See Denmark — All Of It — In Minecraft
What’s the Latest Development?
From now until October 23, any Minecraft user with an interest in exploring Denmark can access a complete recreation of the entire country — highways, buildings, houses, and all — thanks to the efforts of the Danish Geodata Agency. The model, built to 1:1 scale, was developed using detailed geographical information that’s now officially available for public and private use through an open data access program launched by the government. Although certain Minecraft options, such as TNT, have been disabled, users are free to explore and build just as in any other landscape.
What’s the Big Idea?
Certain aspects of the model aren’t completely accurate — for example, the virtual building colors don’t always match those of real buildings — but, as writer Sam Machkovech notes, “this is as close as any country or company has gotten to delivering an online tour of [all of] its land.” Such detail is often only possible through the use of data that’s often held in reserve, and in secret, by large companies or governments. By basically opening its own data vaults, the Danish government hopes students and teachers in particular will take the opportunity to learn more about their country’s geography.
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