inventory space by simply dropping items on the ground. On top of this, each item, animal, friendly NPC, and enemy can be picked up and held as an item.
Gamers have long been using Minecraft to create complicated builds, so this update is quite antithetical to the game's intended purpose. Of course, this is the point of the joke, as the blog humorously points out that these changes were implemented as a result of players "complaining" about the game's features. Self-awareness of this type is generally appreciated by the gaming community, as it is a breath of fresh air compared to the more manicured statements prepared by major video game companies.
April Fools Day is just getting started for many people around the world, so video game fans will need to be on guard for pranks and false information. Mojang seems to have gone a bit further than most gaming companies with this Minecraft update, but that doesn't mean that other popular games won't try to pull something similar in a more sneaky way.
Source: Minecraft (via GameSpot), Minecraft/YouTube
