In Minecraft, Tech Giants Like Microsoft See More Than Fun

Parents like Minecraft because it can be a creative outlet for their children. Teachers like the game because it can bring lessons to life. And Microsoft likes the game so much that the tech giant wants to buy Minecraft’s parent company for more than $2 billion.

It is not flashy graphics or an intricate story line luring these groups to the game, however. Minecraft has become a global phenomenon by breaking with those usual conventions. The point of the game is building things -- and tens of millions of people spend hours constructing elaborate structures with digital pickaxes and other tool -- and helping others make their own creations. The popularity of the game has been clear for a couple of years. But the possible deal with Microsoft is the clearest sign yet how important tech giants view games like Minecraft and their growing fan bases.

Buying Minecraft for billions would be an acknowledgment that gaming is central to many people’s lives.