BRITAIN-GAMESWARE/MINECRAFT Thousands of fans gather for record-breaking Minecraft convention

Record ID: 148525

  • Title: BRITAIN-GAMESWARE/MINECRAFT Thousands of fans gather for record-breaking Minecraft convention
  • Date: 4th July 2015
  • Summary: LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (JULY 4, 2015) (REUTERS) WIDE OF STAGE AT MINECON AUDIENCE AUDIENCE MEMBER WEARING MINECRAFT COSTUME COUNTDOWN
  • Embargoed: 19th July 2015 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: United Kingdom
  • Country: United Kingdom
  • Topics: General
  • Reuters ID: LVA1ZUUHXKPFIQZNE1UI0K7CPATR
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: The Minecon convention, celebrating all things about the popular video game Minecraft, swept into London on Saturday (July 4), and in the process took the world record for the largest ever convention for a single video game.
    A total of 73 countries were represented in the 10,000-strong audience, with some travelling from as far afield as New Zealand.
    A representative from Guiness World Records was present at the opening ceremony to make the announcement.
    Minecraft - a construction game in which players can build nearly anything imaginable, block by block, in a digital, Lego-like world - has spread like wildfire since its full release by developer Mojang in 2011.
    The company's chief operating officer Vu Bui said the enthusiasm of fans never ceased to amaze him.
    "This is my favourite week of the year, starting on Friday as people are coming in, we had many people, a couple of thousand people come and pre-register yesterday and they just wanted to hang out and feel the buzz of what was going to happen the next day. It's just been amazing," he asked.
    With its block-based retro graphics, the game remains wildly popular, and fans' passion shows no signs of waning.
    "Everyone all over loves and is so passionate about Minecraft that every time I leave (the event) I like hit the ground running again like 'Yeah this is why I am working at Mojang, this is why, this whole event'," said Mojang's brand director Lydia Winters.
    But the game is also big business - tickets for the event cost 129.00 pounds ($200) each, and last year Microsoft acquired the developer Mojang for 2.5 billion USD.
    The game is among the top paid-for apps both on Apple's iOS and Google Inc's Android systems and helped Mojang, which employs just 40 people, bring in 2.05 billion crowns ($287 million) in revenue in 2013.
    Tickets for the London event went on sale in March and sold out within just a few hours.
    International fans attending the convention had a variety of explanations for their love for the game.
    "I have been playing it for like three years so I just really enjoy Minecraft because of the building and making whatever you want. Like, making your own inventions in a video game, I just like that aspect of the video game," said 13-year-old Cian Jinks from Ireland.
    "I just love that you can hang out with your friends and just build stuff and just meet new people too," said Cody Vansickle, 18, from Ohio in the United States.
    "I get into it because I am the sort of person who doesn't do anything else because I am not very good at sports and I don't like the outside," said Michael Smith, 15, from southern France.
    Minecon is being held at the Excel exhibition and convention centre in east London until Sunday (July 5).
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