Minecraft is gigantic, and I’m not referring to the size of the procedural world that can be generated in it. But to its greatness as a brand, as a money-making machine and as a tool to brighten the afternoons of various types of gamers.
Minecraft is intergenerational, it is played by young and old and in always different and unique ways.
It is therefore not surprising that after the acquisition by Microsoft, the Mojang team has decided to expand the horizons of its intellectual property. He did it one step at a time, exploring various genres, but with one goal that was always clear: not to betray the soul of Minecraft, both in terms of imagery and game philosophy. Witnesses are Minecraft: Story Mode, developed by Telltale, but above all the more recent Minecraft Dungeons (which you can find on the GamerSandy online shop thanks to this link), inspired by dungeon crawler action.
Minecraft Legends (also for this game there is a practical link to purchase on GamerSandy) is the last piece of this path and aims to translate its cube-based sandbox universe into an RTS, a real-time strategy game. Or rather, a very particular real-time strategy game.
Minecraft Legends is an RTS that doesn’t ask us to observe the action from above as if we were some sort of demiurge of this pile of pixels. Rather, he chooses to give us direct control of a hero, who will have the daunting task of saving the Overworld from an invading Piglin. If you’ve played Minecraft, you’ll remember the Piglins as the pig warriors of the Nether. Here, they have decided to invade the outside world with unparalleled violence.
In giving us control of the hero, Minecraft Legends reclaims its original playful nature, albeit in the third person. In fact, it will be up to us to collect materials useful for the construction of our army and our settlement. In this sense, the campaign is an excellent training ground, to understand what this title wants to do and how it succeeds, albeit with some flaws, in unexpectedly profound ways. In the campaign mode, we will in fact have an open world, procedurally generated, and in which to form our defense against the invasion of the Piglins.
Minecraft Legends is based on two fundamental mechanics: the collection of materials and the construction of units or structures. Their usefulness is no longer just related to survival in a sandbox world, but to manage the constant flow of Piglin and their fearsome outposts. Hence, Minecraft Legends fully embraces its strategic nature, providing us with a legendary lute with which to interact with the game world.
The lute and its songs are our means of doing everything from creating buildings to controlling units. Learning new songs is a process closely related to upgrading the overworld’s backbone, the Well of Destiny. This will act as a sort of 0 point, a safe haven in which to install new elements and thus unlock upgrades and new possibilities. At the beginning, for example, we will only be able to collect wood and stone. With power upsrelated to the collection of materials however, it will be possible to collect all the different elements typical of Minecraft. From iron to redstone, each brings with it unique structures and units, with their own specific characteristics. By collecting the red stone, for example, we will be able to create powerful warriors, but also zombies or creepers.
The collection element is balanced by the fairies in our possession, in limited but expandable numbers, who will collect what we want in the point indicated by us, autonomously, giving us a constant flow of resources to draw from (until they run out). This aspect leads to a management of spaces that allows you to build defensive walls, crossing ramps, doors and other upgrades useful for making any outposts safer.
But you don’t live on walls alone, because the offensive component is also important. Taking advantage of the collected materials, we will be able to create useful units in battle. Beyond the iconic monsters of Minecraft, this Legends offers several golems, each with a unique characteristic, to be exploited in battle.
The combat system is quite simple, and uses a tool called “Banner of Courage”. This will allow us to control our units through two commands. One for collection, to call nearby units to us, and the other to direct them towards the enemies or structures we want to attack.
Through a back button we will then be able to interact in a more specific way with our units, selecting a specific type and directing more attacks with greater precision on the different targets. In terms of controls, Minecraft Legends works well. The shortcuts designed for the various game mechanics are sensible and functional to the controller, and allow you to always have the game action under control. In case the controller is tight for you, the mouse and keyboard combination can also be used on consoles, with excellent results.
Above all, Mojang and Blackbird Interactive have managed to build a game system that is deep enough to give life to multiple gameplay solutions. However, without weighing down the experience with a confusing management of the game action. At the same time, the management of the units sometimes appears disconnected with the orders given, giving the feeling of not being able to effectively keep the clashes under control.
The gameplay loop is soon clear: you collect useful materials in the various areas of the map, defend allied outposts, increase your ranks and destroy the Piglin outposts scattered around the map. Basically, the Minecraft Legends campaign is this and little else. The latter is represented by the larger outposts, which offer a greater challenge, some variation, and unique bosses to face.
Everything is then surrounded by amusing cutscenes, which tell our strenuous defense against the Piglins in an ironic and funny way, perfectly in line with the imagination that Minecraft has sewn upon itself over time. Let’s be clear, her being a glorified tutorial doesn’t make the Campaign any less fun, but it is clear that expectations must be tempered, and to deal with a minimum variety of situations.
It remains a perfect way to learn how to play or to face fun challenges together with three other players. In this sense, the Lost Legends mode is very interesting, which will offer new challenges and rewards every month. This is content designed for co-op, according to the first available, but we hope that Mojang can use the opportunity to offer fun and unique diversions.
What about multiplayer? Minecraft Legends is clearly a title designed for the competitive, against other players. The developers, on several occasions, have described how the first prototype of the game was linked to this mode. A clear signal indeed.
PvP matches are designed for 2v2, 3v3, and 4v4, with the latter being the ideal way to enjoy the experience. Each PvP match will be unique, thanks to the procedural generation of the map (whose size is established by the number of players), the biomes and the materials present in each of them. A fundamental aspect to make each match unique, and give players the challenge of having to adapt to the always unique conditions of the clashes. The gameplay remains fundamentally identical to the campaign, with the main objective represented by the destruction of the opposing tower.
The two teams will have to collect materials, work together to create effective defenses, and coordinate for an offensive worthy of the name. As it stands, Minecraft Legends turns out to be a lot of fun in (good) company. However, the feeling is that something is still missing from the experience, both in terms of balance and variety.
In the dedicated community, made available by Microsoft for review, a meta linked to the red stone was created in a few days. The Redstone crossbow has quickly become the master objective of every match, given its impressive power in defeating the opposing base.
The idea that the Minecraft Legends meta could simply become a more powerful weapon race is depressing, because it would limit the rich strategic options that can be put into play. At the same time, the game would need some modifiers, which would help mitigate any balance issues, pushing players out of their comfort zone.
Also noteworthy is the absence of a chat, voice or text, within the game. In the absence of communication with other players, Minecraft Legends can become frustrating and not very fun. A typical problem of similar multiplayer experiences, and which the ping system linked to the d-pad is unable to overcome.
