Did you get hooked on Pokemon Go if only for a short while? Minecraft Earth brings back the excitement of augmented reality adventures, but unlike Pokemon Go, it doesn’t become repetitive and stale after only a few hours. It’s a game that is only limited by your own imagination.

Minecraft Earth closed beta starts this Winter

This is an incredibly exciting time for Minecraft. Ten years ago today, the game launched on PC. Now, Minecraft has sold more than 176 million copies to-date in virtually every country in the world. As a way to celebrate 10 years for the franchise, we announced today a brand-new Minecraft game – Minecraft Earth.

Minecraft Earth is an all new free-to-play augmented reality game for mobile that will bring the creative nature of Minecraft to the real world.

How to Play Minecraft Earth

The game’s mechanics are simple: explore your neighborhood to find blocks and unique mobs for your builds. Once you have them, any flat surface is an opportunity to build. Team up with friends to create amazing builds on Build Plates, and then place them in the real world to explore at life-size. You can even put your survival skills to the test and battle mobs IRL! Craft new items, breed mobs, grow crops –it’s Minecraft as you know it in a way you’ve never seen before. There’s endless fun to be had and it’s even better with friends.

The game blends state-of-the-art Microsoft technology like Azure Spatial Anchors AR tracking and PlayFab integration to bring the Minecraft Earth experience to life.

Minecraft Earth is the ultimate casual gaming experience than can be enjoyed with family and friends on any occasion. Build a farm in your backyard while enjoying lunch with your family on a Sunday afternoon. Fortify your local pub and fight of dangerous mobs while having a pint with your mates. The possibilities are endless and are only limited by your imagination.

Oh, and Microsoft have confirmed there are no loot boxes!

Sign up for the Closed Beta

The closed betas for Minecraft Earth will be launching this summer on iOS and Android. As with all betas, the number of participants will be limited but we anticipate it rolling out to hundreds of thousands of players. Players must be 18 or older to participate. You can sign up for the opportunity to join here. Players who sign up for the closed beta will also get a special skin they can use in Minecraft!

Collect animals for your future Minecraft Earth farm!

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