Intro & Disclosure
Minecraft Legends is a new game set in the Minecraft Universe. Microsoft kindly provided me with a copy of Minecraft Legends for the purpose of delivering an honest review.
Initially, even after watching some gameplay footage, I found myself unsure about the game’s premise.
Minecraft Legends combines different game modes, supporting solo gameplay while being designed from the ground up to encourage multiplayer experiences. This includes a Campaign mode, Lost Legends & Myths (monthly activities with the first one being a wave-based game mode), and “Versus Mode” – a PvP competitive mode.
All modes support co-op play, and in PvP, you can compete with and against other players in 2v2, 3v3, and 4v4 matches.
Gameplay Mechanics
At its core, Minecraft Legends is an action strategy game. Players must defend their base (or bases) from Piglin attacks or real players in PvP mode.
In the campaign, you protect the Overworld from an invasion of Piglins by defending villages and aiming to clear all Piglin bases. In PvP, you and your opponents each have a base to protect. If the enemy destroys your base, you lose; if you destroy their base, you win.
The game incorporates familiar Minecraft elements, such as crafting structures from gathered resources. However, these resources are referred to as “Melodies.”
You’ll be equipped with various tools to command your allied army, construct structures and upgrades, and gather resources.
In Minecraft Legends, you wield a sword to attack Piglins but not structures. The key focus is on commanding your army to fight for you, rather than being the main combatant, as in games like Diablo.
You’ll also have mounts to traverse the world, and there is no option to travel on foot. You can discover more mounts as you explore the game world.
Procedurally Generated Maps
Procedurally Generated Maps are one of the best features of Minecraft Legends because they make each game mode feel unique. This is because the maps are generated randomly, which means that each PvP match will have a different size, shape, and mix of biomes.
As a result, players are presented with a different-looking map every time, which changes the way they play and strategize. For example, being close to the Fatelands biome ensures easy access to stone from huge rocks that exist in that particular area. Each biome has its own unique features and resources. Some biomes may have mountains that can give strategic advantages to the enemy for surprise attacks, but they can also give players and their team easier access to diamond resources that exist in those cold biomes.
Versus Mode (PvP)
The “Versus Mode” is the competitive mode in Minecraft Legends that features up to 4-vs-4 gameplay mechanics similar to the campaign but in a smaller, tighter, and more intensive competitive form.
However, as of the time of writing this review, PvP does not have a ranking system or matchmaking based on levels, which is disappointing for players who enjoy competitive games and want an incentive to climb up the ranks and be rewarded for their efforts.
This lack of a ranked mode may even be a deal breaker for some players who enjoy competitive games. For me, PvP is the highlight of the game, while the Lost Legends & Myths mode only offers one mode that’s only available monthly, and the campaign mode lacks replay value.
The “Versus Mode” has great replay value, and it’s a missed opportunity that it doesn’t have a ranking system. I hope that this feature will be added in the future, although it’s not a huge issue for me since I play Minecraft games more casually.
Even in competitive games like Overwatch, Hearthstone, Pokemon Unite, Valorant, and other games I invest time in, I don’t usually get too competitive and play them more casually. I like playing many games and not investing too much time in a single game. So, personally, I’m not too upset about the lack of a ranking system, but I would like to see rewards for players investing time in PvP, such as character skins and other goodies.
A Battle Pass would be a cool idea to incentivize and reward players for playing the game. I don’t know what future content will bring, but I hope that the developers will keep it fresh, motivating, and fun, which will encourage me to keep playing.
Issues?
Well, there aren’t many issues, but some took me some time to adapt to, such as not being able to see health bars on enemies and structures (coming from action RPGs).
There were also some minor bugs related to character positioning, not being able to see the distance from bases and villages, and some mounts not being as good as the Brilliant Beetle (although I hope more will be added). Additionally, I wasn’t able to get upgrades for the sword.
However, overall, the game’s performance is great, and I haven’t encountered any game-breaking bugs. There was one instance where the game launched in a higher resolution, cutting off some of the window, but I think this was related to me using two monitors, and restarting my laptop fixed the issue.
Graphics
Minecraft Legends is a visually stunning game, with dark outlines reminiscent of Borderlands to some degree.
