Minecraft for Apple TV Discontinued Due to Lack of Players

[TraceyS/FL]

I can barely use that slippery fish of a controller to navigate the blasted tv part of Apple TV. I can’t imagine how people were going to use it for games, let alone Minecraft. Many of the kids I know who love Minecraft don’t have the fine motor skills necessary for smooth operation of that controller, either.

I may be middle aged, but I can still game and I handle VR controllers just fine for medium paced games.

Apple’s designs are beautiful but sometimes they don’t seem built for actual human beings to use.

AppleTV 4k remote has been a nightmare for me. Previous touch remote was ok. I'd never play a game with that thing.

It seemed like everywhere I went I saw a kid playing minecraft on a tablet, so I'm surprised that part didn't support development costs.

Very true. I hate the remote as well. A more ergonomic and intuitive upgrade is definitely welcome.

I use the atv4 remote everyday, and even though I am used to it, I think it sucks for almost everything compared to a physical dpad

The white circle they added does not make it easier to pick up in the dark without pressing the wrong buttons or swiping on the touch surface.

I agree with everyone, the ATV4/4K remote is a total disaster.

Best 10 bucks I accidentally stumbled on to spend. Seriously worth it.

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/insignia-apple-tv-remote-cover/5404100.p?skuId=5404100

 

[Rogifan]

I never understood why people wanted Apple TV to be a gaming platform. Anyone who wants to sit in front of a TV and play games will have a dedicated console. Apple TV should be nothing more than a streaming media device and should be a lot cheaper.

How and as far as the remote goes...the best remote for Apple TV is your iPhone.

 

[AngerDanger]

After reading some of the feedback, I've made a painstaking effort to redesign the TV remote.

Oh, what's that? It's just the TV 3 remote, and I'm just a hack who should stop posting GIFs on MacRumors?

WRONG; it's the TV 3 remote with a mic at the top. Press and hold the center button for Siri without losing the D-pad or ergonomics of the original.

 

[jtrenthacker]

I can barely use that slippery fish of a controller to navigate the blasted tv part of Apple TV. I can’t imagine how people were going to use it for games, let alone Minecraft. Many of the kids I know who love Minecraft don’t have the fine motor skills necessary for smooth operation of that controller, either.

I may be middle aged, but I can still game and I handle VR controllers just fine for medium paced games.

Apple’s designs are beautiful but sometimes they don’t seem built for actual human beings to use.

Agreed. The remote sucks just to navigate to Netflix, much less use it for gaming. I'd much rather have the ATV2-3 remote back.

 

[dilbert99]

I never understood why people wanted Apple TV to be a gaming platform. Anyone who wants to sit in front of a TV and play games will have a dedicated console. Apple TV should be nothing more than a streaming media device and should be a lot cheaper.

Because couple an Apple TV with cheaper prices of games on iOS compared to consoles, it should have taken off.
Apple missed the boat because of the controller I suspect, either that or companies wanted more for the price of games than people are prepared to pay on iOS.

I have two Apple TVs but still prefer my fetch tv box for watching content and TiVo before they killed it off in Australia. The screen savers are neat though.

I use a Harmony remote system in my house and Apple missed that point that people, well me anyway don't have multiple remotes sitting out and prefer to have one master controller.

Or perhaps like you say, the target market of gamers on a tv buy consoles. My son has one console and is wanting a second brand to add to it.

 

[GaryMumford]

ATV is still just a hobby for Apple. The opportunity to create something great has been and gone. There's nothing to see here, Move along...

 

[syzygic]

We play a lot of Minecraft on iPads in our household, and I purchased the Apple TV edition to play Minecraft Pocket Edition with my kids on the TV.

The claim that the game was cancelled due to 'Lack of Players' is totally misleading. Mojang stopped updating Minecraft Apple TV edition a long time (~ 1 year) ago and since old versions of the client are not compatible, someone playing on the Apple TV edition could only play with someone on an outdated client. It is entirely Mojang's fault for 1) Selling the game on Apple TV for what I would consider an exorbitant price (which I paid, mainly for my kids) and then 2) Stopping updates on the software with no communication whatsoever a a full year before they finally announce that they are pulling the plug.

