how many people play minecraft
Minecraft has cemented its place as one of the few games to continue to grow in users a decade after its original release.While most video games have a shelf-life of less than two years, Mojang Studios’ hit game has acquired new users every year, alongside having bursts of older players returning.
Before its official launch in 2009, Minecraft gained a lot of attention due to its developer Markus ‘Notch’ Persson, who previously worked for King.During
the alpha period, Mojang added more content and fine-tuned aspects of the game.
As part of the official launch ,Notch handed over creative control to Jens Bergensten, a title he has held for more than a decade.
With millions of players flocking to this new game, Mojang continued to add new features to enable users to create more complex creations.
In 2014, rumors of a potential Mojang IPO led Microsoft to acquire the studio for $2.5 billion. Microsoft wasn’t a major game publisher at the time and it
wasn’t clear what Microsoft’s plans were for the game. Over the years, it has acquired several game studios, including Double Fine Production, Compulsion Games,
Bethesda Studios, and Obsidian Entertainment.
With Microsoft at the helm, Mojang continued to expand the Minecraft universe. It also launched several forks of Minecraft ,including a free Chinese edition in
2016 with NetEase and an education edition that same year. Oculus Rift, PlayStation, and Microsoft HoloLens are all virtual reality platforms for Minecraft.
Telltale Games released Minecraft: Story Mode between 2016 and 2017. Mojang followed up Telltale with its own expansion, Minecraft Dungeons, a
dungeon-crawler for PC and consoles. As Mojang says it will not build a new Minecraft game, we should expect more branches out of the IP. The modding community will continue to add more details to the original game as well.
Minecraft key statistics
- In 2021, Minecraft had 140 million monthly active players
- In 2021, Minecraft generated over $318 million in revenue
- The mobile revenue in Minecraft in 2021 was 161 million, which accounted for 41% of the total revenue
- As a result of in-game sales alone, Minecraft has generated over $3 billion in revenue over its lifetime
- Since Minecraft’s release in 2011, 600 million copies have been sold
- Over 400 million copies of Minecraft’s Chinese edition have been downloaded
- Active players in Minecraft increased by over 14 million between 2020 and 2021 as a result of COVID-19
- Minecraft players are typically males between the ages of 24 and 30
Boys Play More Than Girls
Minecraft certainly has more male players than female players. In fact, the average Minecraft player is a 24-year-old male. Who knew, right? However,
younger players still dominate Minecraft servers, with children as young as 3 playing the game. Despite Minecraft being rated for children 7 and up, this is still the case. It is estimated that 54% of boys aged 3 to 12 play Minecraft, compared to 46% of girls. In the age group of 6 to 8, this statistic only increases. The majority of Minecraft users are boys aged 6 to 8. Only 32% of Minecraft users are girls. Minecraft clearly appeals primarily to males.
Solo Players vs Multi-Players
- Friends
- Family members
- Other online players
Multiplayer allows you to collaborate with other players to create your own designs. Adults, however, behave differently. Only 11% of parents regularly play
Minecraft with their children. About half of all Minecraft players prefer to play alone.
Boys Watch More Minecraft Youtube Contentxs
The number of gaming and streaming YouTube channels has exploded over the last five years. With thousands of players streaming their Minecraft sessions, Minecraft has become part of the hype. About 32% of boys watch Minecraft-related content on YouTube. A total of 13 boys who play Minecraft also watch
Minecraft-related content on YouTube regularly . The percentage drops to just 9% for girls.
Americans Are The Most Active Minecraft Players
There are players from all over the world playing Minecraft. Nevertheless, the United States has the most players, with 21.21% of daily usage coming from the country. 3.5 times bigger than the next largest country on the list, and about the same as the next four countries combined. Players from each country consumed
a certain percentage of all the time played on the Minecraft game that day. The top 5 countries are as follows:
| Country | Daily Usage Recorded |
| United States | 21.21% |
| Brazil | 6.17% |
| Russia | 5.59% |
| United Kingdom | 5.06% |
| Germany | 4.60% |
It is interesting to note that 22% of British boys who play Minecraft say it is their favorite game. Minecraft has not only become a big game, but it has also
developed an extremely loyal following of players.
Monthly Active Players
Minecraft is played by how many people? The game has amassed 141 million active players worldwide since it was first released in 2011. Monthly active
| Month & Year | Monthly Active Players |
| June 2016 | 40 million |
| February 2017 | 55 million |
| January 2018 | 74 million |
| October 2018 | 91 million |
| May 2020 | 126 million |
| Aug 2021 | 141 million |
From May 2020 to March 2021, the game’s monthly active players increased by about 14 million, likely due to the COVID-19 virus outbreak.
Additionally, the mobile version of the game had a significant impact on the increase in active players. The first mobile version of Minecraft was released
in 2011, but the full version wasn’t available until 2016. The number of monthly active users has grown by 250% since 2016. Mobile devices such as tablets and phones made the game more accessible to players. Whenever and wherever you want, you could play it.
Minecraft Annual Global Revenue
When Microsoft purchased Minecraft in 2014, Minecraft’s global revenue dropped to $165M. In 2021, Minecraft generated $380M. From 2012 to 2021,
Minecraft generated the following global revenue:
| Year | Global Revenue |
| 2012 | $211 million |
| 2013 | $326 million |
| 2014 | $165 million |
| 2015 | $350 million |
| 2016 | $420 million |
| 2017 | $370 million |
| 2018 | $500 million |
| 2019 | $375 million |
| 2020 | $415 million |
| 2021 | $380 million |
Since 2016, Minecraft has grown in active users year on year, but revenue has been far less consistent. Minecraft peaked at $500 million in global revenue
in 2018. Sales of games dropped to $375M in 2019, but increased again to $415M in 2020. Minecraft’s revenue increased in 2020 largely because of the
pandemic.
Minecraft sales may have decreased without the pandemic. Over 238 million copies of Minecraft were sold worldwide in May 2020.
Minecraft has generated more than $2.8 billion in sales revenue since Microsoft acquired it in 2014.
Through the years, they have continuously reinvented the game without changing what makes it so popular. It is likely that Minecraft will remain popular
among players for many years to come if it continues to develop.
Minecraft Chinese (Free) Edition Downloads
The Minecraft China Edition is a specialized version of the game. A major Chinese software conglomerate, NetEase, developed it specifically for the Chinese
domestic market. It has become a top-rated game in China since its release in 2017.Since its release, more than 425 million copies of the game have been downloaded.
This is the complete number of cumulative downloads of the Minecraft Chinese Edition from 2017 to 2021:
| Year | Cumulative Downloads |
| 2017 | 75 million |
| 2018 | 150 million |
| 2019 | 300 million |
| 2020 | 400 million |
| 2021 | 425 million |
Minecraft Chinese Edition downloads doubled every year for the first three years until 2019. The Chinese version of Minecraft is free to play, but there are in
app purchases you can make.
The end of the story
Taking a closer look at how many people play Minecraft in 2022, it is evident that the game is still as popular as ever a decade after its release.
This voxel-based adventure game is loved by people of all ages for its pixelated graphics and open-ended gameplay. You might just find yourself getting addicted
just like the millions of others who already enjoy this fantastic game!
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