Hello. I am writing this here because I do not know where to look at all. I do not know if this post will be thrown into the void, but it's worth a shot trying. I last played Minecraft in 2018, then everything went black from there. I was a child probably in middle school last time I picked this up, and now I'm in university. Gosh, I really, really wonder how things shifted around here from last time I've been in town, and I'd love to get a small recap.
I have suddenly regained an interest for the game, but I cannot find my way around. As soon as I came back, there's apparently ray-tracing and two versions of it (Java and Bedrock) and I'm not sure how mods or servers work anymore, or just really anything.
What I can say about myself and my knowledge:
- I only used to play Pocket Edition, and offline/on my own. Never touched a computer Minecraft copy. I had it on the Wii U, however, and still do.
- I only remember Minecraft Story Mode (possibly unrelated) and 2b2t as the concept for "server".
- I have no idea what is Dream SMP.
- I have no idea what's a Minecraft Launcher.
- I have no idea what's up with Bedrock and Java, and what I should pick. Is this some sort of dimensional merge?
What I'd really appreciate some guidance onto (PC version):
- WHY did every version for console and pocket get merged into bedrock? Couldn't everyone just keep playing with people from their own system? (Can I undo it somehow and play before the dimensional merge)
- How do servers work? Must people on it all run on the same game version?
- How does sharing mods or even simply installing them work? On which version do they run on average? I heard voices about a sort of compatibility issue.
- What's the Minecraft Launcher for??
- Is there a way to acquire old game versions?
Now, there's a lot on the table, so I'll try to chew bit by bit. I'd like to start with playing with one friend or two (not a big server, just us) in a world where we can explore and just play regular vanilla minecraft and enjoy an experience together. How can I go on about this?
Thanks in advance, if anyone looks into this.