Just a couple months after making its grand debut at this year's E3, Minecraft has finally made its way to the Android Market, much to the delight of cube enthusiasts and time-wasters everywhere. With this new, Pocket Edition app, Mojang is hoping to faithfully recreate the Minecraft experience on mobile platforms, with a special emphasis placed on the game's creative side. In version Alpha 0.1, users will be able to explore randomized worlds, invite friends to play along in their worlds and save multi-player realms directly to their phones -- all while manipulating 36 different kinds of blocks from the comfort of their touchscreens. For now, the game will only be available for Sony Ericsson's Xperia Play, though Mojang plans to release it for other Android handsets "in the near future." You can grab it now for $6.99, or swerve past the break for more information, in the full press release.
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Say hello to Minecraft - Pocket Edition
Today we are releasing the first version of Minecraft – Pocket Edition. The game will be exclusive to Xperia Play for a limited time and released to other Android devices in the near future.
The first version (Alpha 0.1) will focus on the creative aspects of Minecraft. We have tried to put in the features that make sense for playing on a mobile device while still keeping the core of the Minecraft experience. You will be able to select blocks on the touchscreen or just scroll through them with the circle and square buttons on the Xperia Play device. The first version also supports multi-player on a local wireless network allowing you to create a world and invite friends to build together. Some of the features in this release include:
• Randomized worlds
• Build anything you can imagine
• Build with 36 different kinds of blocks
• Invite and play with friends to your world (local wireless network)
• Save multi-player worlds on your own phone
Just like the PC/Mac/Linux version of Minecraft we're planning to continue developing the Pocket Edition for a long time with frequent updates. We are eager to hear what the Minecraft community thinks about our new game and what you all want to see in future updates.
Minecraft – Pocket Edition is now available in Android Market (only visible to Xperia Play devices) for $6.99
