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Hold a Digital Event in Minecraft
As COVID-19 concerns prompted school closures around the world, many schools found creative ways to hold their major end-of-year events, such as proms, graduations and university campus tours in digital spaces – and Minecraft is a favorite destination. Here are a few amazing examples of students using Minecraft to host events and bring their school communities together:
Cal students create a virtual UC Berkeley campus for online graduation (ABC 7 News)
Minecraft graduation: Japanese students hold graduation ceremony in Minecraft! (HITC)
MIT students painstakingly recreated their iconic campus in Minecraft (Business Insider)
Campus Is Closed, So College Students Are Rebuilding Their Schools In Minecraft (The Verge)
UPenn students recreated their campus on 'Minecraft' in painstaking detail while stuck at home (Business Insider)
UGA students organize virtual graduation ceremony on Minecraft (TheRed&Black.com)
Quaranteen University: Come graduate in Minecraft
I want to host a graduation, prom or other large event using Minecraft. How can I do this?
This is an awesome idea! Minecraft Education can host up to 40 players in a world. Check out the Minecraft Education Multiplayer guide to learn more.
If you plan to host more than 40 players, using a custom server for your world with Minecraft Bedrock or Minecraft Java Edition will be your best option. These versions of Minecraft can support larger gatherings with hundreds of participants. You can download server software for Minecraft Bedrock and Java and visit this guide to learn about setting up a Minecraft server on Azure.
When participating in an event hosted in a Minecraft Bedrock or Java world, we recommended that players use their personal Minecraft license to access the world. Stream your event online to include participants that don't have a Minecraft account.
How can I invite others to my Minecraft event?
You can create always-on multiplayer worlds using custom servers with the Minecraft Java or Bedrock editions. With these editions, you do not need to be playing the game to have guests access your world.
With Minecraft Education, the host must be playing the game in order for others to join. If the hosting player leaves the world, all other players will be removed from the server. Because of this, we recommend you create your world using Minecraft Bedrock or Java Editions.
Can I setup a dedicated server for multiplayer in Minecraft Education?
Minecraft Education is not currently compatible with server software, so it's not possible to set up an always-on world that players can visit anytime. This is a popular piece of feedback and we hope to have a solution in the future.
Can I use my Minecraft Education licenses to access a Minecraft Bedrock or Java server?
Since each of these Minecraft editions use distinct licensing systems, it's not possible to login to a different edition with Minecraft Education licenses.
How can I get help building an awesome Minecraft world for my event?
Minecraft has a global community of creators who can recreate your campus, school theater, or just about any venue you can imagine within Minecraft. Visit the Minecraft Education Content Creators page to learn more.
How can I live broadcast my Minecraft event?
You can use Microsoft Teams to schedule your event and share it with others. For example, you could build and host a Minecraft world that's a replica of your college auditorium or stadium and host a small number of faculty and the graduates inside that world.
Then, the graduates friends, family, and guests, along with all other members of your educational institution, can join a Microsoft Teams live event broadcasting the Minecraft world as students take part in their virtual graduation.
Those guests on the Microsoft Teams call won't need a Minecraft license, and they won't count against the maximum number of players in your Minecraft world.
For more information, see Get started with Microsoft Teams live events.
If music or other third-party content will be part of your event, it is your responsibility to secure any appropriate licenses or permissions.
Where can I find additional resources?
- Microsoft Virtual Graduation Toolkit
- Minecraft Education Multiplayer Guide
- Minecraft Education Remote Learning Guide