Minecon
StatusActive
GenreVideo games
FrequencyAnnual
VenueVarious
Inaugurated18 November 2011 (2011-11-18)
Most recent15 October 2023 (2023-10-15)
Next eventOctober 2024
Organized byMojang Studios
Websiteminecraft.net/en-us/live

Minecon (alternatively capitalised as MineCon, or MINECON) is an annual interactive livestream and fan convention about the video game Minecraft, hosted by Mojang.[1] The first gathering in 2010 was known as MinecraftCon. The event then went by the Minecon name from 2011 to 2019. The Minecon 2011 convention was held in Las Vegas and celebrated the launch of the game with Minecraft-related discussion panels and gaming areas. The most recent in-person convention, Minecon 2016, held in Anaheim, had 12,000 attendees. An attempt at returning to in-person events was prevented due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

Since 2017, Minecon has taken the form of an interactive livestream and, as such, Minecon 2016 was the last in-person convention to bear the Minecon name. The livestream was called Minecon Earth in 2017 and 2018, and was later renamed to Minecon Live in 2019 and Minecraft Live starting in 2020.

In-person events

Timeline of in-person Minecraft conventions
YearEventDatesVenue
2010 MinecraftCon 31 August Bellevue, Washington
2011 MINECON 18 November Las Vegas, Nevada
2012 24–25 November Disneyland Paris
2013 2–3 November Orange County Convention Center
2014 Cancelled
2015 4–5 July ExCeL London
2016 24–25 September Anaheim Convention Center
2020 Minecraft Festival 25–27 September Postponed to 2021
2021 25–27 September Postponed to 2022
2022 Cancelled

2010

MinecraftCon 2010 was a gathering of more than 30 people at Bellevue, Washington, on 31 August. Markus Persson made an appearance at the meet-up when several requests were made for a community meet-up, so he called on the community to pick no specific venue.[2]

2011

5,000 people attended the first official MineCon convention held in Las Vegas on 18 November.[3] The convention focused on celebrating the game's release and hosted Minecraft-related discussion panels, and invited people to play the game with others while at the convention.[3] There were keynote speeches from members of the community, building contests, costume contests and exhibits. One of the many events at MINECON was the "Nether Party", an event for those aged 21 and over, featuring Canadian DJ deadmau5. This event also marked the release of Minecraft 1.0 to the public, officially taking the game out of beta as Notch pulled a giant lever. It was also the first time that Minecraft on the Xbox 360 console was first shown and played outside of the development.

2012

Jens "Jeb" Bergensten talking about Minecraft modding at Minecon 2012

On 2 August 2012, Mojang announced that the 2012 MineCon convention would take place at Disneyland Paris on the 24 and 25 November.[4][5] The announcement was made over the social networking platform Twitter when the game's creator, Markus Persson, posted a short trailer revealing the new convention location.[4] The video shows Mojang team members wearing Disney paraphernalia, and Persson comments to lead developer Jens Bergensten, "I think they are trying to tell us something".[6][7] Joystiq's JC Fletcher said that the site was a "step up" from the first MINECON's location in Las Vegas.[5] The second annual convention was the first held outside of the United States, making it available to European fans who might not have been able to attend the first.[8] It was held in the wake of Minecraft's growing popularity as the Xbox 360 version of the game sold 3 million copies.[8] 2012 was also the start of several in-game unofficial MINECONs, notably a Virtual MINECON,[9] which although an unofficial event, was attended by a member of the Mojang Team.[10] Many in-game MINECONs have announced an intent to return with the start of the next MINECON.[11]

The convention in 2012 was attended by 4,500 fans.[1] Mojang made several announcements at the 2012 convention. Details about the 1.5 "Redstone" update were revealed as well as information on the game's modding API.[12]

2013

The Minecon 2013 sign

On 7 April 2013, Lydia Winters revealed that MINECON 2013 would be held in the United States.[13] Jens Bergensten later said that it would be on the east coast.[14] On 27 June, it was announced on Mojang's YouTube Channel that MINECON 2013 will be held in Orlando, Florida.[15] The website for the Orange County Convention Center had listed MineCon as an upcoming event in November, with an attendance of 7,500,[16] but then removed the event from the web page.[16] Tickets went on sale in three batches each of 2,500 tickets on 31 July, and the 2 and 3 August. The first batch of 2,500 tickets was sold out in three seconds, according to Mojang COO Vu Bui.[17] The event took place on 2 and 3 November.

