This past year Minecraft has surpassed Fortnite in YouTube searches. Some people say it is the recent update that Minecraft has gotten called “Village and Pillage” or others say it was the YouTuber PewDiePie who has started uploading videos of him playing Minecraft.

History teacher Jason Jauron, used to play Minecraft with his children who are now high schoolers. Jauron watches another YouTuber Stampylongnose who plays “survival games” in which players fight to the death to get the win and that is how he connects with his students. “Most everyone grew up playing this game, learning, and experiencing how to build and create things from nothing,” Jauron said. “When I walk into class with Stampy on, everyone’s talking… I don’t want it to be another day in history I want an experience that is almost nostalgic.”

People are now engaging in Minecraft, as it regains popularity. “I used to play Minecraft a lot because it was just such a good game,” Lucas Clayton ‘21 said. “Simple but complex, it’s easy to start and learn from but is also very challenging. I have been tempted to play Minecraft much more lately.”

Some students like Din Keserovic ’21 sought interest after watching a PewDiePie Minecraft video. “It was maybe a month or so ago and my YouTube suggested a video of him playing Minecraft for the first time in years and I decided to watch it,” Keserovic said. “I’m pretty sure that is one of the top reasons along with one of the newest updates on why Minecraft is boomin’.”

Others just do not have fun with it. “Minecraft is just so bad, the graphics are so low quality because they are just blocks and pixels,” Luke Mullen ‘20 said. “The market which also sells skins with real money which is just a complete waste of money.”

Some teachers have never heard of Minecraft. “I have absolutely no idea what Minecraft is but it sounds fun,” English teacher Emma Heitritter said. “If I had the chance to, I would give it a try.”