Why Minecraft Earth Deserves a Reboot

Minecraft is now hitting its 15th anniversary, and the game's age has come with many experiments—from multimedia ventures to major spin-off titles. The latter aspect has seen its upsides and downsides over the years, but there's one game in the larger Minecraftfranchise that deserves a second wind.

Minecraft's spin-offs have had a spotty history, with recent examples going through a particularly rough time. Minecraft Dungeons had a relatively solid lifetime, with years of DLC and updates before its support ended. On the other hand, Minecraft Legends had less than a year in the limelight when plans for future content dried up. Both games were criticized for being bare-bones takes on their respective genres and making little use of their Minecraft coat of paint. Legends especially was noted by many as lacking involvement from Mojang.

Minecraft Earth Deserves A Second Chance

Though short-lived, at least games like Dungeons and Legends got a chance to prove themselves in the court of public opinion. However, Minecraft Earth was shut down before it really got a chance to live. The augmented-reality title was announced in 2019 and set to compete with Pokemon GO, allowing players to harvest resources by walking out and about for use in building structures. With popular Minecraft YouTubers like Grian and Mumbo Jumbo onboard promoting the title, many players gravitated towards its early access release.

Unfortunately for the fledgling app, Minecraft Earth's early access period was the most it would ever get. Minecraft Earth was killed in the cradle due to the pandemic and other reasons, all while its competitor Pokemon GO weathered the storm with features that made it playable indoors. It's an incredible shame that the title has been abandoned ever since; the AR market is full of untapped potential, and the continued life of Pokemon GO proves as much. A game that combines the charm of Minecraft's block-riddled climes with the beauty of the outside world is one with incredible potential.

It's A Great Time For A Minecraft AR Game

Even in its early access state, Minecraft Earth received update support and solid reception—with 1.4 million downloads in its first week. If it weren't for the pandemic and other issues, Minecraft Earth could have easily carved out a space in the AR market. As it stands, there's nothing to stop Mojang from bringing the game back with a bang. Not only does a smorgasbord of assets and code already exist, but Minecraft is even more popular now than it was in 2019. Moreover, the revitalization of something that fell so hard by the wayside is sure to attract attention, especially with all the aforementioned infrastructure that could bring Minecraft Earth back bigger than ever.

In addition, despite its popularity, Pokemon GO is not without its own flaws. The app is absolutely riddled with bugs, something a refurbished Minecraft Earth could exploit. If Mojang throws its powerhouse weight behind such a spinoff, the title could really take off. That's not to say it could easily unseat the titan that is Pokemon GO and the near-decade it has under its belt, but it's more than possible for Minecraft Earth to take a sizable slice of the AR pie.

Mojang Would Need To Go All-In On A New Minecraft Earth

On that subject, Minecraft Earth's success would hinge on how much support Mojang would be willing to throw at it. If left to flounder like Minecraft Legends, the game will die off again. This provokes the same dilemma other Minecraft spinoffs have faced, being the extent to which Mojang should devote resources to a side project instead of the original game. If the Minecraft Earth route is chosen, though, the latter option is the only viable way to keep such an app kicking.