For this week’s critical play, I decided to explore a gamemode found on Minecraft’s most popular multiplayer server: Hypixel. I wanted to explore a virtual modification of an existing game as it was one of the considerations we had for our P1 game. This game was built by Hypixel Studios, the development team behind the Hypixel server and played on the Java Edition of Minecraft for PC. Succinctly named “Build Battles,” the minigame is intended for a specific subset of Minecraft players: those who want to improve their building skills through quick, round-based prompts. However, the format of the phases, especially the voting round, is extremely detrimental to the integrity and the goal of the game as there is a significant amount of cognitive load on the player. Players are unable to receive adequate feedback from other players and cannot improve upon their building skills.
“Build Battles” consists of three main phases: prompt voting, building, and build voting. The first phase shows a list of potential prompts and all players can put one vote to the prompt they want to build.
For the game I played, the lobby chose the theme “Dragon.”
Here, we see a user interface that reduces the cognitive load on the player. For prompt voting, each theme is listed in the pop-up. There is also a large popup that is shown at the end of the theme voting, indicating that the theme has been selected and the initial phase is over. This is in stark contrast to the build voting phase which will be discussed later.
The build phase is the most straightforward of all the phases, similar to other “judging and guessing” games like skribbl.io or Charades. Players are given five minutes to use the mechanics of Minecraft, placing and mining blocks, to build something related to the theme. There are a couple of tweaks Hypixel offers, such as being able to change the plot to a specific block or biome, but overall, this phase is heavily constrained by Minecraft’s core mechanics, the creativity of the player, and time. However, there are a few changes that the Hypixel team can make that may help newer players adjust to the fast-paced nature of the gamemode. For example, the inventory can offer rows of “suggested block palettes” to players who may be unfamiliar with Minecraft’s in-depth color and block theory. This not only helps newer players but also shifts the determination of skill from hard mechanics, such as navigating Minecraft’s awful creative mode user interface to players’ creative skill. At the end of the build phase, I built a black and purple dragon shown below.
Most of my critique falls into the build voting phase of the game. For this phase of the game, all players are teleported to one build and given 10 seconds to vote on the quality of the build. Players can vote by right clicking a block in their hotbar. There are six levels of voting: Legendary, Awesome, Good, Ok, Poop, and Super Poop (fun names I know.) Because all players are randomly teleported to a build, the only basis they have for the first vote is the quality of their own. This encourages players to err on the side of caution, voting low for the first few builds. Unless a build is outstandingly good, this often results in players to be biased towards builds that are shown later on. This is what happened in my game as this build by “nornity” won the battle despite having a similar level of quality to other builds shown.
Instead, I believe the Hypixel team can capitalize on Minecraft builder’s innate sense of discovery and expression by giving players a more simplified, open voting format. All “player plots” are directly next to each other, so for the voting phase, the walls should be dropped, giving players freedom to wander around and look at all the builds. Then, after a certain amount of time, players are given a book and quill, an item in Minecraft that allows players to write within a book. They write what they liked about their favorite build and drop it in the build’s plot. This reformatting of the voting phase gives players direct feedback about their build.
The current format of Hypixel’s “Build Battles” offers a unique platform for creativity and quick thinking. However, its voting system could use a redesign to better serve its players. By adopting a more explorative, feedback-oriented approach to the build voting phase, players will feel more engaged and gain constructive insights into their creative work. Ideally, the minigame transforms into a more enriching experience that tests and improves the building skills of its players. This upholds the game’s types of fun: expression and discovery and enhances its role as a creative learning tool, fostering a more supportive and constructive environment.
