Get Ready for the Minecraft Generation

Here comes the Minecraft generation.

Now entering Middle School, these youngsters might very well be the ones to take the baton from Millennials.

Admittedly, I am not a social scientist, nor do I play any video games, let alone Minecraft. While purists would use the term empirical research to describe my observations, we are now beginning to see the first of more formal research on these early teens and even younger kids. The Futures Group just adopted a name for the children born since the turn of the century. It has called them Centennials.

When it comes to what I call the Minecraft generation, the June 22 cover of The New Yorker provides an interesting perspective. Entitled "Playdate," the illustration shows two children in the same room, playing Minecraft on two different computers. Through the window, the sky is blue and the foliage bright with colors, while the swing set and ball lay idle.

That image is a far cry from how my own children spent their childhood days. In fact, they spent most of their Middle School years outdoors with their friends playing ball, skiing, shooting hoops, skateboarding, surfing, or just hanging out talking. Yes, digital phones and computers weren't so pervasive then but they wouldn't have traded the time outside with friends for anything.

Now, watching what's going on in the digital world and speaking with some very bright early teens and youngsters, I wonder if we are on the edge of a different generation that could shape much of our future.

Late last year, Minecraft became one of the best-selling video games of all time and was sold to Microsoft for $2.5 billion.

When young players explain why the Minecraft multi-server/multi-player environment is one of their passions, it's a fascinating discussion:

• It's the "social aspect," most of them say. They like the personal freedom to pick and choose with whom they play. They call them "friends" and feel like they are developing a relationship that is respectful and constructive because they can simply opt in or opt out with no repercussions.

Only time will tell where this goes. After all, it is a game. And these youngsters are only in Middle School.

For some, the view is that Minecraft, like so many other video games or an absorbing mystery novel on the beach in the summer, could just be another form of escapism.

As a dad, I have to add a note of caution: there may be some concerns from so much time, essentially alone, on the computer playing an unreal game with internet "friends," some of whom might as well be imaginary. Plus, they might well be missing the great outdoors, healthy exercise and face-to-face socializing.

Right now, though, there are two things that seem pretty clear about those who like to play Minecraft:

First, they are attracted to a new dimension of technology, one in which the user has control in a way that is different from the past. The program developer essentially starts the process and then the user takes over, changing and shaping the program to suit their needs and the view of a world they wish existed.

And second, they gravitate toward constructive relationships, open sharing of thoughts and a world where there can be peaceful resolution to conflict.

Is it possible that some of what they are looking for -- even at such a young age -- is a reaction to the conflict they see and feel around them, from bullying to terrorism? And, if so, could they be the generation to do something about it?

We shall see.

NOTE: This Op-Ed is a collaboration, in large measure drawing on the ideas, observations and experiences of my family and their friends.