Children’s book publisher Egmont U.K. will release four handbooks dedicated to young newcomers to the Minecraft scene.
The Minecraft juggernaut is about to move into the realm of the written word, thanks to a deal between Mojang and Egmont, which will see four Minecraft “handbooks” released this fall: The Beginner’s Handbook, The Redstone Handbook, The Combat Handbook and The Construction Handbook.
“The fans are extremely important to us and we want our publishing to both feed their thirst for gaming knowledge through an engaging reading experience, whilst also offer exclusive content from the developers which they can’t get online,” said Sarah Bates, publishing and marketing director of Egmont’s licensed character division. Egmont is also in discussions with Minecraft “superfans” about contributing to future titles and will hold a contest next month to have a design appear in an upcoming Minecraft Poster Book.
The handbooks are aimed at young newcomers to the Minecraft scene, which may well dovetail nicely with the recently-announced Minecraft Realms service, revealed earlier this months, that’s intended to bring a more family-friendly Minecraft experience to young players. Alongside the handbooks and poster book, Egmont has two other Minecraft projects in the works, the Minecraft Annual and an All About Minecraft Magazine.
The Minecraft handbooks are aimed at children aged nine years or older and will sell for £5.99 ($9.10), while the annual will go for £7.99 ($12.13) and the poster book for £9.99 ($15.17). A North American publisher has not yet been named. Mojang CEO Carl Manneh is, as you would expect, thrilled by the whole thing.
Souce: Egmont U.K.
