I haven't played Minecraft in a year or so and the version that's still installed on my laptop is 1.7.2. Upon looking to see how far the game has come in that time I see that there are a number of updates, some apparently big, and now I'm conflicted: Should I keep the game that I've currently got, which was nicely set up with a bunch of nice programs and mods, installed Optifine and shaders, tweaked to how I like it, etc., or should I toss all that aside and go through the headache of upgrading - not just the game itself but all the other crap that will make it look (shaders, etc.) and play (Forge, mods, etc.) how I like it?
Two particular questions:
1. If I DON'T CARE ABOUT MULTIPLAYER OR PVP IN THE SLIGHTEST, and mostly enjoy just exploring, adventuring / survival mode, is there any particular reason to go up to 1.8 or later?
2. If I decide to stick with 1.7 is there any major reason to go from 1.7.2. to 1.7.10?
Basically, I'd like to have the most updated game, but not if it means having to reinstall everything from texture packs to shaders to everything else and hope that it all plays nice together (which, in my experience, it doesn't). My game is massively out of date, but it's pretty and it's fun and it's STABLE. I don't really care about extra block types or new mobs, I just enjoy the experience of exploring, spelunking, wandering, creating, etc. Have any versions beyond 1.7.2. made that experience significantly must-have?
I'm not necessarily against sampling later versions of the game, I just figured that it would be simpler to just ask others what they felt about 1.7 versus the major revisions that came afterward. I ask because everywhere I've looked I've seen a large consensus that 1.8 "changed" the game and that it's been worse ever since, but that there are fans of it (as well as later versions of the game) as well. The only real accounts I can find about why everything was bad after 1.8 is that PvP was broken but I honestly couldn't care less about PvP so that's no help. I've tried looking at feature lists but those don't really tell me how the overall experience has changed, it just tells me what new blocks and options have been added. I'm just trying to gauge other people's opinions about whether 1.7 has been made obsolete by all kinds of awesome features in later versions or if, on the contrary, everything from 1.8 onward is so different that it's not nearly as good.
I guess, in other words, I was kind of hoping for someone with experience to give me a summary such as:
1.7 was great because of X but that Y feature was always kind of lame, it made it hard to do this or that or whatever. Meanwhile 1.8 changed this thing that sucked, which was good, but it also changed this beloved thing over here that everyone used to love, making the game worse. If you like wandering and exploration you'll want to stick with version blablabla because it's the best at XYZ, whereas if you're more into building you'll want version etc.etc.etc. because it's the one that's best at 123.
That kind of thing. Some detailed opinions based on the experience of trying the different versions.
1.8- gimmicks (lag beacons, stained glass trash, stupid new blocks)
1.9- Combat changed, tbh the change was okay, but thats about it
1.10- nether wart blocks. commands. Polar bears. Thats about it.
1.11- New types of villagers, shucker boxes, llamas and woodland mansions.
1.12- Tips for newbs, concrete, colored beds, and parrots.
So in other words, you get almost nothing useful with these updates. They only publish these updates so n00bs stop complaining for them to update the game. If you want to add more content to your game, do it with 1.7.10 mods. You'll have a MUCH better time.
And before I get flamed on by some mojang fanboys, tell me how any of this is useful or adds a use at all that I would actually use? (Besides 1.9 pvp and shields ofc).
Shulker box, elytra, depth-strider, mending. (To name just a few, to illustrate)
Am I a Mojang fanboy (or girl) just because I love Minecraft?
Shulker box. Why? I have enderchest and backpack mod? Elytra is a gimmick, and I have archimedes ships anyways. Depth Strider? Well I guess maybe on Pixelmon when you actually spend time in the ocean, but in vanilla you never even should spend time in the ocean. Mending? I'll just use an anvil tbh.
And as for being a fanboy, my definition of fanboyism is that you overlook anything that your favorite company does because they are mojang. If you are a fanboy under my definition, that is Very bad. We are getting on a whole new discussion now, but please, speak out when there is a bad update, and don't go, "Its Minecraft, so it's good no matter what!" That is what kills franchises. And that is also why Online is paid on all 3 consoles now (Getting WAY into a greater discussion now, sorry mods). If valve did that, they would get enormous criticism, (Because a lot of "Hardcore" PC gamers will criticize no matter what company does it). This is Amazing for Gaming itself. If people don't criticize games because its from their favorite company, every game coming out would be a broken mess.
TLDR; Don't refrain from criticizing because its your favorite game/company. It would kill gaming if nobody criticized.
