Timeframe: June 29, 2010 – December 3, 2010
Starting Version: Between Infdev 20100629 and Alpha v1.0.1 (July 2, 2010)
Latest Version: v1.2.6
Price: US$13.00 / €9.95
Overview:
Alpha was the fifth development phase of Minecraft, succeeding Infdev. It was the fourth phase with publicly released versions. Only Survival mode was available. Notably, all foliage appeared bright green, as biomes were not yet fully implemented.
During Alpha, updates were frequent, with bug fixes and small tweaks appearing throughout the week, and major additions released in “Seecret Friday” updates.
History
- Start of Alpha: Retroactively set to June 29–30, 2010 (Infdev 20100629 and Infdev 20100630-1835), though the first in-game text showing “Alpha” was in v1.0.1 (July 2, 2010).
- Notch stated that earlier versions were arbitrarily labeled v1.0.0.
- The Alpha phase ended in December 2010, transitioning to Beta on December 20, 2010, with a price increase to €14.95.
Update Style: Frequent updates, including bug fixes, tweaks, and Seecret Friday additions.
Version Notes:
- Some versions are missing or skipped (e.g., v1.2.3_03, v1.2.4).
- Around 23% of Alpha versions are lost.
Features
Blocks & Items Introduced:
- Redstone Ore & Redstone Torch
- Oak & Stone Pressure Plates, Stone Button, Lever
- Iron Door, Fences
- Snow & Ice blocks, Cactus, Clay, Sugar Cane
- Jukebox, Nether Portal, Netherrack, Soul Sand, Glowstone, Glowstone Dust
- Pumpkin & Jack o’Lantern
- Boats, Fishing Rods, Clock, Compass, Milk Bucket, Leather, Paper & Books
- Clay Ball, Brick, Slimeball, Egg
- Minecart with Chest & Furnace
- Music Discs (C418 – 13 and cat)
- Paintings
Gameplay Additions:
- Multiplayer Survival mode.
- The Nether: a parallel dimension with unique blocks and mobs; one block traveled in the Nether equals eight blocks in the Overworld.
- Biomes introduced, but initially simplified landforms (Woods, Plains, Mountains, Beaches, etc.).
- Redstone circuits for logic and I/O systems.
- Improved AI pathfinding and spawning.
- Snowy and icy terrain; craftable snow blocks.
- New mobs: cows, slimes, chickens.
- F1 hides the HUD; F1 + F2 takes screenshots saved in
.minecraft/screenshots. - 40 inventory slots, more than Beta’s 36.
- Fishing mechanics.
- Sneaking mechanics.
- New music tracks and paintings.
Notable Updates:
- Halloween Update (Alpha v1.2.0) added Nether blocks (netherrack, glowstone, soul sand), pumpkins, and jack o’lanterns.
Trivia
- Worlds spawn the player at Y=0 and then teleport them up.
- Classic Minecraft was originally called “Minecraft Alpha” before retroactive renaming.
- Early versions included “winter worlds” with snow-covered landforms.
- Free weekend in September 2010 after the authentication server broke, giving Minecraft significant press and new players.
Versions (Highlights)
- Retroactive Alpha versions: Infdev 20100629, Infdev 20100630-1340, Infdev 20100630-1835
- First official Alpha: v1.0.1 (Seecret Friday 3)
- Key Seecret Friday updates: v1.0.4, v1.0.6, v1.0.11, v1.0.14, v1.0.17, v1.1.0 (last SF update)
- Halloween Update: Alpha v1.2.0
- Last Alpha version: v1.2.6
References
- Seecret Friday updates – The Word of Notch
- Adura’s IRC logs, June 29, 2010
- Notch blog posts: April 30, June 30, September 18, November 17, December 11, 2010