Following Microsoft’s huge $2.5 billion acquisition of Mojang (which has still yet to close), many have speculated about Minecraft’s future. Will Microsoft change the game in any way? How will the company use the property going forward? We already know a Pocket Edition version of the game will make its way to Windows Phone, but beyond that is a mystery.
Maybe a sequel? Don’t hold your breath, according to Phil Spencer, head of Xbox.
In an interview with IGN, Spencer doesn’t seem overly convinced that Minecraft needs a sequel—at least not right now. Instead, Spencer said he wants to focus on meeting the needs of Minecraft’s community, which has never been bigger or more active; the game is consistently one of the most streamed (and watched) on Twitch, and there are countless Let’s Play videos, tutorials, mods, and more all over the Internet.
The game was just made available for the Xbox One, PS4 and PS Vita, too, so it would make sense for Microsoft to focus on supporting these platforms before moving ahead with other projects. Chances are the Redmond company will work on updates with Mojang’s help, improving what is already a game that can be endlessly replayed. Still, Spencer did say that whatever Microsoft does decide to so with Minecraft, he’s already prepared for community backlash.
“It doesn’t mean that everything we’re going to do is going to map to 100-percent of their acceptance, because I don’t know if there is any topic where 100-percent of people agree,” Spencer told IGN.
One area where Spencer does see Minecraft improving, however, is with a more unified experience across its many platforms.
“If I’m on PC I get access to the mod servers; if I’m on a console or the mobile editions, I don’t. We’re looking at how do we bring that whole system together a little more.”
So, at the very least, hopefully Microsoft can use its abundant resources to create a more seamless experience for Minecraft players in the future. “We look at job one is to go out and meet the needs of the Minecraft community first, and then we can think about ways that we can actually help grow it,” Spencer said.