LOL bobo you sound like a guy after my own heart. Short and cynical, just like me!
Seriously though, thank you both. This is exactly the kind of information I was looking for. I wanted to hear personal opinions about why it would be better or worse to stay at 1.7.2 as opposed to updating. And I have to admit, while the things that Herb listed sound well and good (they don't sound like they make the game worse by any means) they don't really sound like anything that I'd really need or pay much attention to, at least not anything that would be worth the hassle of reinstalling everything, retweaking everything, updating mods and finding replacements for now-broken texture packs, etc. At the moment these two summaries do make me wonder if sticking with 1.7 (though at least updating to 1.7.10 from the sounds of it) might the better move for me.
That said, I had no idea that it was easy (or even possible, really) to play later versions of the game on an install that still retains an older one. I wasn't totally sure that I understood indiahawker's response, now it makes more sense.
I love being able to look in other directions, but keep going in another, in boats. And they don't break in crazy ways (like, when you hit a lily pad). And we can sit in the back of them and let someone else navigate. And use them to transport mobs. The new boats are a huge improvement; I think it's a bit picky to complain about the control - it's different, sure, and it takes some getting used to. Ah well... no matter what is changed, there's always someone that doesn't like it!
Honestly, I basically only used boats in open oceans (if you are traveling down a river, just run tbh). And I if anything disliked the change, because boats are slower now.
1.10 is close, now, with some of the big mods being updated on that (but not 1.7) - but yeah, sure; 1.7 is fine for modded, at the moment; I use it for some packs. Hopefully 1.13 will be the big new benchmark for modding...although it's gonna take a lot of work for some types of mod.
Alright, 1.10 may be getting lots of mods, but in no way is it going to be a 1.7.10. Looking at the pages of mods on curseforge, 1.7.10 has 202 pages, MC1.10 has 142, and 1.6.4 has 42. Mod-Wise, 1.7.10 might be the best ever, with updates like 1.11 and 1.12 coming out (Not adding much challenge, but requiring a recode, and devs decide not to even bother).
Thanks for all the answers everybody. If I were to use that new (new to me at least) Minecraft Launcher to switch between various version of the game, can I apply it to the modded 1.7.2. game that I've got running now, or do I have to uninstall anything first? Also, what makes 1.7.10 particularly good for mods? Is it just that more mods happened to be made for that version since it was around for so long?
Sorry, I guess I can always look those answers up myself.
I haven't played Minecraft in a year or so and the version that's still installed on my laptop is 1.7.2. Upon looking to see how far the game has come in that time I see that there are a number of updates, some apparently big, and now I'm conflicted: Should I keep the game that I've currently got, which was nicely set up with a bunch of nice programs and mods, installed Optifine and shaders, tweaked to how I like it, etc., or should I toss all that aside and go through the headache of upgrading - not just the game itself but all the other crap that will make it look (shaders, etc.) and play (Forge, mods, etc.) how I like it?
Two particular questions:
1. If I DON'T CARE ABOUT MULTIPLAYER OR PVP IN THE SLIGHTEST, and mostly enjoy just exploring, adventuring / survival mode, is there any particular reason to go up to 1.8 or later?
2. If I decide to stick with 1.7 is there any major reason to go from 1.7.2. to 1.7.10?
Basically, I'd like to have the most updated game, but not if it means having to reinstall everything from texture packs to shaders to everything else and hope that it all plays nice together (which, in my experience, it doesn't). My game is massively out of date, but it's pretty and it's fun and it's STABLE. I don't really care about extra block types or new mobs, I just enjoy the experience of exploring, spelunking, wandering, creating, etc. Have any versions beyond 1.7.2. made that experience significantly must-have?
Thanks for any help.
I'm not necessarily against sampling later versions of the game, I just figured that it would be simpler to just ask others what they felt about 1.7 versus the major revisions that came afterward. I ask because everywhere I've looked I've seen a large consensus that 1.8 "changed" the game and that it's been worse ever since, but that there are fans of it (as well as later versions of the game) as well. The only real accounts I can find about why everything was bad after 1.8 is that PvP was broken but I honestly couldn't care less about PvP so that's no help. I've tried looking at feature lists but those don't really tell me how the overall experience has changed, it just tells me what new blocks and options have been added. I'm just trying to gauge other people's opinions about whether 1.7 has been made obsolete by all kinds of awesome features in later versions or if, on the contrary, everything from 1.8 onward is so different that it's not nearly as good.