I will be very hesitant to spend any more money on any Mojang products in the future.

 

[Stella]

Apple TV had a lot of potential to be a casual gaming 'console'. For some reason, Apple blew up. It didn't help that Apple were strict about 3rd party controllers, or the initial application sizes.

Apple TV is a wasted gaming opportunity. Apple released the 4th Gen Apple TV and then completely forgot about the App side. The Appstore is still a disaster.

 

[bacaramac]

I think the price entry screwed this game. $20 for game and what, $50 for gampad?? I think it’s too immature of a device to invest $70 for gaming. My kids only use AppleTV now and no longer have dedicated console, not ideal, but PS4 and all new games wasn’t happening when PS3 became dated. Until they cement ATV as gaming device, this will continue to happen and probably why Fortnite isn’t there yet.

 

[jacjustjac]

Did anyone else feel gypped for buying the 4th-gen TV with 64GB of storage for $50 more? Never got used for anything, especially once Apple started imposing the “streaming games” principal. For the first time ever, the base storage size on an Apple Device really *was* enough.

 

[Stella]

If sales for AppleTV Minecraft were slow, there is little incentive for Mojang to continue development on a loss making product.

We play a lot of Minecraft on iPads in our household, and I purchased the Apple TV edition to play Minecraft Pocket Edition with my kids on the TV.

The claim that the game was cancelled due to 'Lack of Players' is totally misleading.

Please give your evidence that the claim is misleading. You seem to have knowledge of their AppleTV sale figures!!

 

[syzygic]

If sales for AppleTV Minecraft were slow, there is little incentive for Mojang to continue development on a loss making product.





Please give your evidence that the claim is misleading. You seem to have knowledge of their AppleTV sale figures.

I guess what I mean is the following: Perhaps their sales figures are low because they completely neglected to update their product.

 

[Pupi]

These opinions about the Siri remote are insane to me. It is my favorite media remote - ever! After a few months of using a Harmony universal remote with my Apple TV and everything else, I used the Siri remote for a short bit, and I couldn’t go back anymore. It was a glass of ice water in hell. Scrolling, scrubbing, everything is so smooth, it’s a literal magic trackpad for your Apple TV. I can keep using the Harmony remote with everything else, but will stick the the Siri remote for Apple TV. I’d love an universal version of it.

Not for gaming though. But to be fair, gaming is mostly dreadful on the Apple TV in any form.

 

[Stella]

I guess what I mean is the following: Perhaps their sales figures are low because they completely neglected to update their product.

Likewise, if sales were poor, why would Mojang continue development for AppleTV? Maybe Mojang know that Minecraft AppleTV is destined to fail? You can go and look on the AppleTV App Store - there isn't much content still, after all these years, and its really disappointing. Minecraft is doing well on other platforms. Apple have let the app side of the AppleTV rot away.

 

[Rogifan]

Because couple an Apple TV with cheaper prices of games on iOS compared to consoles, it should have taken off.
Apple missed the boat because of the controller I suspect, either that or companies wanted more for the price of games than people are prepared to pay on iOS.

I have two Apple TVs but still prefer my fetch tv box for watching content and TiVo before they killed it off in Australia. The screen savers are neat though.

I use a Harmony remote system in my house and Apple missed that point that people, well me anyway don't have multiple remotes sitting out and prefer to have one master controller.

Or perhaps like you say, the target market of gamers on a tv buy consoles. My son has one console and is wanting a second brand to add to it.

I’m skeptical of this casual gaming console concept. I’m skeptical there’s a sizable market for people who want to sit in front of a TV and play games with a controller but don’t own/want a dedicated console. Apple’s heart has never been in gaming. But when the new Apple TV came out the company didn’t have a content strategy yet so they pitched the device the only way they know how: as another app platform. Like with the Watch and fitness it’s pretty clear the Apple TV best use case is streaming media. Apple should continue to innovate around that and forget about apps and games. Oh and make the box cheaper. Or how about when their original TV plans go live offering a discounted Apple TV if you sign up for a TV subscription.

