Several days ago, Markus ‘Notch’ Persson said that he had ‘basically’ announced his intention to create the spiritual successor to Minecraft. The news drew a mixed reaction, with many expressing doubts. After all, Microsoft currently owns Minecraft, and they are unlikely to be keen on another title to challenge their game. It seems we won’t have a chance to witness any drama, as Notch tweeted on X that he changed his mind and plans to work on a roguelike dungeon crawler passion project.
“Talked to the fellas at the office. Looks like we’re making Levers and Chests!” Notch wrote. He said that the reason he chose this unpopular option was because PC Gamer said it was interesting. Notch also begged his followers to vote for the dungeon crawler project instead of Minecraft 2 after posting the poll. Despite claiming that he wasn’t ‘super duper’ concerned about which project fans chose, it seems he favors the roguelike more.
According to the limited information Notch shared, the new project is a turn-based roguelike game with a first-person point of view. When asked whether Legend of Grimrock 2 inspires this dungeon crawler game, he confirmed that that game and other older titles, such as Dungeon Master and Eye of the Beholder, inspire his project. “Hoping our game will be at least half as fun as Legend of Grimrock 2,” Notch said. “It’s a fantastic game. It even has a secret true ending.”
Although Notch is optimistic about his passion projects, some fans have expressed disappointment. He replied to one fan, saying Minecraft 2 would be far less fun than the dungeon roguelike. He explained that spiritual successor games often turn into sad nostalgia dumps. “We’d probably give it a shot had the outcome been significantly more biased towards what people think they want,” Notch said. He also told another fan that they should ask Microsoft if they wanted Minecraft 2.
Another follower asked whether Levers and Chests would feature base building. Notch replied that it wasn’t part of the plan, but he could envision adding a small plot of land that players could visit between runs. “Actually I kinda like that idea now, but keep in mind my fancies are fickle,” Notch said. As for the game’s release date, Notch mentioned that he didn’t know how much time he would need to complete this passion project because there were still a lot of things they needed to work on.
