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Aug 11, 2022 · Initially, Minecraft was developed using Java, a programming language but several key additions and tweaks have been made to the code. For instance, the Bedrock version was initially coded in C++ but it has been adapted in several other languages to work on other platforms, such as iOS.
- Overview
- Prerequisites
- What You Need
- Displaying a Message using Scripting
- JavaScript Code Explanation
- What is Hot Reloading?
- Using a Variable to Count Seconds
- Conditional (if/else) Spawn Entity Script
- What to Learn Next
- Congratulations!!
"Scripting" is just another way of saying "writing a list of instructions for the computer to follow to make it do what you want it to do."
You can use a script to control many things in your Minecraft world, including characteristics of the world; the behaviors of entities, blocks, and items; and even an entire game loop!
In this tutorial, we will write a few small scripts in the JavaScript programming language, which is used by the rest of the world to create web pages, apps, and more! Minecraft scripts can also be written in TypeScript, which is like a new and improved version of JavaScript. TypeScript is preferable to JavaScript because it provides better error reporting and more abilities than JavaScript. However, it does require more tooling to be installed. That's why, for this beginner tutorial, we will be using JavaScript to show you the simplest way to get a script up and running in Minecraft. You can learn how to set up a Minecraft TypeScript project in the Build a Gameplay Experience with TypeScript tutorial, which is highly recommended after completing this tutorial!
If you are new to coding in general, this tutorial should break down different elements of code enough for you to understand how to write a basic script. However, if anything seems too advanced or you are confused about something that is discussed in this tutorial, please reference this Beginner JavaScript Tutorial for more information.
Before you begin, you should have gone through the Getting Started with Add-Ons tutorial and the Introduction to Behavior Packs tutorial.
•Getting Started with Add-On Development
•Introduction To Behavior Packs
It should be clear to you how add-on folders must be structured, and what the required files in the behavior pack (such as manifest.json) should contain.
Let's set up your computer. Here are the things you will need:
•Minecraft: Bedrock Edition
•A Windows 10 (or higher) computer
•Keyboard and mouse
•Visual Studio Code (or another similar text editor)
•The Attack Cow sample behavior pack downloaded from the Minecraft samples Github repository.
Our first goal of this tutorial is to make Minecraft display a little message without the player having to lift a finger. It's just a small task, but it will demonstrate that we can make things happen automatically in Minecraft using a script.
To get there, we are going to start with the Attack Cow behavior pack, add the files we need for scripting, and then run the script in a Minecraft world.
Here's what's happening in the code above...
The import part at the top of the script is telling Minecraft which pieces of the game you want to access in your script. After the import statement, contained in curly braces ("{ }"), is a list of classes that we want to access from the Minecraft game. A class describes an object in the game, contains information about it, and allows you to perform actions on it.
For example, we imported system, which allowed us to access its property currentTick and use it in our code.
We also imported world, which allowed us access to its function sendMessage, which we used in our code to send a message to the screen.
Some other examples of classes are Player, Entity, Block, and ItemStack, but there are WAY more that you can read about in the @minecraft/server Module documentation.
The from part tells Minecraft which module your requested classes are defined in. A module stores a bunch of classes and APIs that you can use. There are several modules in Minecraft, but the most important one that contains most of the basic classes and APIs is "@minecraft/server".
As alluded to previously, hot reloading is a super cool feature of scripting in Minecraft. Instead of having to close the game and reopen it in order to reload your script, hot reloading allows you to reload your script while you are inside your world and the game is still running, and your game will be updated to use the latest version of your script. You will find that this will drastically reduce your game development time because you will be able to test your changes almost instantly.
Let's try it! But first, we'll need to make one change to our current code to make it work with hot reloading.
1.Open main.js.
2.Change this line of code:
if (system.currentTick === 400)
...to this, instead:
Next, we will implement a simple script that counts the seconds that pass from the beginning of world load.
