- 420
- IGN
- videogamesm12
On February 28, the source code for development versions of Minecraft's Legacy Console Edition and Pocket Editions were leaked online to the public on 4chan. A lot of developments and discoveries have been taking place since then. Developers have since started writing mods for the two editions and even started working on updating the two to support modern compilers, get them running on other platforms such as Windows (most of the legwork had already been done by 4J Studios and Mojang for debugging purposes anyways), Mac OS, and modern versions of iOS and Android, and introducing online multiplayer.
It started in the afternoon of February 28 when a user on 4chan posted a link to a partially modified version of the source tree for the PlayStation 3 Edition. Following accusations of tampering, another user posted a full dump of the source tree for the entirety of the Legacy Console Edition circa October 2014. Someone then posted a link to the Pocket Edition source tree from February 2013. This has started to snowball since then with leaks of numerous builds of Minecraft Legends and Minecraft Dungeons surfacing from 2017 to ~2019. For the sake of simplicity, this post will not cover the Minecraft Legends or Minecraft Dungeons leaks.
The source code leaks include copies of the code from October 2014 and December 2014. This is arguably the highlight of the entire leak and is where most of the attention is focused on right now. Dataminers have been digging through the leaked sources and have found debugging menus, scrapped worlds, optimization techniques, and the existence of a Windows port, which was likely used to aid in development. Developers have been porting certain features to the game like pick-blocking, multiplayer over the internet/LAN, keyboard and mouse support, and even the Aether. Accomplishments were being posted on Twitter as they were happening, as well. Content creators have been signal boosting these accomplishments to the masses and there has been a lot of hype as a result.
Image courtesy of @notnullptr
Some people are attributing the intense interest in these ports to the fact that the alternative, the Bedrock Edition, is a buggy mess despite being really well optimized. I think it's a combination of that and a lot of nostalgia that people have for these older editions because they grew up with it. Many people believe that LCE is a much more well-polished port, and I have to agree. In general it seems more stable and less likely to kill you for absolutely no reason.
This is the one I've actually been the most interested in due to its simplicity. The leak also included the source code for the Pocket Edition circa February 8, 2013, right when they were just starting work on alpha 0.7.0. Most of my research was for the TCRF page that has since been set up for it. I had to install Visual Studio 2010 to get it to build properly, but once I did I started tinkering with the game and investigating some platform-specific quirks. If you'd like to read what myself and a bunch of other turbo nerds have been up to, check out the page on TCRF about it. There's actually a PC port in the source code, but it's very limited and isn't fully functional.
However, it's also entirely possible that they might just ignore this. The LCE has been unsupported since ~2019 with the exception of some bugfixing updates and for many people there's basically no way to buy it anymore. Whether or not this will be the case, I have no idea. The Pocket Edition is so unbelievably different now since it hardly resembles the Bedrock Edition at all. If they try to stomp this out, it'll just become an underground scene. The genie is out of the bottle now.
All we can do is hope.
It started in the afternoon of February 28 when a user on 4chan posted a link to a partially modified version of the source tree for the PlayStation 3 Edition. Following accusations of tampering, another user posted a full dump of the source tree for the entirety of the Legacy Console Edition circa October 2014. Someone then posted a link to the Pocket Edition source tree from February 2013. This has started to snowball since then with leaks of numerous builds of Minecraft Legends and Minecraft Dungeons surfacing from 2017 to ~2019. For the sake of simplicity, this post will not cover the Minecraft Legends or Minecraft Dungeons leaks.
Legacy Console Edition
Legacy Console Edition is an umbrella term used to refer to ports of the game to various game consoles that were developed by 4J Studios. This includes the Xbox 360 Edition, PlayStation 3 Edition, Wii U Edition, PlayStation 4 Edition, and Xbox One Edition. This does not include the Bedrock Edition and should not be confused with it. Many people grew up playing Minecraft on the Legacy Console Editions and think back on those versions very fondly as they were a major part of people's childhoods. If memory serves, I was actually introduced to the game with this by a childhood friend who I really liked.The source code leaks include copies of the code from October 2014 and December 2014. This is arguably the highlight of the entire leak and is where most of the attention is focused on right now. Dataminers have been digging through the leaked sources and have found debugging menus, scrapped worlds, optimization techniques, and the existence of a Windows port, which was likely used to aid in development. Developers have been porting certain features to the game like pick-blocking, multiplayer over the internet/LAN, keyboard and mouse support, and even the Aether. Accomplishments were being posted on Twitter as they were happening, as well. Content creators have been signal boosting these accomplishments to the masses and there has been a lot of hype as a result.
Image courtesy of @notnullptr
Some people are attributing the intense interest in these ports to the fact that the alternative, the Bedrock Edition, is a buggy mess despite being really well optimized. I think it's a combination of that and a lot of nostalgia that people have for these older editions because they grew up with it. Many people believe that LCE is a much more well-polished port, and I have to agree. In general it seems more stable and less likely to kill you for absolutely no reason.
Pocket Edition
The Pocket Edition is the precursor to what would eventually become the Windows 10 Edition and later Bedrock Edition. It's another port that was actually done by Mojang instead of 4J Studios.. Its development was pretty far behind the Legacy Console Edition and Java Edition for a while, but for many of us it was a great way to play Minecraft on the go. I vividly remember getting an inventory editor and essentially becoming a god in my old worlds. Good times.This is the one I've actually been the most interested in due to its simplicity. The leak also included the source code for the Pocket Edition circa February 8, 2013, right when they were just starting work on alpha 0.7.0. Most of my research was for the TCRF page that has since been set up for it. I had to install Visual Studio 2010 to get it to build properly, but once I did I started tinkering with the game and investigating some platform-specific quirks. If you'd like to read what myself and a bunch of other turbo nerds have been up to, check out the page on TCRF about it. There's actually a PC port in the source code, but it's very limited and isn't fully functional.
How has Microsoft responded to this?
Microsoft has been surprisingly quiet about it in official channels. While there were reports of them taking down videos and screenshots related to the Legacy Console Edition leaks and the work people have done, it's been alleged that this was done by an AI crawler and not by Microsoft directly. However, I wouldn't be surprised if Microsoft starts actively taking legal action in the future. Whether it be for the actual game assets or if it's just going to end up like another Windows XP/Windows 2000 source code situation where they just take the code down, I'm not sure.However, it's also entirely possible that they might just ignore this. The LCE has been unsupported since ~2019 with the exception of some bugfixing updates and for many people there's basically no way to buy it anymore. Whether or not this will be the case, I have no idea. The Pocket Edition is so unbelievably different now since it hardly resembles the Bedrock Edition at all. If they try to stomp this out, it'll just become an underground scene. The genie is out of the bottle now.
All we can do is hope.
