Like many gamers, I am certainly one to dabble in a Minecraft phase, currently going strong on a three-month long Minecraft realm (real ones know the significance).
As players will know, the hunt for inspiration for your next project is ever present and, after scouring trusty old Pinterest for ideas, I saw an image of an old Minecraft tutorial world. One that reignited old memories.
For those unaware, Minecraft, the game that allows players to explore an expansive world made entirely of blocks, introduced tutorial worlds early on into the console editions of their game. These were pre-built and designed worlds, which were meant to provide a place for new players to learn about Minecraft and provided inspiration for new projects. These worlds went through a variety of forms, typically changing with each update to showcase new additions to the game.
Every player has their favourite, mine personally comes in the form of the ‘TU31 Tutorial World’. The ninth addition to the collection, it was released in late 2015. I had vague memories of exploring abandoned abbeys, port towns, hilltop castles, and country homes; but now, struck by the powerful forces of nostalgia, I was keen to revisit this forgotten land.
Little did I know how familiar the world would really be.
I found myself loading into a recognisable spawn, surrounded by a stone valley wall, and the iconic, floating Minecraft logo. Following the path in front of me, I walked out into a farm area, filled with animal pens and field of crops, before entering a small town ahead. The world carried a charming sense of familiarity and nostalgia that, every once in a while, we all crave.
Excitement levels high, my patience level for a slow walk across the world dwindled. A quick switch to creative mode, I rose high from spawn to take in the wider world.
‘What?!’
The world I had vaguely remembered in the game, may have been familiar for a whole other reason.
As a kid, my parents had been obsessed with holidaying in Scotland, rather than taking my brother and I on trips abroad. They believed it was important we got to know the place we were from. There was also little point taking us abroad on an expensive holiday that, due to our age, we’d probably forget.
I can’t say I blame them.
The road-trips were great. Exploring castle ruins, going on walks along cold and windy beaches, and falling asleep in the car home, were common childhood events for us.
Gunsgreen House in Eyemouth has always stuck in my mind as a key landmark of this period. Famous for being used as a smugglers building during the 18th century, the House carried a sense of mystery that any child’s imagination could easily latch onto and bring to life.
Minecraft worlds, especially the prebuilt tutorial ones, fulfilled a similar nostalgia for kids across the globe, delivering a playground for them to explore with an unmatched sense of freedom and creativity.
And so why is this relevant? Well, the sites that we had visited in real life, may have also been visited somewhere else.
Resting on a mound by the sea was a tall, square building. With a white base and brick façade at ground level, twin chimneys, and a belt of five tall rectangular windows across its face, I recognised it instantly. In all its glorious blockiness, Gunsgreen House stood proud in the Minecraft Tutorial World.
Being honest, I can’t remember another point in time where I’ve been so shocked by a game in my life. The same building I remember running through in Eyemouth, I had been doing so in Minecraft. I was taken back to a childish excitement at something so unbelievably random, confusing and epic, all at the same time. The thing was, it wasn’t an anomaly in this world.
The map, played by millions globally, featured a variety of sights from the southeast of Scotland. Melrose Abbey, Traquair House, Edinburgh Castle, Rosslyn Chappel, North Berwick Law, Bass Rock, Tantallon Castle, and Preston Mill, were all locations I could recognise, with many of which being visited by baby toothed Neil many moons ago.
The similarities between the locations were obvious.
Take Traquair House for example. The building located a few hills away from Innerleithen was visited by 27 Kings, Queens, and apparently me. TU31’s house and Traquair both share the same outside maze design, circular pathway, base structural shapes, and colour, in a clear display of Scotland being digiatly cloned.
So why is this? After all, it’s pretty random for an originally Swedish game to use Scotland as its inspiration. As it turns out, the Tutorial worlds featured in the varying console editions of Minecraft weren’t actually made by Microsoft owned Mojang Studios. Instead, they were created by 4J Studios – a Scottish games development Company.
The Dundee based firm were employed by Mojang to create ports of Minecraft from PC to other platforms, enabling players to enjoy the game on alternative consoles. 4J were given the responsibility of producing and updating these alternative editions in line with the original PC version, often meaning that these console editions had varying and exclusive features, notably the tutorial worlds.
Despite being a beautiful part of the country, most of the Southeast is often forgotten, so it’s great to see it getting some coverage. Although, of course we all know: ‘West is best.’
Whatever the exact reasoning, this digital world means a huge deal to a whole generation of players, and so, in an odd way, Scotland and its landmarks do too. If you haven’t visited these historical sights, I’d recommend a trip out this summer – or just boot up your dusty Xbox 360.
Hi, I’m Neil Singer, Culture Editor and second year student, studying media and journalism, and social policy. In my spare time I play for Strathclyde Lacrosse and watch a lot of films. If your reading this then that probably means you’ve looked at my article, so thankyou! You must be one very cool individual.
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