I guess, in other words, I was kind of hoping for someone with experience to give me a summary such as:
1.7 was great because of X but that Y feature was always kind of lame, it made it hard to do this or that or whatever. Meanwhile 1.8 changed this thing that sucked, which was good, but it also changed this beloved thing over here that everyone used to love, making the game worse. If you like wandering and exploration you'll want to stick with version blablabla because it's the best at XYZ, whereas if you're more into building you'll want version etc.etc.etc. because it's the one that's best at 123.
That kind of thing. Some detailed opinions based on the experience of trying the different versions.
1.8- gimmicks (lag beacons, stained glass trash, stupid new blocks)
1.9- Combat changed, tbh the change was okay, but thats about it
1.10- nether wart blocks. commands. Polar bears. Thats about it.
1.11- New types of villagers, shucker boxes, llamas and woodland mansions.
1.12- Tips for newbs, concrete, colored beds, and parrots.
So in other words, you get almost nothing useful with these updates. They only publish these updates so n00bs stop complaining for them to update the game. If you want to add more content to your game, do it with 1.7.10 mods. You'll have a MUCH better time.
And before I get flamed on by some mojang fanboys, tell me how any of this is useful or adds a use at all that I would actually use? (Besides 1.9 pvp and shields ofc).
My website
5 Years on Minecraftforum. Over 9 on minecraft itself. Mod developer for 4 years.
Shulker box. Why? I have enderchest and backpack mod? Elytra is a gimmick, and I have archimedes ships anyways. Depth Strider? Well I guess maybe on Pixelmon when you actually spend time in the ocean, but in vanilla you never even should spend time in the ocean. Mending? I'll just use an anvil tbh.
And as for being a fanboy, my definition of fanboyism is that you overlook anything that your favorite company does because they are mojang. If you are a fanboy under my definition, that is Very bad. We are getting on a whole new discussion now, but please, speak out when there is a bad update, and don't go, "Its Minecraft, so it's good no matter what!" That is what kills franchises. And that is also why Online is paid on all 3 consoles now (Getting WAY into a greater discussion now, sorry mods). If valve did that, they would get enormous criticism, (Because a lot of "Hardcore" PC gamers will criticize no matter what company does it). This is Amazing for Gaming itself. If people don't criticize games because its from their favorite company, every game coming out would be a broken mess.
TLDR; Don't refrain from criticizing because its your favorite game/company. It would kill gaming if nobody criticized.
My website
5 Years on Minecraftforum. Over 9 on minecraft itself. Mod developer for 4 years.
LOL bobo you sound like a guy after my own heart. Short and cynical, just like me!
Seriously though, thank you both. This is exactly the kind of information I was looking for. I wanted to hear personal opinions about why it would be better or worse to stay at 1.7.2 as opposed to updating. And I have to admit, while the things that Herb listed sound well and good (they don't sound like they make the game worse by any means) they don't really sound like anything that I'd really need or pay much attention to, at least not anything that would be worth the hassle of reinstalling everything, retweaking everything, updating mods and finding replacements for now-broken texture packs, etc. At the moment these two summaries do make me wonder if sticking with 1.7 (though at least updating to 1.7.10 from the sounds of it) might the better move for me.
That said, I had no idea that it was easy (or even possible, really) to play later versions of the game on an install that still retains an older one. I wasn't totally sure that I understood indiahawker's response, now it makes more sense.
If you like using a fair amount of mods then go to 1.7.10... Cause thats the best version for modding.
Honestly, I basically only used boats in open oceans (if you are traveling down a river, just run tbh). And I if anything disliked the change, because boats are slower now.
Alright, 1.10 may be getting lots of mods, but in no way is it going to be a 1.7.10. Looking at the pages of mods on curseforge, 1.7.10 has 202 pages, MC1.10 has 142, and 1.6.4 has 42. Mod-Wise, 1.7.10 might be the best ever, with updates like 1.11 and 1.12 coming out (Not adding much challenge, but requiring a recode, and devs decide not to even bother).
My website
5 Years on Minecraftforum. Over 9 on minecraft itself. Mod developer for 4 years.
Thanks for all the answers everybody. If I were to use that new (new to me at least) Minecraft Launcher to switch between various version of the game, can I apply it to the modded 1.7.2. game that I've got running now, or do I have to uninstall anything first? Also, what makes 1.7.10 particularly good for mods? Is it just that more mods happened to be made for that version since it was around for so long?
Sorry, I guess I can always look those answers up myself.