Minecraft

[Fulvio]

For all the Minecraft fans out there, and for those who have no idea what it is or why it matters, you might want to check out the official documentary if you haven't already:

http://thepiratebay.se/torrent/7946763/
That's the official, 2.5Gb download, uploaded by the producers last year.

A slightly lighter weight, 1.34Gb version is on EZTV:
http://eztv.it/ep/50883/minecraft-the-story-of-mojang-web-dl-x264-mvgroup/

Especially interesting is the cover letter that accompanies the file:

Greetings Pirate Bay!

This is 2 Player Productions here, and we hoped we could be the first to upload our new movie "Minecraft: The Story of Mojang".  We've never uploaded a torrent before so hopefully this isn't all screwed up.

We wanted to come here first because we knew the movie would end up here eventually, and the best thing to do seemed to be opening a dialogue.  Torrents and piracy are a way of life and it probably won't be going anywhere anytime soon.  There are many people that want to punish you for that, but we have a more realistic outlook on things.

We've been there.  We've all needed to do it at some point.  Maybe you don't have the money.  Maybe you want to try before you buy.  Maybe you're pissed at us for premiering the movie on Xbox Live.  These are all fine reasons. But if you feel that piracy is, in Gabe Newell's words, "a service problem," please consider that we are selling DRM free digital downloads that you can watch in whatever manner you please.

We're just three guys trying to make a living doing what we love.  We love the world of video games, and we love making it real.  If you buy the movie, you support those efforts.  The reason we Kickstarted this movie in the first place was that we didn't have enough money to make it ourselves, and even then, we still put A LOT of our own money into it.  Not to mention nearly two years of work.

Watch the movie.  Hopefully you'll like it, and understand what we're trying to do.  Please consider supporting us by buying the $8 DRM-free digital download of the movie at www.theminecraftmovie.com, or the $20 DVD from www.fangamer.net.

We've worked with a lot of amazing people in the games industry and had the incredible fortune to make some great films the way we wanted to make them.  Please consider helping us continue on this path.  The best has yet to come.

-2pp

My hat's off to these guys. In a world where vested interests, politicians and law enforcement are getting ever more strident and draconian, its a breath of fresh air to see someone go the other way. There's a quote from Mark Persson in an article at http://thenextweb.com/media/2012/12/22/producers-of-minecraft-the-story-of-mojang-offer-the-film-free-of-charge-on-the-pirate-bay/#!qMZLE that sums it up eloquently:

But there is no way in hell you can convince me that it's beneficial for society to not share ideas. Ideas are free. They improve on old things, make them better, and this results in all of society being better. Sharing ideas is how we improve.

A sentiment he backed up with a half-million dollar donation to try and improve things.

So like the man says, grab it, watch it, and if you like it, buy it.