I spent a countless number of hours watching others play Minecraft before I finally got it myself - so I considered myself fairly knowledgeable about it without even physically playing it, if that makes sense...! It has to be, hands down, one of the most addictive games I’ve ever had the pleasure of playing. I have it for my PS3 and it's almost the only disc that's been in it since the game was launched on it.
During your first few days, the basic objective is to simply survive. As already mentioned, the first thing to do is to start punching away at the trees to get as much wood as you can. The only tools that you'll need early on is basically an axe and pickaxe (possibly a shovel). If you find yourself near a cliff edge - brilliant. You can dig your way into that for your first house. Simply dig a a single block width (two high) out for the entrance and put a wooden door on it. You can hollow out a small house for yourself beyond the first layer/block past that. This is where the shovel comes in... If there's nothing like this nearby, a basic wooden house can be thrown up in a matter of a minute or two. After setting up a basic base, I then usually go out on the hunt for food and coal. Once I've built up enough stocks, only then will I go for a bit of an 'explore'. I rarely leave the vicinity of my base until I have a reasonable amount of basic resources.
One tip that I do have is that if you have a proper house, rather than one in a mountain or whatever, build two or three stories to it. I put most of my resources on the top floor for the simple fact that if a creeper comes nearby and decides to detonate right on top of your house (this has happened to me a few times even when I've been indoors at the time), your stuff won't be destroyed with it - it'll hopefully be far enough upwards out of harms way. The current 'ground' floor on my current base on my PS3 game is actually around seven or eight blocks up in mid air - connected by a simple two block width staircase at one end which is walled on either side with double doors at the bottom. I've used it for a while now and so far has yet to incur any sort of damage.
If it's available on disc for the PS4 (I've no idea...), then it'll be a 'must purchase' as and when I do get the console. I would struggle to live without Minecraft...!
All we have to do as Minecraft fans, given recent news, is that Microsoft won't ruin it.
I've never played it but by reading all your positive comments, I decided to get it too.