2014 (cancelled)

On 30 March 2014, Lydia Winters revealed in a tweet that MINECON 2014 would be held in Europe.[18] However, on 1 August 2014, Vu Bui created a blog post, stating that there would be no MineCon 2014, but instead the next MineCon would be in Spring 2015 in London.[19] The fact that this Minecon was cancelled was later used on the PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, Xbox One, Wii U, and Nintendo Switch "legacy console" edition tips as "Nobody remembers where Minecon 2014 was held."

2015

The Expo Hall at MineCon 2015
External videos
video icon MineCon 2015 Opening Ceremony Animation

On 2 February 2015, Vu Bui announced MINECON 2015 would be held in London, at the ExCeL London Exhibition and Conference Centre on the 4 and 5 July 2015.[20] Ticket prices were announced on 18 March 2015 and were set at £129. During the opening ceremony on the 4th of July 2015, animated by Element Animation Studios,[21] it was announced by Guinness World Records that MineCon had won the world record for the most attendance for a convention that is solely for one game, selling 10,000 tickets.[22][23]

2016

A group of panelists is on a stage with one man being projected onto a large screen above them.
Popular Minecraft content creators participate and interact with fans and other creators at Minecon. Pictured: Jordan Maron (CaptainSparklez) on a panel in 2016.

On 7 March 2016, Mojang announced in a blog post that MINECON 2016 would be held in Anaheim, California, at the Anaheim Convention Center on the 24 and 25 September 2016.[24] They announced new features during that time, such as the Minecraft novel, Minecraft: The Island, and an update coming to the console versions of the game.[25] promoted in the opening and closing ceremonies a two-part short film from Element Animation, entitled A Minecraft Adventure.[26][27]

2020–2023 Minecraft Festival (cancelled)

Following a three-year hiatus, a return to the in-person convention format was announced at Minecon Live 2019, named Minecraft Festival, which would happen in September 2020.[28] Minecraft Festival's venue, the Orange County Convention Center in Orlando, Florida, would have been the same venue for Minecon 2013. More details were revealed at the very start of the COVID-19 pandemic,[29] but was swiftly postponed a week later to the same dates in 2021,[30] then to an undetermined date in 2022,[31][32] and then cancelled for 2022[33] as the pandemic continued throughout 2021 and 2022. As of 2023 no further updates to the status of this event have been announced and it is presumed permanently cancelled.

Online events

Timeline of Minecraft livestreams
YearEventDatesVenue
2017 MINECON Earth 18 November Indianapolis Motor Speedway paddock, Indianapolis, Indiana
2018 29 September
2019 MINECON Live 28 September
2020 Minecraft Live 3 October Online
2021 16 October Hard Rock Stadium, Miami, Florida
2022 15 October
2023 15 October Scandinavium, Gothenburg, Sweden

2017

On 8 August 2017, Mojang announced that MINECON would be taking the form of an interactive livestream on 18 November 2017, dubbed "MINECON Earth".[34] The host of MINECON Earth is Will Arnett, a Canadian actor. After this announcement came the introduction of 'Official Community Events', which allow events such as Minefaire, Minevention and Multiplay's BlockFest to be considered 'Official Minecraft Conventions'. During MINECON Earth, developers announced the next major update, the "Update Aquatic"; this update was released in July 2018. Vu Bui, COO of Mojang Studios, also announced the winning mob based on a community vote: "The Monster of The Night Skies", later named the "phantom".[35]

2018

On 10 April 2018, Mojang announced that MINECON Earth would be taking place on 29 September 2018 for 90 minutes on stream.[36][37] During the event, Mojang announced Minecraft Dungeons, a dungeon-crawler spin-off of Minecraft, and features of the upcoming "Village & Pillage" update, which was released in April 2019. Viewers voted for one of three in-game biomes to be updated in the next update;[38] the Taiga biome won the vote.

