JohnnyBGamer

NIrV Minecrafters Bible

The NIrV Minecrafters Bible is a Biblical recipe mixing faith and fandom. This Bible features a solid hardcover to hold up against any Creeper or Zombie attack. The New International Reader’s Version (NIrV) makes for an easy read. 24 Minecraft-themed pages highlight Biblical stories and offer short in-game objectives to complete.

But all is not well at the Minecraft Crafting Table. Missing ingredients such as:

Durable pages
Helpful reading plans
Highlighted verses
Daily Devotions
Chronologies/Maps

All reveal a subpar product. A quick cash-in that shows no respect to the Biblical reader nor respect to the player. Zondervan is selling a plain no-frills Bible with a minimal (24 page) Minecraft makeover.

Zondervan should have gone the extra mile. Including actual study material and embracing Minecraft through trivia and in-game tips. If done well, this could have been an amazing tool. Instead, the NIrV Minecrafters Bible is a damaged wood sword. Beckoning clueless parents and grandparents to pick it up.

Save your money. Invest in something that will last and further real life and in-game adventures.

I was given a copy of this book by BookLook Bloggers. All opinions are my own. I was not required to write a positive review.

Beyond the Pixels of Minecraft: Story Mode

Minecraft: Story Mode has taken over our household. Soon after my last post, Wyatt and I beat Episode 1 – ‘The Order of the Stone’. We finally figured out that the game plays better if I hold the controller. Allowing me to read the dialogue answer options and then press the corresponding button. This setup keeps the experience frustration free. Also prevents us from calling someone an idiot, in-game, on accident.

Story Time:

There was a moment in Episode 1 where the characters are huddled in a hut. Rain falls outside, everyone exhausted, stomachs grumbling. Axel, the big tough guy of the group, offers everyone a cookie, except for Lukas, who he doesn’t like. The game offers us a choice:

Eat the cookie?
Or give the cookie to Lukas?

We ended up giving our cookie to a thankful Lukas. Wyatt couldn’t figure out why Axel was being such a jerk. So we discussed group dynamics and treating others as you want to be treated. A teachable moment brought about by a video game? Why not.

We are now moving through Minecraft: Story Mode Episode 2 – ‘Assembly Required’. Enjoying our time with Jesse, Reuben the pig, and Lukas. Turns out Jesse didn’t have to adventure on alone.

The Joys of Minecraft: Story Mode

I surprised Wyatt last night with the first episode of Minecraft: Story Mode. He was happy. Commanding the PS4 controller, he guided protagonist Jesse and friends to EnderCon.

“I really wish his name wasn’t Jesse,” Wyatt told me as I put him to bed later on.

“Jesse is both a girl’s name and a boy’s name.”

“Oh.”

The signature of all Telltale Games, dialogue decisions, reared their red eyes like a cave spider. I found myself scrambling to read all of the choices aloud with their corresponding button shapes. Stress. Filled. Chaos.

Dialogue timer is at the bottom of the screen (middle green bar).

“Hit the triangle button!”

The boy presses the x button, calling someone on screen an idiot.

“Wyatt!”

“I’m sorry!”

Some games click, others don’t. And that’s okay.

Tabitha walked into the living room about the time a “hell yeah” was exclaimed twice in a row. One of those classic mom moments. The game had been fine up until then. Positive elements of friendship and being true to yourself had been explored before she walked in. I promise.

Five Nights At Freddy’s and Minecraft: Story Mode are spoken about with reverence in our home. Playground hype has carried the scares of Freddy’s and the tales of the Ender Dragon to our dinner table. I am happy to help the boy gain some playground cred. I’m just not sure we are ready to finish this block-filled adventure.

In fact, we are going to finish up the first episode and call it a day. Maybe we’ll revisit this series in a few years when he is older. Able to read the dialogue at a rapid rate and make decisions. Mature enough to understand the “hell yeah’s” being thrown at him.

We’ll continue exploring the regular version of Minecraft. Jesse will have to adventure on, alone.

Understanding Minecraft through Cooperative Play

Over the weekend, Wyatt and I played Minecraft for a couple of hours. Straight. I’ve never really understood the game. Sure, I get that it is virtual LEGOS. You can dig caves, build forts, the imagination is the limit. But I didn’t understand Minecraft until I played it co-op with my son.

We started our play session separated from one another. I worked on a castle; Wyatt worked on a village/farm. Eventually we figured out that the game has an in-game map. We found each other!

Wyatt begged me to come see his village. So I did. But my castle called to me, come finish me! So I left. Wyatt followed. My castle soon became a joint creation, our castle. Glowing pumpkins, emerald blocks, materials I would never choose, the boy placed with relish.

Playing the game cooperatively, split-screen, allowed us to create our own in-game narrative. Our creations telling the story of a seven-year-old and a thirty-five-year-old living in a block-filled land.

We have built great things together. Cooperatively, through the magic of Minecraft.

I finally understand.

Wyatt (top screen); Me (bottom screen). Built a tower of light.

Sky Bridge — Wyatt (top screen); Me (bottom screen). Built an epic sky road that spans to a distant mountain.

Surf Report – Winds of Change – 7/25/16

Welcome to the Monday edition of the Surf Report.

.: God / Life :

My brother-in-law gave me a devotional book for my birthday (Thanks, J!). Paul David Tripp’s New Morning Mercies: A Daily Gospel Devotional has been kicking my butt.

“At the end of the service where I announced my resignation, the oldest man in our congregation waited on the porch of the church for me. We were the last two to leave. He came up to me and asked if he could speak to me, then said: “We know you’re discouraged and we know you’re a bit immature, but we haven’t asked you to leave. Where is the church going to get mature pastors if the immature ones leave?””

Things have been hard at church lately. Winds of change. God has been reminding me to hold back and pray. I think we, as human beings, often run from the maturing process. Scrambling to find the ejection seat. Failing to remember what happened to Goose.

.: Gaming :

Wyatt and I played the LEGO Star Wars: The Force Awakens demo. Small smart mechanical changes aside, a LEGO game is a LEGO game.

Also wrote about playing Song of the Deep.

That is it for this weeks Surf Report. Make sure to comment below and have a good week!