[dlgn]

So I recently learned that MineRealm has an extra server, game.minerealm.com:25545, that is set in Beta 1.7.3. I have a few questions for anyone who knows about this, because, surprisingly, I've never heard of it before.

1. I joined hoping to see the map of when I had first joined, but the map was unfamiliar. Why doesn't it have the MineRealm 3.0 map that it had when we were actually in 1.7.3? Is it 2.0, and not just the last version of MineRealm that was in 1.7.3?

2. How long has it existed, and how have I not heard of it even once?

3. What's it for, and who plays on it? Apart from the nostalgia factor (which doesn't really apply for me since it's obviously from before I joined), what are we doing with it? Does anyone actually play on it anymore? Because while that sounds fun, I don't see any evidence of recent player activity on there, such as, for example, other players! I could, of course, be mistaken.

Altogether, it seems like a fun option that no one's utilizing, but I really don't get it, and don't understand how I haven't heard of it before.

Thanks for your time,
~dlgn

[Grelman]

I hadn't heard of it till recently either, but I think some people get confused by how it's being called "Minerealm's Beta Server" because as I understand the only way it is beta is because it is literally running a beta version of the game. Not that any sort of testing goes on there for a future server or concept for such.

Anyway, I tried to play on it for about an hour last month and I couldn't bare it. It might have been interesting for an extra couple of minutes if anyone else was actually there, but I couldn't stick around long enough to see anyone else join. I've heard say that some of these older versions is minecraft's true gameplay. That its one of the last times the game was actually challenging without enchantments or potions. But I would rather have challenge arise from the game in its newer state, with the better controls, sprint button, wider FOV, all the things that 1.7.3 beta doesnt have that handicap the player.

It would be really cool however to see an actual test server for minerealm where Intelli tests new concepts on us without breaking the current server.

[Bu1ld0g]

Yeah it held my attention for as long as the April Fools snapshot did, around 5 minutes.
Maybe it's because I joined Minecraft later in it's life, but I just didn't find it enjoyable.

[DarelleZindad]

I guess I'm the player who has the most in-game-time on this 'beta-server'. If you took a look around you may have noticed the big tower with the glass-dome, that's mine.

Yes, the server is dead. Noone ever really plays there. It was opened in July 2014 and only announced in-game. A lot of players who were online then joined, tried it and lost interest pretty quickly.
As far as I understood it it was a test if ppl would like to play the old beta versions. Intelli asked at a later point (again in-game) who had played there, who had liked it and if there was any interest in setting it up as a new MR-version. All of the online player said they were against it.

I dont know if there are any future plans for this server.

[eah]

I've found nostalgia in the ancient lighting and terrain. The brightness is permanently set to moody, so going out at night is even more risky. You can't see anything unless you have torches to light a path. The terrain (technically) lacks biomes and there are fewer natural landmarks. This makes it very easy to get lost which inspires exploration and creation of your own landmarks. There are no rivers or villages, but there are valleys, mountains, forests, beaches, and marshes. The grass is a perpetual lush green (like that of Green Hill Zone or Bianco Hills). There are more large oak trees. The rain extends more than just a couple blocks in front of you. Skylight updates server-side and the effects are then transferred to the client, giving a neat ripple effect at dusk or dawn.

There's no way to see who's online. You need to ask in the chat.

It brings me back to those days when I first started playing. Didn't know what a spider was until it climbed my house. Didn't know what a creeper was until it destroyed my house. Didn't know what strip mining was until after digging around randomly. Didn't know about infinite water until after many trips to the shore. Didn't know what I had until it was gone.