It happened again. Just as I mentioned earlier when Amazon bought Twitch, big companies will always buy up the smaller companies. Only this time, it isn't because the little guy needed a boost.
Nope, this time it's your fault Microsoft bought Minecraft creator Mojang.
That's right, I said it. You have only yourself to blame if Microsoft turns your precious blocky world upside down with whatever changes it has planned (not that we know if it will be good or bad, but more on that later).
To be fair, a lot of fans have been supportive and reasonably wary of the acquisition. But video game culture has become awash with such animosity for just about everything, it shouldn't be a surprise another developer is trying to disappear from the limelight.
Under pressure (insert Freddie Mercury voice here)
Just like the Queen song, Markus "Notch" Persson cracked under the pressure.
More specifically, Minecraft's massive popularity coupled with the insatiable wants of the public drove Notch to sell off the small 40 person team. Yes, the $2.5 billion (around £1.5bn) probably helped but likely didn't instigate the initial idea.
Notch simply couldn't deal with being everyone's go-to for all things great and all things horrible with Minecraft.
Understandably the person behind a beloved creation will always be a venerated icon for the masses even if he never asked to be one. But as the face of Minecraft, Notch also became the person you could blame when things went wrong.
Notch said it best himself: "I've become a symbol. I don't want to be a symbol, responsible for something huge that I don't understand … I'm also aware a lot of you were using me as a symbol of some perceived struggle. I'm not. I'm a person, and I'm right there struggling with you."
Maybe he should have been better prepared for the positives and negatives of being in the public eye but he also has a point. Why do we inherently place our heroes on pedestals only to claw at them tooth and nail once changes are implemented?
It's apparent Minecraft needed you to become what it is today, so without you, it would be nothing; this is how it is with all forms of creation. Once you make something and share it, it evolves and becomes something different for everyone. It can no longer belong to the creator. But there are times when the culture becomes a poisonous place and the community turns vicious.
This isn't to say the public can't voice displeasure. Rather we need to be smarter about it. Like the Queen song says, we need to "change our way of caring."
What's next, Mojangsoft?
Changing how we are passionate isn't the first step. Accepting the change is.
But as the other old adage says, change is hard - especially if you live in the gaming realm.
The official statement from Microsoft states: "Microsoft's investments in cloud and mobile technologies will enable "Minecraft" players to benefit from richer and faster worlds, more powerful development tools and more opportunities to connect across the "Minecraft" community."
This all sounds great, right? But there's still a feeling of distrust, and there always will be. Fences go up because there's no telling what direction corporations will actually head.
Microsoft appears to be a big scary wolf but it's safe to say its learned many lessons along the way. Remember the Xbox One backpedaling fiasco where the console almost always needed internet connection? Or how used games were almost banned from the One? Guess what stopped all that? You.
Microsoft's many retractions are a prime example of how much influence the collective gaming culture has. The buyout of Mojang is a look at the other end of the spectrum - how the culture helped dismantle a growing company.
This doesn't mean Mojang shouldn't get any flak for giving up - it could have been a great company at the rate it was going. But accepting a buyout simply became more appealing than dealing with the constant litany of unhappy people.
So here's hoping that Microsoft will do a good job and respect the community. And let's give Notch and Mojang a little credit for how far they've come and wish them the best of luck.
But most of all, let's take a step back and accept that a shift is occurring in video game culture; how it plays out for better or worse will be entirely up to you.
