Young journalists can make a difference these days, it seems.
Last week we published a letter from a devoted Minecraft fan who voiced her concerns about the game (and the studio that developed it, Mojang) becoming a Microsoft (MSFT) property.
The Seattle software company doesn’t have the best track record when it comes to acquisition integrations (think aQuantive, for example), so it’s not surprising that a $2.5 billion deal for the developer of Minecraft has raised some concerns among the game’s most dedicated players.
This young fan —10-year-old Sabrina Lane, daughter of Fortune investigative writer and Senior Editor Jennifer Reingold — begged Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella not to “mess up” the game she and her friends love to play.
Someone at Microsoft was listening.
This week Sabrina received a letter from Xbox lead Phil Spencer assuring her that Microsoft won’t mess this one up — in fact, they’ll look for ways to make Minecraft better.
Here’s his letter in full.
September 15, 2014
Dear Sabrina,
I saw your letter to Satya last week and since we announced today that Microsoft is buying Minecraft, I wanted to send you a reply.
Thank you for taking the time to explain all the reasons you, your friends and even your parents love Minecraft. I liked your letter and I am really glad that you are a fan of the game. Minecraft is all the things you said it is – educational, creative and most of all, fun.
I am very lucky that my job lets me work with game creators from around the world. I get to play amazing games every day. I guess it is not surprising that I love Minecraft, too.
One of the best things for me is that I see so many people making great things in Minecraft. I have this dream that a bunch of new game creators are learning and building their very first “game” using Minecraft. It is really cool that you can create whatever you want – in the real world or using your imagination to make your own world. As a fan of the game, you know that the possibilities are endless. You never know, Sabrina, if you study hard and keep creating, you might create your own Minecraft one day!
I want you to know that we plan to keep all the things that people love about Minecraft the same. We will look for ways to make Minecraft better with more opportunities for players to play, connect and share together.
Keep the feedback coming and I hope you and your friends (maybe even Ruth) will love playing Minecraft for many years to come.
Sincerely,
Phil Spencer
Head of Xbox, @XboxP3
