Historical Figure
Markus Persson
b. 1979
Swedish video game programmer (born 1979)
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Biography
Markus Alexej Persson, known by the pseudonym Notch, is a Swedish video game programmer and designer. He is the creator of Minecraft, the best-selling video game in history. He founded the video game development company Mojang Studios in 2009.
In Their Own Words (4)
Privilege is a made up metric used to silence and repress. We are all different, and that is ok. We listen to individuals and help each other based on individual strengths and needs. We do not generalize based on skin color, bigot.
In response to a Twitter user who tweeted to him that "it’s not OK to celebrate ". "'Minecraft' Creator Goes Full White Man Denying White Privilege on Twitter". The Root. (November 30, 2017) , 2017
David Eddings: I'm afraid that ignorance, hate, racism, and violence will be exacerbated by silence. If speaking out is not an answer then what is?Markus Persson: Reading up on history, thinking for yourself, and not being an idiot.
In Twitter (14 August 2017) , 2017
Selectively choosing what gets condemned and forcing people to join sides while hiding behind semantics is pure evil.
In response to the phrase "qui tacet consentire videtur, ubi loqui debuit ac potuit" (Thus, silence gives consent, when he ought to have spoken and was able to) (14 August 2017) , 2017
Mansplaining is a sexist term designed to silence men via gender shaming.
Timeline
The story of Markus Persson, told in moments.
Releases the first public version of Minecraft. Blocky graphics. No tutorial. No story. Players mine, craft, and build whatever they want. He codes it mostly alone, working at a game studio during the day and on Minecraft at night.
Sells Mojang and Minecraft to Microsoft for $2.5 billion. He's 35. He writes a blog post explaining he doesn't want the responsibility of being a symbol. He just wants to make games. He takes the money.
Buys a $70 million mansion in Beverly Hills, the most expensive home sale in the city that year. Tweets about loneliness. Throws lavish parties. Tweets about emptiness. The paradox of getting everything you thought you wanted.
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