Mojang, the game development studio that shot to prominence due to its work on Minecraft, was acquired by Microsoft for $2.5 billion last year. Founded in 2013, Code.org is a non-profit aiming to encourage computer science uptake in schools, while also offering coding lessons.
Now, Code.org is offering a Minecraft coding tutorial to mark its third annual Hour of Code campaign, which will run from December 7 -13, during Computer Science Education Week.
“A core part of our mission to empower every person on the planet is equipping youth with computational thinking and problem-solving skills to succeed in an increasingly digital world,” said Satya Nadella, Microsoft’s CEO. “With ‘Minecraft’ and Code.org, we aim to spark creativity in the next generation of innovators in a way that is natural, collaborative and fun.”
Microsoft will also be leading “thousands” of Hour of Code events across the globe, which will be hosted in Microsoft stores, offices, among other facilities. Given the enduring popularity of Minecraft across many age groups and demographics, the tie-up does make a lot of sense, as it lets kids apply their learning to something they understand.