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The ‘Minecraft’ movie is a box office smash. An expert explains why that’s good for gamers – and parents

“A Minecraft Movie” adapts one of the biggest games of all time for the big screen, further mainstreaming gaming and potentially bringing parents and their children closer together, a Northeastern gaming expert says.

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A screen capture of three characters from the 'Minecraft' movie standing on a bridge looking shocked.
“A Minecraft Movie” is the latest video game to get the big budget movie treatment. Photo by Warner Bros. Pictures

Move over Mario, there’s a new game in town. “A Minecraft Movie” hit theaters with a record-breaking debut weekend, scoring the highest box office start for a video game adaptation in history.

Starring Jason Momoa and Jack Black, the movie is the biggest domestic launch of the year, which might be a surprise –– unless you’re aware of the seismic impact of its source material.  “Minecraft” is a sandbox survival game that, at its most basic, lets players build and craft a world out of blocks. It is also one of the most successful video games of all time. It has sold over 300 million copies since its release in 2011, and has almost 170 million people playing every month.

With or without a big screen adaptation, “Minecraft” is a success, but “A Minecraft Movie” triumphing at the box office has an impact beyond added profits for an already profitable franchise, according to Alexandra To, an assistant professor of game design at Northeastern University. The success of a movie like this is good for gaming and for bringing people, specifically parents and children, closer together, she says.

“Opening up conversations between people about ‘What are video games? What do you play? What do you enjoy? What do you get out of this?’ is really hopeful to me,” To says. “It’s this opportunity for people to ask each other questions.”

Portrait of Alexandra To.
As a game, “Minecraft” is defined by social interactions and community, which could be the benefit of all viewers as it makes the leap to the big screen, says Alexandra To, assistant professor of game design at Northeastern University. Photo by Matthew Modoono/Northeastern University

“Minecraft” might be the perfect video game for opening up that conversation. It is incredibly popular, especially among young people, but it’s also built around social interaction and community instead of virtual combat and skill-based challenges.

“Even if you don’t play, there are lots of streamers who are playing the game,” To says. “There’s a lot of YouTube content. Particularly among youth, the under-24 age category, there’s a massive amount of people who are just constantly consuming content around ‘Minecraft,’ and it’s got a really wide variety within that.”

“Minecraft” is an entry point for new gamers, and the doors are always open. There is even “Minecraft: Education Edition,” a version of the game that educators use to teach students about computer science, engineering and environmental science.

Together, all of these components of the “Minecraft” experience create a sense that it “widens the scope of who is a gamer,” To says. The movie has the potential to do that for longtime fans but an entirely new audience, too.

“I think there is the opportunity to expand [the audience] here, and I think that it really is through a lot of these social interactions [between friends],” To says.

Importantly, for a film that is ostensibly drawing families to the theater, it’s an opportunity to bridge the gap between parents and children. Anecdotally, To says she has friends with children who play “Minecraft” but who admit they know almost nothing about it. For her, “A Minecraft Movie” ideally brings the “Minecraft” experience that parents might be unfamiliar with into a setting and medium they are familiar with. 

“I think it’s really much more about the conversations that people have in sharing their joy and their hobbies,” To says.

The ensuing conversations about creepers, piglings and who exactly Jack Black’s Steve is provide a natural way for children to share more about what they love. It’s also a vital chance for parents to learn what kind of media their children are consuming.

“You want to engage the media that your children enjoy for a variety of reasons,” To says. “These games are social. Kids are playing with their friends, but also you can be online with strangers, which has a lot of good and bad. … Paying attention to the media our children are consuming is really important in the age that we’re in.”

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