However, I remember being slightly annoyed when I first played the game on a Full HD display due to the jagginess caused by the lack of an anti-aliasing option in the graphics settings. When I switched to my 1440p (2K) laptop display, it looked much better.
But when I later went back to playing on the 1080p display, it wasn’t as bad as I remembered. It was probably something I had to get used to, but having an anti-aliasing option would be a nice addition, in my opinion. Nonetheless, playing on a higher resolution definitely makes the game look better due to the lack of jagginess caused by the many straight lines in the scenes.”
Other Notes
The game offers options to change graphics fidelity up to the highest setting, which is Ultra, and allows players to choose their preferred regions (or all) for matchmaking. The matchmaking feature is amazing, and it’s great to have this necessary feature, which is crucial for making it easier for players to find others to play with.
The sound effects and music in the game are great, and it offers support for multiple languages for both text and voice. Additionally, the game has good accessibility options, including colorblind modes.
Things that can be improved
While I need more time playing PvP to provide a better assessment of what I think can be further improved to enhance the gameplay experience, let me share a few thoughts that have come to mind.
In my opinion, the game could benefit from a better balance and a wider variety of units. Spreading out the units allows for more counterplay, leading to a more dynamic cat-and-mouse type of gameplay until a weak spot in the defense is found and exploited. Balancing current units can provide players with more time to adapt, rather than finding themselves in situations where they can only watch as they lose without any way to react. I believe that a combination of these factors will lead to a more diverse meta, rather than one that feels very tight and defined early on. Having multiple ways to achieve victory is more enjoyable than focusing mainly on one or two winning conditions.
Adding new units down the road is also a good option to refresh the meta periodically. A variety of winning conditions is important for the fun factor, variety, and strategic planning.
I personally think there should be some kind of external option, such as weather conditions that can benefit certain units and make them stronger. More dynamic global effects can force players to change their strategies. These effects should be procedurally generated to keep them unpredictable. Additionally, creating specific zones that yield higher resource gathering rates could encourage players to fight for control of these areas early on, instead of focusing solely on their bases. Right now, the emphasis is too heavily placed on bases.
In essence, introducing more dynamic “events” that can shake up the battlefield and provide players with a chance to win, even in unfavorable conditions, would be beneficial. For example, if your upgrades are destroyed, recovering from such a loss can be difficult. However, having a dynamic event that can help turn the tide would be a great addition. In Pokemon Unite, players have the opportunity to change the outcome of a match during the last two minutes by quickly gathering points against a boss in the middle of the map.
Minecraft Legends could also introduce a powerful enemy (boss) that, once defeated, provides a significant amount of resources. This would require teamwork and leave bases vulnerable while players focus on defeating the boss. Ideas like these could enhance the game.
I am sharing my opinion from the perspective of a more competitive player who envisions the game having potential for tournaments and possibly esports. The core competitive gameplay is incredible, and developers can always add ranked features later if they want to. As long as the core gameplay is fun, that’s the most important thing, and additional elements can be built on top of it.
Modifiers could be a fantastic addition to the game. Things like making the piglins 200% stronger, having fewer trees so resources are scarce, introducing epic bosses as part of a modifier, or making piglins more aggressive as the match progresses (allowing players to push with the piglins if they attack user bases) would make the game even more engaging.
Summary
Overall, Minecraft Legends is a great game that executes a familiar formula really well. It’s an excellent co-op game with various game modes that players can enjoy and switch between to keep things diverse.
As a fan of Minecraft Dungeons, I’m thrilled to have a competitive Minecraft game. However, the success of this game will rely on continuously providing new content, and ensuring that PvP feels rewarding by adding more content to refresh the meta.
The monthly Lost Legends & Myths updates are a good idea to introduce fresh content into the game. While there are some issues and personal dissatisfaction with some of the decisions related to PvP, I’m still having a great time. I believe that based on players’ feedback, the developers can make updates, as the core gameplay itself works well, and it’s a blast to play in every game mode the game offers.
Thank you for reading.
Reviewed on PC (Microsoft Windows). Key provided by Microsoft for review purposes.