Minecraft’s Latest Feature Could Throw a Wrench in One…

Minecraft's latest feature, the Player Locator Bar, might improve the average player's multiplayer experience, but even with its proposed workarounds, it could pose a problem for those on Hunger Games and other PvP servers. Unlike the other features being added through Mojang's more focused content drops, the latest Player Locator bar mechanic could mark the first change to the technical side of Minecraft's gameplay and its multiplayer worlds. Though this new mechanic may benefit Minecraft's typical players, it could also significantly impact the player experience for Hunger Games, PvP, and SMP servers or other like-minded game modes.

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By Clayton Cyre

Exploring How Minecraft's New Player Locator Bar Works

Projected to be part of Minecraft's upcoming summer content drop later this year, Mojang has already outlined the key points behind the new Player Locator Bar, with players able to test the feature for themselves in early snapshots. While it seems Mojang intended Minecraft's new feature to help players find friends in multiplayer worlds and spare them the hassle of sharing and navigating in-game coordinates, it has also advised players how to "hide" from the Player Locator Bar in the same announcement. Besides allowing Minecraft world creators and server admins to disable the new UI feature outright, the list below outlines ways players can avoid detection.

By sneaking or "crouching."
By wearing a mob head or carved pumpkin.
By drinking a potion of invisibility.

Beyond these workarounds for players, Mojang has also suggested that players capitalize on the Player Locator Bar's current limitations, which may have been intentionally built into the new feature to keep it balanced with Minecraft's longstanding gameplay. For instance, the feature only displays players within a certain field of vision, doesn't provide distance between players, only indicates if players are above or below their current level, and may be temporarily unavailable for players actively collecting XP. Ultimately, however, the new feature will more than likely force most if not all Minecraft players to significantly rethink how they approach multiplayer gameplay.

Mojang's New Player Locator Bar Could Undermine Minecraft's Unique Multiplayer Experiences

Despite being active by default and Mojang attempting to reassure players that the Player Locator Bar can be voluntarily disabled, the Minecraft update could again cause problems regarding who decides and has permission to turn this new UI feature on or off. Mojang has stated that only Minecraft creators and admins will have access to this option, and these individuals could abuse this power, enabling or disabling the new UI feature either at will or permanently, regardless of what other players want.

For example, the ability to hide from and sneak around other players has played a proven role in Minecraft's trend of SMPs, particularly among Twitch and YouTube content creators, something which the new Player Locator Bar will heavily impact moving forward. Similarly, Minecraft multiplayer game modes like Hunger Games have also relied on the same ability to maximize the tension, challenge, and thrill of PvP gameplay. Should creators and admins decide to turn on Minecraft's new Player Locator Bar either temporarily or permanently, it could undermine the entire experience in ways Mojang might not have anticipated.

Source: Minecraft