'Minecraft' fan creators have made a ton of money off the game, apparently
[cue Dr. Evil finger-to-lip pose] One. Million. Dollars.
That's how much money Minecraft's fan creators have earned, collectively, since the in-game Minecraft Marketplace launched in June. The news was announced with an appropriately blocky flourish on the game's Twitter feed.
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Minecraft has been a friendly place for amateur programmers for almost as long as it's been around. What Marketplace did was set up a curated storefront where approved creators could sell their creations for a price of their choosing, earning a share of the money spent in the process.
Mods have traditionally been off-limits as a source of income, but the fact that Minecraft Marketplace exists entirely within the game means it's also watched over by the copyright holders. Microsoft and Mojang get a cut of the money as well, and every item offered for sale has to be approved first.
Today's announcement doesn't offer any specific stats on what's been selling or who's made what. Fan creators as a group have earned more than $1 million from marketplace sales, but there's no definitive ranking. You can find July's top sellers right here.
Minecraft Marketplace seems to be a success. It launched in June with nine creator partners, and now there are 12 -- with more coming, according to Microsoft.
Adam Rosenberg is a Senior Games Reporter for Mashable, where he plays all the games. Every single one. From AAA blockbusters to indie darlings to mobile favorites and browser-based oddities, he consumes as much as he can, whenever he can.Adam brings more than a decade of experience working in the space to the Mashable Games team. He previously headed up all games coverage at Digital Trends, and prior to that was a long-time, full-time freelancer, writing for a diverse lineup of outlets that includes Rolling Stone, MTV, G4, Joystiq, IGN, Official Xbox Magazine, EGM, 1UP, UGO and others.Born and raised in the beautiful suburbs of New York, Adam has spent his life in and around the city. He's a New York University graduate with a double major in Journalism and Cinema Studios. He's also a certified audio engineer. Currently, Adam resides in Crown Heights with his dog and his partner's two cats. He's a lover of fine food, adorable animals, video games, all things geeky and shiny gadgets.