1.Replace your entire main.js file with the following code:
The first thing to notice here is the line that says let secondsPassed = 0;. Here, we are declaring and initializing a variable.
A variable is a container for a value that can be used, reused, and changed. The let part tells the computer that we are creating ("declaring") a variable; the secondsPassed part is the descriptive name that we are giving the variable; and the = 0 part is putting the value of 0 into the secondsPassed container (or "initializing" it to 0). Next time we reference secondsPassed, it will be as if we are referencing the number 0.
Variables can be used to store all different types of values, not just numbers. They can also store things like Booleans (true/false), floating point numbers (decimal numbers), strings (text contained in "quotes"), arrays (lists of things), and classes (objects).
Our variable, secondsPassed, is declared in the main part of the script (not inside a function), so it is referred to as a global variable. Global variables can be used/changed inside any functions or any part of your script (within the same file).
In this next example, we will write a script that spawns an entity every 10 seconds. If we are in the Overworld, a fox will be spawned. If we are in the Nether, a hoglin will be spawned. In any other dimension, a wolf will be spawned. Ready? Let's go!
A script like this will require us to use an if/else statement, use a few more variables, write a few more functions, and learn how to spawn entities.
Based on our description above of what we want our script to do, here is the skeleton of the code that we need to write, with some things written in English. To begin, replace your entire main.js with the following code:
Now, instead of printing a message every second, we will be executing this block of code every 10 seconds! Let's do a quick rundown of this code, and then let's convert it from English to JavaScript together. First, take a look inside the if statement that is checking for every 200th tick.
The first two lines are declaring variables called playerDimension and playerLocation that are being initialized to getPlayerDimension() and getPlayerLocation().
If Visual Studio is yelling at you about these function calls, have no fear. That is because these are functions that we have not defined yet, but will define in a little bit. Just know for now that this is how we are obtaining the player's dimension and the player's location (x, y, z coordinates).
You can spend lots and lots of time learning all about JavaScript. There are free (and not-so-free) resources on the Internet where you can learn everything you want to know about JavaScript.
Here is another link to Microsoft's Beginner Series to: JavaScript tutorial. Note that all of these learnings accrue perfectly to Typescript as well!
To learn more about what we did in this tutorial, look into:
You can use what you learn about JavaScript to change these scripts and decide what happens in your Minecraft world!
You have graduated from Scripting 101! To continue building on your coding skills, please move on to the Build a Gameplay Experience with TypeScript tutorial!
There, you will download some tools to make your life much easier as a scripter and take your knowledge to the next level by learning how to implement a functioning game in TypeScript.
You will also learn how to take advantage of all of the goodness of TypeScript and the npm ecosystem like:
These may just sound like abstract coding terms, but trust me, the benefits of going through our TypeScript setup will make your scripting experience go much more smoothly once you begin to expand your knowledge and write more complex scripts. Also, all of our samples are written in TypeScript, so you will have lots of examples to test out! Please give it a go once you feel you've gotten the basics down from this tutorial... you will not regret it!
Sep 12, 2023 · From the Java programming language that powers the game to the diverse world of mods, plugins, command blocks, and redstone circuitry, Minecraft offers endless opportunities for creative expression and exploration.
Minecraft was originally written in Java, which is a popular programming language used for developing desktop, web, and mobile applications. Java is renowned for its security, portability, and cross-platform compatibility.
Feb 27, 2024 · Here's a quick step-by-step guide to get your student started with Minecraft coding, which we recommend doing by following the fun Minecraft Hour of Code lesson, which is available for free in Minecraft: Education Edition in more than 20 languages.
Feb 25, 2024 · Minecraft is coded in Java, which is a versatile and widely-used programming language. Understanding the coding behind Minecraft can provide insight into how game mechanics and features are implemented.
Educators use the basics of Python, a text-based programming language, in Minecraft Education to build out coding knowledge to facilitate Python coding in the classroom. Build programs using Python coding in Minecraft with Azure Notebooks.