2019

On 17 May 2019, MINECON Live 2019 was announced to be held on 28 September that same year, changing the name of the event from "MINECON Earth" to "MINECON Live" to avoid confusion with their new game Minecraft Earth.[39][40] Like the previous year, viewers were able to vote for new features to be added to one of three in-game biomes in a following update;[41] the Mountains biome won the vote. During the livestream, developers of the game announced the "Nether Update", and "Village & Pillage" update, the latter promoted via a Mojang and Element Animation Studios collaboratory episode of Villager News starring Dan Lloyd.[42] An early access release date of Minecraft Earth was also announced to be for October 2019.[43]

2020

Minecraft Live 2020 was held on 3 October 2020. It included a mob vote, where users could vote about which Minecraft creature should be added into the next update.[44] The three options were Iceologer (featured in Minecraft Dungeons), Moobloom (featured in the game Minecraft Earth) and Glow Squid, with the Glow Squid winning.[45][46] The livestream also provided details on Minecraft's next big update, "Caves & Cliffs",[47] and a musical "Nether Update Encore" from Element Animation Studios promoting the present version of the game.[48]

2021

Minecraft Live 2021 was held on 16 October 2021.[32] It featured a live mob vote, like previous years, with the options consisting of the Copper Golem, the Glare, and the Allay, the last of which won the vote, as well as another Element Animation Studios musical short film opening the event, describing the features of the previous "The Caves & Cliffs Update Part 1" in song form.[49] The show also announced the theme of the next major update, called "The Wild Update", which added a new biome, the mangrove forest, and an underground biome called the Deep Dark, which was originally planned for the, "Caves & Cliffs Update: Part 2".[50]

2022

Minecraft Live 2022 was held on 15 October 2022. It featured an in-game mob vote, unlike previous years, with the options consisting of the Sniffer, the Rascal, and the Tuff Golem, the first of which won the vote.[51] It also announced some basic features for the next update, 1.20, including camels, bamboo wood, and hanging signs. It also announced the basic gameplay for the upcoming game Minecraft Legends and the Season 3 update for Minecraft Dungeons.[52]

2023

Minecraft Live 2023 was held on 15 October 2023, which featured another mob vote, featuring the crab, armadillo, and penguin, the second of which won the vote.[53][54] The event also announced portions of the next major updates of Minecraft, Minecraft Legends and Minecraft Education. Like previous years, there was an announcement relating to the next major update. This year, the update that was announced was the currently unnamed 1.21 Update. The update is said to focus on "combat adventures and tinkering". It includes several copper block variants, and trial chambers. It also includes new crafter, tuff brick types, and more enemies that spawn in the trial chambers. The update will also introduce the breeze as a new mob.

