![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
xiphiasBecause the last five nine-year-olds I've talked to all play it. And I play it. And we can have conversations trading tips, and explaining cool things that we've built, found, or done, and they can give me advice, and I can give them advice, and we can interact as equals.
Because thousands of nine-year-olds around the world are playing creatively, in groups, forming communities, doing completely open-ended unguided creative play. Minecraft has many of the same qualities that make Legos great -- obviously, it doesn't have the satisfying tactile experience of Legos, but it does have the same ability to just build whatever you want.
Because there's no right way to play. You can go to a server where you go around and try to ruin each other's stuff. You can go to a server where you co-operate. It's actually very easy to make your own computer into a server, and run it however you want. You can be nine and run your own world. (Your parents' data plan may not survive, but, well, creative play has its costs.)
You can just have your own single-player world by yourself, without interacting with anyone else, which is what I do. ("If I wanted to interact with other human beings, I'd have gone outside.") But I can still be doing things that I can talk to other people about.
From the very first time that someone poked holes in the ground, got a bunch of pebbles, and started making up rules about how you could move the pebbles around, games have given adults and children a way to interact in more equal ways. Sure, adults USUALLY have an edge, based on experience, and more practice in thinking more moves ahead, but it's not too unusual for an eight year old to beat adults at Settlers of Catan, or chess, or checkers, or Magic The Gathering.
Because thousands of nine-year-olds around the world are playing creatively, in groups, forming communities, doing completely open-ended unguided creative play. Minecraft has many of the same qualities that make Legos great -- obviously, it doesn't have the satisfying tactile experience of Legos, but it does have the same ability to just build whatever you want.
Because there's no right way to play. You can go to a server where you go around and try to ruin each other's stuff. You can go to a server where you co-operate. It's actually very easy to make your own computer into a server, and run it however you want. You can be nine and run your own world. (Your parents' data plan may not survive, but, well, creative play has its costs.)
You can just have your own single-player world by yourself, without interacting with anyone else, which is what I do. ("If I wanted to interact with other human beings, I'd have gone outside.") But I can still be doing things that I can talk to other people about.
From the very first time that someone poked holes in the ground, got a bunch of pebbles, and started making up rules about how you could move the pebbles around, games have given adults and children a way to interact in more equal ways. Sure, adults USUALLY have an edge, based on experience, and more practice in thinking more moves ahead, but it's not too unusual for an eight year old to beat adults at Settlers of Catan, or chess, or checkers, or Magic The Gathering.
(no subject)
Date: 2013-03-23 03:29 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-03-23 07:11 pm (UTC)So it might be useful to decide how the kid can best interact with the game, but, yeah, I think that it might work well with him.
(no subject)
Date: 2013-03-26 11:18 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2013-03-26 11:18 pm (UTC)am extravasated ajivika
Date: 2016-09-05 01:38 pm (UTC)