 

[Tech198]

Never knew Minecraft was on AppleTV..Apparently i've been living quietly under a rock

Like that pic.

 

[wigby]

Yup.
The hardware is actually very capable, but Apple has fumbled the ball. Unfortunate - it could be so much more.

I don't think they ever picked up the ball. They shouldn't have demonstrated games at any of their announcement events because it was never designed to be a gaming machine by Apple. Like the Watch and HomePod, Apple made a competent piece of hardware but rely on developers and consumer feedback to guide them. That approach worked perfectly for the Watch, AppleTV and is working for HomePod. It's a little bit more of chicken and the egg with Apple TV but Apple never intended it to be a console of any sort so when developers and consumers didn't respond to gaming, Apple gave up quickly and focused on being the best movie/TV streaming box on the market.

 

[trainwrecka]

I remember being so excited for the launch of the Apple TV with apps. Then I got it. The games were horribly slow to load unless they had very simple graphics.

The remote as controller though... that killed the whole gaming experience. My brother almost bought one for his kids as the primary video game console. Dodged that bullet and got a Wii U - they were in heaven.

Apple really needed a dedicated controller accessory (something all developers could code for). It's too late now - that ship sailed.

 

[syzygic]

Not for gaming though. But to be fair, gaming is mostly dreadful on the Apple TV in any form.

Gaming in almost any capacity on the Apple TV essentially requires a game remote (or two if you want to play with a friend). This of course brings its cost in line with a Slim PS4/XBox One S which vastly outclasses Apple TV in terms of the games available.

That said, I have found some good games (Sky Force, Dan the Man, Crossy Road) on the Apple TV that I have sunk many hours into with friends and family. I understand that these games also are available on an iOS device, but IMO they provide a much more console-like experience on the Apple TV. It really is a shame that Apple hasn't made more of an attempt to make the platform more gamer/developer friendly, because the hardware is more than capable, but the software is largely absent.

 

[Spytap]

Mojave's Minecraft: Story Mode

*Mojang. (DYAC)

 

[FWRN]

I don't know of a single person who plays games actively on their Apple TV.

 

[BlargKing]

Never understood the whole gaming on Apple TV thing personally. If you want to play games at a TV, just buy a PlayStation or an Xbox. Then you at least have a mainstream gaming platform and either console supports most of the big content streaming services. Plus you can also play Blu Ray on them, which despite what many would have you believe, are still superior to streaming in terms of A/V quality.

 

[gowhitestripes]

There is a massive gaming future in the Apple TV. We must wait for cloud gaming to evolve. It is coming. Cloud gaming enables somewhat dumb devices like the Apple TV to become full-on gaming machines. It also enables device switching.

 

[Torrijos]

Am I the only one that thinks that 20$ for MineCraft is way too much?

I do love the AppleTV and know that the hardware is capable of more but I guess there is no point improving the experience when the pinacle of casual gaming is phones and tablets.

I have Racing 3 for exemple on all devices and couldn't be bother to play it on the AppleTV 4K even with a pad (such bad stick control), but to be faire even on the phone it's not as fun as an iPad.

 

[Stella]

I don't like consoles, I wouldn't pay several hundred dollars on one either, but I do like playing a few AppleTV on a big TV - its more casual, I find it relaxing - they are games I don't have on a PC, nor would buy for a PC.

As for Blu Ray: I'd rather just look on iTunes and buy the content I want without having to go out and buy the content from a store. I don't doubt the AV is much better, but completely wasted, I wouldn't tell much of a different TBH!

Never understood the whole gaming on Apple TV thing personally. If you want to play games at a TV, just buy a PlayStation or an Xbox. Then you at least have a mainstream gaming platform and either console supports most of the big content streaming services. Plus you can also play Blu Ray on them, which despite what many would have you believe, are still superior to streaming in terms of A/V quality.