Minecraft Basics: Want to play the game? This Minecraft guide will tell you how to

Minecraft Basics: Minecraft is an extremely popular game which has been going strong since its first PC launch in 2011. The game’s popularity has been so high that it has led to third party spin offs, large sets of merchandise as well as a movie, which will be released soon! Even with so much hype around the Minecraft, people still struggle to get into the game because there is just so much to do and learn. Unlike most popular games, where the initiation is the easy step and difficulty increases as you progress, in Minecraft, the learning curve comes at the very beginning. And if that has stopped you from enjoying the game, then do not worry, we have curated a Minecraft guide for beginners that will show you tips and tricks on how to play Minecraft and make the most out of it.

Minecraft: An Overview

Minecraft is a sandbox game, in which your avatar wanders around, collecting resources and using items. Sandbox games are those which give the user a higher degree of creative control to interact with the game universe as well as other players. Also like most sandbox games, Minecraft does not have any real objective. But that is the fun part of the game. You have an open, endless world to do whatever you want. But understanding the basics is important. So, let us check them out first.

Minecraft Basics

The first step in the Minecraft guide is to help you understand the gameplay. You begin the game by appearing in a vast, open world with nothing and you must collect materials to get food, build a shelter and a bed and survive till the next day. It is also important for you to know about the game clock. A day in the game passes in 20 real-world minutes, where 10 mins for daytime and 10 mins go to night time. Night time is more dangerous than daytime as many hostile creatures come out. The game starts at dawn, and you have 10 minutes of game time before nightfall. Now, let us check out the controls.

Minecraft Controls

For the purpose of this Minecraft guide, we are assuming that you’re playing the game on a PC. If you are using any other device, the controls might be a bit different. Learn the following controls, because they are key for your survival.

To move around – W, A, S, & D keys

To Jump – Spacebar

To Run – Double tap W

To Crouch or Sneak – Hold Shift

To access inventory – E

To break blocks or to attack – left click

To use or place items on the map – right click

To throw the item on the ground – Q

To quickly go through your inventory slots – 1-9 number keys

Minecraft Mining and crafting

Like the name says, Minecraft is all about mining stuff and crafting stuff. Collecting and mining is easy. You can go to a tree and left click to break and collect blocks. These blocks can be placed to build a house or to craft items. In your inventory screen, you can see four squares in the top right. This is your crafting area. Four wooden blocks can be used to craft a plank and planks can be used to craft a table. Simple. You can also mine iron and rare material to craft much cooler stuff.

Minecraft Fighting monsters

The final stuff to cover is to tell how you can fight monsters and other hostile creatures. And fighting is good because once you kill them, you get resources and rewards. Monsters come out at night so that is the best time to kill them. You would need some weapons that you can craft during the day time. A pickaxe or shovel is good enough as long as you don’t go to a dangerous location like a cave. Fights are all about timing. Make sure they are in your weapon range and hit them before they can hit you. That’s it. This Minecraft guide covered some essential things for you to consider while playing the game for the first time. In our future Minecraft basics stories, we will cover more advanced controls and gameplay mechanics.