Minecraft players can now explore Denmark
Danish Geodata Agency gives unrestricted access to topographical data
A lot of impressive things have been created in the virtual world of the addictive and popular game Minecraft.
But the most ambitious yet is a to-scale recreation of the entire country of Denmark within the block-building game designed by the Danish Geodata Agency.
Denmark, in its block form, exists in a 1:1 ratio (as the video above shows) and allows users, or players, to freely move around the entire landscape and find their own residential area to tear down and build up just as they would in the original game.
The agency made the virtual model of the country as a tie-in to their Grunddataprogram, which gives the public free and unrestricted access to the country’s infrastructure and topographical data.
This isn’t the first time a portion of the real world has appeared within Minecraft, but it’s the most extensive. Large projects like this are only possible when data agencies participate. Up until now, the biggest example was the terrain-only version of the U.K. by the British Ordinance Survey.
Minecraft was created in 2009, and released in its more recognizable form in 2011, by Swedish game developer Markus (Notch) Persson.
The award-winning game gives players the power to build 3D structures and spaces using textured cubes, while also exploring and gathering resources in a survival or creative mode. A notable difference in the Denmark recreation is the inability to use ‘dynamite’ to bring down structures.
The complete Denmark model will be available for download on Oct. 23.