References

  1. 1 2 Francis, Tom (January 2013). "MINECON celebrates a vast community". PC Gamer UK. No. 248. UK. p. 11.
  2. ↑ Persson, Markus (25 August 2010). "How about a somewhat spontaneous MinecraftCon 2010 in Bellevue in one week?". Tumblr. Archived from the original on 27 April 2014. Retrieved 16 May 2014.
  3. 1 2 Wainwright, Lauren (2 August 2012). "MINECON 2012 will be at Disneyland Paris". MCV. Archived from the original on 27 November 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
  4. 1 2 Purchese, Robert (2 August 2012). "MINECON 2012 will be held at Disneyland Paris". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 11 December 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
  5. 1 2 Fletcher, JC (2 August 2012). "MINECON 2012 going to Disneyland Paris this November". Joystiq. Archived from the original on 31 January 2015. Retrieved 27 December 2012.
  6. ↑ Pearson, Dan (2 August 2012). "MINECON 2012 to be held at Disneyland Paris". GamesIndustry.biz. Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 8 November 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
  7. ↑ Persson, Markus; Bergensten, Jens (2 August 2012). MINECON 2012 Announcement!. Archived from the original on 8 November 2012. Retrieved 2 October 2019.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. 1 2 Karmali, Luke (2 August 2012). "MINECON 2012 Dates and Venue Revealed". IGN. Archived from the original on 28 November 2012. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
  9. ↑ "CREEPEREVENTS 2013 Virtual MINECON - RECRUITMENT WEEK!". PlanetMinecraft. 9 September 2012. Archived from the original on 18 May 2013. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
  10. ↑ Pettersson, Henrik [@carnalizer] (10 November 2012). "In a VIP area at Virtual MINECON" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 3 December 2013. Retrieved 14 June 2013 – via Twitter.
  11. ↑ "Virtual MINECON 2013". Creeperevents.com. Archived from the original on 5 June 2013. Retrieved 14 June 2013.
  12. ↑ Nylund, Mats (27 November 2012). "MINECON 2012 is over". MCV. Archived from the original on 22 September 2017. Retrieved 28 December 2012.
  13. ↑ Winters, Lydia [@LydiaWinters] (7 April 2013). "MINECON will be in the US this year. Sorry dear Brits. I'm not coming to scout locations!" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 26 October 2013. Retrieved 20 June 2013 – via Twitter.
  14. ↑ Bergensten, Jens [@jeb_] (18 April 2013). "Sorry it's gonna be on the US east coast" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 26 October 2013. Retrieved 27 June 2013 – via Twitter.
  15. ↑ Persson, Markus; Geuder, Patrick (27 July 2013). Where in the World is MINECON 2013?. Archived from the original on 13 August 2013. Retrieved 2 October 2019.{{cite AV media}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  16. 1 2 "OCCC Calendar Of Events - July 2013 Through December 2013". Orange County Convention Center. Archived from the original on 5 August 2013. Retrieved 4 July 2013.
  17. ↑ Bui, Vu [@vubui] (31 July 2013). "Official numbers now in. #MINECON tickets, batch 1... 2500 tickets sold in 3 seconds" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 29 October 2013. Retrieved 16 May 2014 – via Twitter.
  18. ↑ Winters, Lydia [@LydiaWinters] (30 March 2014). "It's in Europe this year... but maybe next year" (Tweet). Archived from the original on 3 May 2014. Retrieved 3 May 2014 – via Twitter.
  19. ↑ "MINECON 2015". mojang.com. Archived from the original on 5 September 2014. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  20. ↑ "MINECON 2015 announced!". mojang.com. Archived from the original on 27 July 2016. Retrieved 4 July 2016.
  21. ↑ Element Animation (5 July 2015). MINECON 2015 Opening Ceremony Animation – ULTRAWIDE. Element Animation. Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 5 July 2015 – via YouTube.
  22. ↑ "Largest convention for a single videogame". Guinness World Records. Archived from the original on 23 July 2015. Retrieved 23 July 2015.
  23. ↑ Moser, Cassidee (6 July 2015). "MINECON 2015 Sets World Record for Being Biggest Convention for a Single Game". IGN.com. Archived from the original on 1 August 2017. Retrieved 22 September 2017.
  24. ↑ "WHERE IN THE WORLD IS MINECON?". Mojang.com. Archived from the original on 8 March 2016. Retrieved 8 March 2016.
  25. ↑ Weinberger, Matt. "Spending the weekend with 12,000 Minecraft fanatics helped me understand why Microsoft paid $2.5 billion for it". Business Insider. Archived from the original on 18 February 2018. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  26. ↑ Element Animation (30 September 2016). A Minecraft Adventure – Part 1 (Animation). Element Animation. Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 30 September 2016 – via YouTube.
  27. ↑ Element Animation (7 October 2016). A Minecraft Adventure – Part 2 (Animation). Element Animation. Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 7 October 2016 – via YouTube.
