Minecraft is a game enjoyed by millions of players around the world, aimed at adventurers, builders, explorers, and more. Even if you haven’t played Minecraft, you probably have heard of it and know what the game is all about. With such notoriety, it follows that there would be similar games, which cater to gamers who would like to play something like Minecraft for free. More than knockoffs of the original, these games are the top five off-brand open source alternatives to Minecraft.
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The best off-brand games like Minecraft
Craft
Image via GitHub
Craft is an interesting alternative to Minecraft that you can get on GitHub. While fairly simply coded, it allows for easy modification, with over 200 forks already created, providing numerous versions to try. The game uses OpenGL to render its graphics, and there’s even a Python server for multiplayer. It is a simple but effective game that resembles the first Minecraft.
mine test
Image via MineTest
Minetest is an open source voxel framework that renders a complete open world sandbox. It doesn’t have all the bells and whistles of modern Minecraft, but there are biomes, character inventory, terrain generation, and more. Modification is quite easy through Lua, and it even has a multiplayer component. There are hundreds of mods to help you customize your experience outside of Minecraft, making Minetest one of the most complete Minecraft clones out there.
terasology
Imaging via Terasology
What started as a Minecraft-inspired tech demo turned into one of the most beautiful open source Minecraft clones around. Terasology is easily the most attractive game on our list. Based on the Java system, it features various out-of-the-box mods that allow you to shape your gameplay and mechanics to your preference. If you’re looking for a polished voxel game like Minecraft, look no further than Terasology.
TrueCraft
Image via GitHub
This is an interesting gem because it serves more as a time capsule than a separate release. TrueCraft represents an open source version of what the developer believed to be the golden age of Minecraft, around Minecraft version 1.7.3. As such, it’s feature-rich and always expanding in scope, becoming something of a mirror parallel to the original Minecraft, rather than a mere clone.
Voxel.js
Image via Voxel.js
This game should perhaps not be considered a game at all. Voxel.js represents more of a framework for building your own Minecraft-like games. It can be customized with plugins and mods, allowing you to tailor your blocky experience until it’s just the way you like it. Fortunately, there are already a few hundred plugins available in the library, making Voxel.js a title worth checking out for Minecraft enthusiasts.
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