Speaking on his personal blog, Notch explained his decision to depart the company he helped to build behind their massively successful game. The TL;DR of it basically reads as I made a game, it grew larger than I ever wanted it to, and being one of the most recognized people in gaming isn’t something I wanted.
Notch further explained that as soon as the deal is finalized, he’s gone. He’ll return to tinkering with smaller web-based projects and whatever else catches his interest. “If I ever accidentally make something that seems to gain traction,” he says. “I’ll probably abandon it immediately.”
He ended his announcement by thanking the community that has helped Minecraft grow into the cultural juggernaut it is today. He reminded the community that although Microsoft now owns the game, in truth it has belonged to the players for a very, very long time. He then signed off with the summary of his thoughts:
It’s not about the money. It’s about my sanity.
On Mojang’s side, the most prominent question has been what will happen to versions of Minecraft that aren’t on Microsoft-supported platforms. Between PlayStation 3, PlayStation 4, PlayStation Vita (yes, that’s still a thing), Mac, iOS, and Android, there is a LOT of Minecraft out there. Can those players, who undoubtedly make up a significant part of the community, expect to be left out in the cold?
According to Mojang’s Owen Hill, those of you who play on non-Microsoft platforms have nothing to fear! Well, not from them anyways:
There’s no reason for the development, sales, and support of the PC/Mac, Xbox 360, Xbox One, PS3, PS4, Vita, iOS, and Android versions of Minecraft to stop. Of course, Microsoft can’t make decisions for other companies or predict the choices that they might make in the future.
In a follow-up question regarding other Mojang projects, Owen acknowledges their current “uncertain” status, saying “[w]e don’t know yet” in respects to the future of games like Scrolls, which is likely most famous for being the catalyst for a trademark lawsuit from Elder Scrolls publisher Zenimax. It was one of those awkward instances where both companies were very open about how much they didn’t like the situation.
So, what’s next? Microsoft expects to own Mojang by the end of the year, as there shouldn’t be much concern from any regulatory commissions that could stall the deal.