  28. ↑ O'Connor, Alice (30 September 2019). "Minecraft Nether Update to overhaul hell with new biomes and pigpeeps". Rock Paper Shotgun. Archived from the original on 4 January 2023. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  29. ↑ Fingas, Jon (27 February 2020). "Minecraft Festival is coming to Orlando in September". Engadget. Archived from the original on 7 December 2022. Retrieved 4 January 2023.
  30. ↑ DeAngelis, Marc. "Minecraft Festival is postponed due to coronavirus fears". Engadget. Archived from the original on 5 March 2020. Retrieved 6 March 2020.
  31. ↑ Wales, Matt (3 September 2020). "Minecraft Live digital event dated for October". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 3 September 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  32. 1 2 Chalk, Andy (2 September 2021). "Minecraft Live returns in October". PC Gamer. Archived from the original on 28 September 2021. Retrieved 28 September 2021.
  33. ↑ @Mojang_Ined (3 January 2022). "There is no Minecraft Festival happening this year" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  34. ↑ "Microsoft is changing MINECON 2017 to make it more inclusive". MSPoweruser. 8 August 2017. Archived from the original on 22 August 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  35. ↑ Wales, Matt (16 November 2017). "Fans can decide Minecraft's newest mob during the MineCon Earth livestream this weekend". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 22 August 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  36. ↑ "Minecraft announces Minecon Earth 2018 for September 29th". OnMSFT.com. 10 April 2018. Archived from the original on 22 August 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  37. ↑ Parrish, Karin (12 April 2018). "Get your pickaxe ready: The next MineCon Earth show streams in September". DigitalTrends.com. Archived from the original on 22 August 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  38. ↑ "MineCon Earth 2018 allows viewers to vote for next biome update". Shacknews. 17 September 2018. Archived from the original on 24 September 2019. Retrieved 24 September 2019.
  39. ↑ "Minecon Live 2019 - Here's What To Expect". Player.One. 20 May 2019. Archived from the original on 23 May 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  40. ↑ "Minecraft's Big MineCon Event Gets a New Name and a September Date". ComicBook.com. Archived from the original on 19 May 2019. Retrieved 21 May 2019.
  41. ↑ Wales, Matt (26 September 2019). "Minecraft is letting players vote for the biome they want to see spruced up next". Eurogamer. Archived from the original on 26 September 2019. Retrieved 27 September 2019.
  42. ↑ Mojang & Element Animation (2 October 2019). Villager (and Pillager?) News. Minecraft. Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 2 October 2019 – via YouTube.
  43. ↑ "Minecon 2019 roundup: Everything Mojang revealed for Minecraft". Windows Central. 28 September 2019. Archived from the original on 29 September 2019. Retrieved 29 September 2019.
  44. ↑ "Minecraft Live will reveal "huge updates" and new mobs in October". PCGamesN. 4 September 2020. Archived from the original on 18 September 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  45. ↑ "Minecraft Live Vote Lets You Choose The Next Mob". GameSpot. Archived from the original on 28 September 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  46. ↑ "Minecraft Live Vote For the Next Mob". Minecraft.net. 27 September 2020. Archived from the original on 27 September 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  47. ↑ "Mojang To Reveal Next Big Minecraft Game Update At Its October Live Show". Nintendo Life. 26 September 2020. Archived from the original on 28 September 2020. Retrieved 1 October 2020.
  48. ↑ Mojang & Element Animation (6 October 2020). Minecraft Live: The Nether Update Encore. Minecraft. Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 6 October 2020 – via YouTube.
  49. ↑ Mojang & Element Animation (20 October 2021). Minecraft Live 2021: Cliffs & Caves: The Musical. Minecraft. Archived from the original on 9 December 2022. Retrieved 20 October 2021 – via YouTube.
  50. ↑ "Minecraft The Wild Update Coming In 2022 With The Warden, Mangroves, Frogs, And Tadpoles". GameSpot. 16 October 2021. Archived from the original on 16 October 2021. Retrieved 16 October 2021.
  51. ↑ "Minecraft Live official website (2022 version)". Archived from the original on 17 October 2022. Retrieved 17 October 2022.
  52. ↑ Minecraft Now: Live Build Session! @ 21:32 on YouTube
  53. ↑ "Minecraft Live is back for 2023! - YouTube". Retrieved 13 September 2023.
  54. ↑ Doolan, Liam (6 October 2023). "Minecraft Live Returns With New Mob Vote Reveal, Voting Begins Next Week". Nintendo Life. Retrieved 15 October 2023.
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