What is the age rating for minecraft

Minecraft is a 3-D computer game where players can build anything. The game which has been described as like an ‘online Lego’ involves building blocks and creating structures across different environments and terrains. Set in a virtual world the game involves resource gathering, crafting items, building, and combat.

It’s one of the most popular games in the world right now and can be an excellent way for kids to learn about creativity and working together.

Minecraft can be played on computers, phones, tablets and consoles. The game can cost around €20.00 depending on what device you are using it on.

Is there an Age Restriction?

Minecraft has been rated as suitable for 7+ up to 13+ depending on which version of the game you are playing. Children aren’t asked for proof of age when they sign up. If a user is under 13 and they sign-up with their correct age, certain game features cannot be accessed for example changing settings, making purchases, playing Minecraft Realms or chatting in scrolls.

Why is Minecraft so popular with kids?

Minecraft is hugely popular with kids particularly those aged between 6 and 13 years old. What makes the game so popular is that players can create anything… from cities to roller coasters and anything in between, there are no rules to the game and the possibilities and endless.

The game also allows for multiplayer mode, a popular function with young players, who enjoy playing with their friends and helping each other build new creations. For most children, the appeal is the freedom the game offers.

Are there any benefits to playing Minecraft?

There are number of benefits and skills children can learn and develop from playing Minecraft. In fact some schools have started to incorporate it into the classroom. So, what are the benefits?

• Developing problem solving skills
• Improves computer literacy, kids can develop and learn basic programming and software skills.
• Encourages creativity and can help develop design skills – Players can build/create anything they can imagine
• Improve teamwork skills and encourages collaboration
• Improve mathematical, spatial and analytical skills

Are there any risks?

There are a number of potential risks which parents may be concerned with. However many of these can be easily managed.

Multiplayer Mode

Minecraft has both multi and single player options. Many kids like to use multiplayer mode to play with their friends and to play with people around the world. As with most online games and apps, there are risks of encountering bad language, harassment, inappropriate content etc. To help avoid this, you can set games for single-player only (this can be done in the game settings), or disable the chat option in multiplayer. Click here for details on how to turn off the chat setting.

Violence

Minecraft contains very little violence, graphic or inappropriate content, for example there is no blood in the game. Players can however, hit or kill animals or each other in multiplayer mode, but this is not the main focus of the game and graphics are very cartoon like.

Minecraft on YouTube

Many kids watch Minecraft tutorials on YouTube to get help, hints and tips on the game. Some YouTube tutorials include bad language or inappropriate comments. To avoid your child encountering this, encourage them to use these recommended YouTube channels for Minecraft tutorials.

Here’s a good place to start: commonsensemedia.org/blog/the-10-best-kid-friendly-minecraft-channels-on-youtube

Additional Tips for Parents

It can helpful to set time limits on how much screen time your child is allowed.

Agree some basic gameplay rules – for example decide if you comfortable with your child using multi-player mode or chatting to other players online.

For more information and safety tips on online gaming go to: webwise.ie/parents/online-gaming-for-parents/

With Minecraft being one of the most popular video games ever released (it’s the top-grossing video game of all time), it’s highly likely that your 7-year-old child is either currently playing it or is begging you to let them play it.

But what kind of content does Minecraft exactly contain? And is it ok to let your 7-year-old play Minecraft without supervision?

Is Minecraft suitable for 7-year olds? Minecraft is rated 7+, meaning that the game is recommended for children from the age of 7 upwards. The PEGI system classifies a 7+ rating as a game that “contains non-realistic looking violence towards fantasy characters (…) that could be upsetting to very young children.”

This age rating does not define the difficulty of the game however, as Minecraft can range from Easy to very Difficult depending on the difficulty setting set before or changed during the game.

Based on the age rating and the feedback of parents around the globe, Minecraft is ok for 7-year olds, but as with any decision on media, the final say should be your own decision as a parent.

Our Minecraft courses for 7-year olds and up

We know how hugely popular Minecraft is with 7-year olds around the UK and have actually created one of our summer camps around the topic. It’s grown to become one of our most popular camps, being aimed at kids age 7 years and up.

To find out more, go check out the FunTech Minecraft with Mods course.

How 7-year olds play Minecraft

Minecraft is a ‘sandbox game’, meaning that it has no exact objective or end goal, it is entirely open to you to do and create pretty much anything you want.

Using the 1×1 coloured blocks as building materials, you can either have a survival experience surviving the elements and wild animals and monsters of the forest or try and build the biggest structure you can.

You may have already heard of the massive and complex structures people have built in Minecraft over the years, from recreations of famous landmarks, unique castles and grand stately homes and even fully working computers.

Is Minecraft good for 7-year olds?

Because of the seemingly endless creative freedom Minecraft allows you, many people say that it can be a useful tool to allow children to develop both creative and practical skills by playing it.

In fact, we recently published a blog post which spoke about how Minecraft can be good for 7-year olds in helping them define a later career in life. You can read that here.

Some schools have even incorporated it into their syllabus in order to make learning more engaging for the technological generation.

Is Minecraft Violent?

But what about the game itself? It is understandable to be concerned about the content that your child is being exposed to, with some popular video games being incredibly bloody and violent.

While real-life violence is very rarely attributed to playing violent video games, it is a valid concern that your 7-year child may get scared of or desensitised to the violence on-screen.

Thankfully, while Minecraft does contain some light combat, it is a very bloodless and optionally pacifistic game. Monsters such as zombie and skeletons can generate (or ‘spawn’) into the game world to attack the player, as well as the well-known Creepers which sneak up on you and explode.

To fight these monsters off you need a sword, shield or a bow and arrow to kill them, whereupon they will disappear in a puff of smoke and potentially leave some useful materials such as arrows, bones, zombie meat or even TNT that can be used in crafting.

When attacking these monsters, heats come away from them instead of blood to show that damage has been taken without showing actual bodily damage.

If you are still concerned about your 7-year-old taking part in any combat, this is easily done by changing the difficulty in the game settings to ‘peaceful’. The peaceful difficulty prevents any monsters from spawning into the world and allows the player to regain health bars that stops them from dying if they take any damage from falling or eating anything poisonous.

Peaceful mode still allows you to kill creatures such as pigs, cows, sheep and chickens, which drop meat, leather, wool and feathers when killed. Killing animals for meat in the game isn’t compulsory though, as there are lots of fruits, vegetables and other foods that can be easily grown and eaten to regain health.

If you are still worried about your 7-year-old playing Minecraft, then there are ways you can purposefully tailor the experience of the game to best suit your child.

Before starting a new game, you can lock the ability to change the level of difficulty within that game. This means that if you set it onto ‘peaceful’ your child cannot change the difficulty in the middle of the game. This peaceful setting, as previously mentioned, prevents enemies from spawning into the game and also prevents the player from taking damage from falling from high places or starving if you forget to eat.

Additionally, when signing up for Minecraft the site will ask for your age. If your child registers their real age and they are below 13 then certain features such as making in-game purchases through their account or changing the settings from within the game.

For more information, take a look at our Minecraft safety guide for parents.

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