Listening to the past two Bombcasts have led me to believe the crew do not understand that Minecraft is a survival game. Sure you can build and create, and most survival aspects are missing from S(urvival)MP right now. But first and foremost it is a Survival game, and then a creative game.
 

I'm pretty sure it's the other way around: a creation game that has survival aspects.

" I'm pretty sure it's the other way around: a creation game that has survival aspects. "

Minecraft was created out of the idea of Infinimner and Dwarf Fortress. The pay game has always been survival, the creative portion is a "taste" which is why it's free.

The only reason I mine? To get stuff. Why is stuff good? To build.

I only survive..so I can build.

I don't think anyone gives a shit.

" Minecraft was created out of the idea of Infinimner and Dwarf Fortress. The pay game has always been survival, the creative portion is a "taste" which is why it's free. "

Well at this point you don´t really have an goal in this game because it´s just the alpha.      
(Wait why did we pay money then...?)

How can it be a survival game when it's so trivial to survive? If you're in some deep shit you can just entomb yourself until it's day again.

" How can it be a survival game when it's so trivial to survive? If you're in some deep shit you can just entomb yourself until it's day again. "

The objective is to punch wool off of sheep and make elaborate shit outta cubes. It's kind of stupid actually. If someone wanted to make  ugly shit outta cubes why wouldn't they just bust out unreal editor 1.0? Or better yet, RuneEd.

 With the game in alpha and the survival aspects essentially being trivial it only makes sense that the GB staff treat it as though the survival aspects are trivial. Sure, it'll be a proper survival game once it gets going but until then it's a sandbox game and so they are treating it as such.

While the original vision may have been for it to be a survival game, but I don't think it's ever going to become that game. Sure, the survival elements will become more prominent, but I think due to the way the game is evolving in it's early stages, it will always be primarily about creation, and the survival aspects will be secondary.

Each update brings new items for survival and adds new NPCs. I don't see what you mean by the way its progressing. Cause it's progressing into even more survival.

they just don't ''get it'' man.

The way I see it, Minecraft Classic came first, and that was a completely creative game. Alpha was spawned out of Classic, so basically Notch took a creative game and added survival elements. If it was really survival, why would there be a choice to turn the difficulty to peaceful, a mode which removes the whole survival aspect from the game? That would be like making Halo with an option to have the covenent just go away and let you have a cup of tea instead.

" Each update brings new items for survival and adds new NPCs. I don't see what you mean by the way its progressing. Cause it's progressing into even more survival. "

Really, though, can anyone truly understand Minecraft? Think about that...

"they just don't ''get it'' man. "

Minecraft is many thing...none of them good. 
 

Think what you want, but I play Alpha on Peaceful. The survival aspect can be pretty fun, but I enjoy building. And not just building, but building things out of things that I also built. That's more satisfying to me than playing another game with zombies in it.   
 
No one's misunderstanding anything. The game lets you play it however you want. Turn on the zombies and call it a survival game if you'd like, that's cool. But don't act like people who don't are somehow doing it wrong.

" @The_Laughing_Man:  I do agree it is a fairly lenient survival game right now. If you do want a decent challenge, upping the difficulty would be the thing to do. "

Put it on peaceful, survival aspect is completely gone.

They know what Minecraft is, they're just yanking your chain.

" They know what Minecraft is, they're just yanking your chain. "

" @The_Laughing_Man:  Health Regen being removed adds the survival aspect which is a massive thing when going through caves.  And with the next update, it'll be even more of a survival game. So yes, survival. "

Because in it's current state it isn't a survival game but a game where you can do whatever the fuck you want and they have mentioned that once the game is complete it won't be that type of game anymore.

Bringing supplies, managing risk/reward, planning and not getting lost in caves, protecting yourself from enemies - it's survival.
 
And regen is on peaceful.

" Bringing supplies, managing risk/reward, planning and not getting lost in caves, protecting yourself from enemies - it's survival.  And regen is on peaceful. "

First night doesn't matter in caves.

I play on Peaceful, so you are wrong good sir.

Honestly, with the game still being in Alpha, there's more than enough time for the creator to turn it into whatever game he wants. 
 
That said, all the coolest stuff I've seen about Minecraft is stuff that people have created.  They don't brag about surviving.  They brag about that cool thing they found our built. 
 
So the designer has two options:  he can build up the survival aspect to be something engaging and meaningful (which may or may not actually happen, but it's not a poor decision), or he can focus on the aspect that the majority of people have loved about the game.  Until further patches come though, you can't speculate about what the game is meant to be about.  You can only judge it by what it is, and the overwhelming majority seem to love the creative side most.

" First night doesn't matter in caves. "

" @Take_Opal said:

" Bringing supplies, managing risk/reward, planning and not getting lost in caves, protecting yourself from enemies - it's survival.  And regen is on peaceful. "

There is barely any risk after the first night.  "

" @The_Laughing_Man said:

" @Take_Opal said:

" Bringing supplies, managing risk/reward, planning and not getting lost in caves, protecting yourself from enemies - it's survival.  And regen is on peaceful. "

There is barely any risk after the first night.  "

Apart from hissers. Or spiders in caves when you're trapped. Or mass oozes when you don't know how to kill them. Or expanding into lava. If you just do the same old boring shit like mining and creating, then of course it's a walk in the park. When you actually go out with a pick and a sword, it's not easy. "

" I don't think anyone gives a shit. "

For all the people saying its not a "survival game", strictly speaking, see the new Halloween update - harder enemies, torches that go out, etc. Then it will truly become a survival game.

" For all the people saying its not a "survival game", strictly speaking, see the new Halloween update - harder enemies, torches that go out, etc. Then it will truly become a survival game. "

I think it's neither a survival game nor a game about creating things.
It's exploration focused.
There.

" @The_Laughing_Man: Well you have to take into account it still being Alpha. Notch still has many ideas to implement. Quite frankly I couldn't care much about it being survival or not - just the addition of biomes has me mad excited. "

" Because in it's current state it isn't a survival game but a game where you can do whatever the fuck you want and they have mentioned that once the game is complete it won't be that type of game anymore. "

I don't know with people making stuff like the enterprise and computers, can you really think the focus is on surviving? Maybe the update will change it, but right now it seems to be about making stuff to me. Maybe it depends on how you play it, some people like exploring, so the game for them can be about exploring.