Almost two years after its launch, developer Mojang has announced plans of shutting down augmented reality service Minecraft Earth. Mojang stated in an announcement that it was designed around free movement and collaborative play and these are two things that have became almost impossible in the present global situation. So, they made a difficult decision to reallocate their resources to other areas which provide value to the Minecraft community and to end support for Minecraft Earth in June 2021.
Same like Pokémon GO, the primary premise of Minecraft Earth was to encourage players to move around the real world. But rather than capturing Pokémon, players were asked to collect resources, craft items and build structures. It was the similar Minecraft experience known and loved by people but an augmented reality twist was included in it. Before the shutdown of Minecraft Earth, Mojang will release one last update which has been designed by the developer to make the game as fun as possible. The update will completely remove real-money transactions and also decrease ruby costs and include all completed and unreleased content that was planned.
Mojang added that they are grateful for the unique talent in the Minecraft community. It was not an easy decision and they are doing everything they can make sure to get the most out of Minecraft Earth before its shutdown. From 30th June, players won’t be able to download or play Minecraft Earth. On 1st July, Mojang will remove any Minecraft Earth player data that is not related to Character Creator and Minecoin entitlements. If players have leftover ruby balance, they will be granted Minecoins which they can use in the Minecraft Marketplace.
At last, if players have made a purchase of any kind at Minecraft Earth, they will receive a free copy of Minecraft Earth (the Bedrock version). It is sad that Minecraft Earth is shutting down but it is more relevant than ever and is still one of the most-played games in the industry.