Someone has been curious enough to wonder whetherMinecraftcan exist on a delicate balance between playable and broken, with the user deleting as many files as possible to test what the limit is. Despite releasing in 2011, with the alpha build coming out a couple of years before that, Mojang’s sandboxgame still sold very well in 2022. This continued success is largely down to the infinite number of ways fans can keep themselves entertained.
For many,Minecraftis the ultimate boredom killer. From those first few nights just trying to survive to booting the game up in creative mode in order to construct elaborate structures, a lot of time has elapsed for players to become more than familiar with the mechanics. As well as giving gamers the chance to unleash their imaginations,Minecraftis also well known for its distinctive graphics. With its blocky aesthetic and colorful textures, there is something visually arresting about the game, but one person decided to see if they can remove all those striking colors.
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In a test that many would not dare attempt, YouTuber Mysticat pondered whether it was possible to delete just enough files to render the PC version ofMinecrafta complete mess, but without actually crashing everything. Essentially, they attempted to strip away as much as they could, leaving a bare-bones version of the game. Given the sheer number of files that make up all the assets and source code ofMinecraft, this was quite the task. It took a lot of trial and error, with the game consisting of 6,814 source code, or “class,” files alone, this proved challenging. The first step was to remove any internet connection to stop the launcher from automatically re-downloading missing assets.
By removingMinecraft’s distinctive textures, Mysticat was able to turn the open world into a mess of black and purple placeholders. They also deleted all the fonts and text files, which meant they couldn’t read what was onscreen. There were also two “Colormap” files that were important for creating the game’s grass visuals. While they couldn’t be deleted, Mysticat wiped the textures in Photoshop, making the world look more gray. In the end, they managed to getMinecraftto load to the menu without textures, sounds, or any words onscreen, but without the file that allowed the player to spawn into a world, the YouTuber was stuck at said menu.
Given that Mysticat recentlytweakedMinecraftto turn it into a 2D side-scroller, the modder is obviously keen to challenge themselves with interesting projects. Although deleting a lot of files is not recommended, it is interesting to see which ones in particular hold the game together.
Minecraftis available on Mobile, PC, PS3, PS4, Switch, Xbox 360, and Xbox One.
