By May, my grades may be dead but Minecraft won’t.

  As of September 2018, Minecraft has reported having over 91 million monthly players. I know way too many people who are apart of that 91 million, including me, plenty of my friends, my boyfriend, even my mom.

  If I were to think about how many people I know who enjoy playing Minecraft about a year ago, I’d probably cringe.

  Who would want to be like some weird sixth grader who couldn’t get off the couch and get a real game? I already looked like a sixth grader. I didn’t need the reputation of “Minecraft” hanging over my head.

  But that was a year or so ago. Things are somehow changing in 2019. Minecraft is coming back and is better than ever.

  With the new “Village and Pillage” update players are now more eager than ever to check out what has changed.

  For others, it’s something else.

  “A lot of people are coming back to Minecraft because of nostalgia,” said junior Matthew Gai.

  Gai told me he plays every day with his friends. Iconic. He noted the game has definitely made a comeback in 2019, and gave some insight on why.

  “A lot of people moved away from Minecraft because of the cringey fanbase, and all the children who kind of too over,” said Gai. “That cringey fanbase moved away from Minecraft. They migrated over to Fortnite. All of us older kids have decided it’s time to take over Minecraft.”

  It’s too easy to recall every terrible Minecraft parodies from 2012.

  My personal favorite was “Fallen Kingdom” by CaptainSparklez, parodying Coldplay’s unforgettable “Viva La Vida”.

  Not to mention Tobuscus’s original song, “I Can Swing My Sword”. I can feel my stomach churn when I think about the entirety of Tobuscus’s existence.

  While these parodies are still being pumped out every day (have you heard “Mine Down Low” yet?), we don’t seem to have them violently thrown in front of our faces anymore. This is because the generation that idolized those parodies and the people who created them either grew up and grew a brain or moved to the more sophisticated games, like Fortnite or PUBG.

  I mean, if that’s what you consider to be sophisticated.

  With those years now in the past, new opportunities have come up for the older generations to enjoy Minecraft once again.

  Now that Mojang’s pumping out new updates every couple of months, it’s created a new intrigue to playing a nostalgic game, bringing more and more players back to see what’s new. Personally, I love the newest 1.14 update and think it’s really cool.

  Others have different opinions.

  “If you like [the new update], you’re not cool,” said junior Brendan Arikawa, only half sarcastically.

  According to Arikawa, it’s most of the new textural and design things he doesn’t like. The over-complication that spoils an otherwise simple game.

  So while I partly believe that the new updates are bringing people back to the game, it’s also important to take into account how many avid players Mojang may be losing for such steps forward.

  But that still doesn’t take away from the fact that the villages are pretty neat.

  Their new updates include features such as brewing stands, upgraded farms, animal pens and a less cluttered space. The introduction of the stray cats was really neat too, but that may also just be because I love cats.

  Also, individual villagers have been mega-upgraded, from plain, solid-colored clothes, to full designs depending their job. Their trades are now slightly more complex system, too. It’s nothing too much to wrap your head around when you get to the bottom of it.

  Others would disagree, saying that it’s too much. They want the old Minecraft.

  However relatable that mentality is, the thing about Minecraft is that, no matter what changes have been made, it’s still the same old game.

  It’s the same game where you feel the unending satisfaction and pride after you’ve finally defeated the Ender Dragon, sitting on your couch unbothered by anything else as the credits start to roll. And you feel accomplished. You feel safe, distracted from life outside of the game.

  That hasn’t changed. That’s always been the same, they’re not gonna get rid of that.

  If you’re reading this and thinking that the whole Minecraft thing is stupid, or just a meme that will eventually run its course and die, then sure. It kind of is. But why not enjoy it and have some fun with these last few days of school?

  This year’s almost over. Take a chance, you might actually lost a bit of yourself in the nostalgia of Minecraft.