Home
Games
Games News
Minecraft Update Removes References to Creator Markus 'Notch' Persson

Minecraft Update Removes References to Creator Markus 'Notch' Persson

By Rishi Alwani | Updated: 28 March 2019 17:37 IST

Minecraft Notch references removed by Microsoft-owned Mojang

Highlights

These changes were a part of the latest Minecraft Java snapshot release
No reason for Notch's removal has been given
Notch has courted controversy since leaving Mojang

A new update to Minecraft has removed references pertaining to its creator Markus 'Notch' Persson. Mojang, the Microsoft-owned studio behind the game has removed text such as "Made by Notch!" and "The Work of Notch!" alongside adding some new quotes to the splash screen such as "Don't worry, be happy!" and "Go to the dentist". These changes were a part of the latest Minecraft Java snapshot release 19w13a which added the Hero of the Village status effect and an accessibility button to the title screen. While this Minecraft update's patch notes claim to fix 22 bugs, there's no mention made or reason given for the removal of references to Notch.

This was further confirmed thanks to the Minecraft wiki which now lists the removal of "Made by Notch!" and "The Work of Notch!" in the March 27 snapshot. Though he is still listed as the game's creator in its credits.

While neither Mojang or Microsoft has commented on this, it's not too hard to understand why this may have been done. After selling Mojang to Microsoft for $2.5 billion, Notch has routinely courted controversy, from endorsing the much derided QAnon conspiracy theory to debating the definition of gender, using the word "feminist" as an insult, claiming that "mansplaining is a sexist term designed to silence men via gender shaming", and making a host of anti-semitic statements too.

Minecraft, which lets users build in and explore a Lego-like virtual multiplayer world, has been downloaded over 100 million times on PC alone since its launch in 2009. It is one of the most popular online game on Xbox One, and one of the top paid apps for Apple's iOS and Google's Android operating system in the US.

If you're a fan of video games, check out Transition, Gadgets 360's gaming podcast. You can listen to it via Apple Podcasts or RSS, or just listen to this week's episode by hitting the play button below.

Comments

For the latest tech news and reviews, follow Gadgets 360 on X, Facebook, WhatsApp, Threads and Google News. For the latest videos on gadgets and tech, subscribe to our YouTube channel. If you want to know everything about top influencers, follow our in-house Who'sThat360 on Instagram and YouTube.