Summary
An ape from a US research facility has been taught how to playMinecraftusing a touch screen. Since it was released,Minecrafthas reached millions of playersaround the world, but this Bonobo may be the first ape to explore the game.
Given how long it has been out and how many devices it works on, countlessMinecraftplayers have shared creative builds.Among theMinecraftcreationsshown off by the community are a Milky Way galaxy,Avatar’s Pandora, and Peach’s Castle fromSuper Mario 64. Rather than doing something different inMinecraftthemselves, these researchers have taught an ape to play the Mojang game.
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YouTuber ChrisDaCow recently shared a lengthy video on his experiences at the Ape Initiative. ChrisDaCow met with the Director of the facility and a 42-year-old Bonobo named Kanzi that lives at the Ape Initiative. Before Kanzi sits down to exploreMinecraft, the Bonobo is using hand signals and symbols on the wall to indicate that he wants to play. With the help of Dr. Jared Taglialatela, ChrisDaCow gotMinecraftworking on a touchscreen display that Kanzi uses for other research games. To playMinecraft, Kanzi can tap the center of the screen to move forward and touch the sides to look around.
To get a feel for the game, Kanzi’sMinecraftgameplay begins in an area with arrows pointing to loot floating on the ground. As Kanzi gets a feel forMinecraft, the gameplay is advanced to different stages. These distinct stages of Kanzi’sMinecraftjourney are called the basics, breaking, caving, multiplayer, village, desert temple, Nether portal, the Nether, and the End. Because Kanzi is rewarded with peanuts, grapes, or apples when he does something right inMinecraft, the Bonobo is being educated on the right choices to make in the game. At one point, Kanzi breakstheMinecraftclientby inputting too many commands, an issue fixed by ChrisDaCow and others. After conquering each aspect ofMinecraftintroduced to him, Kanzi highlights that apes may be able to beat the game just like humans.
Although Kanzi has been praised by fans that express interest in having their own apes, ChrisDaCow emphasized that the animal shouldn’t be a household pet. According to Dr. Jared Taglialatela, Kanzi doesn’t only like playingMinecraft, but he enjoys it more when people watch him play. This dynamic may suggest that Kanzi sees the game as a way to socialize as so many gamers do when theyplay multiplayerMinecraft
Minecraftis available now for Nintendo Switch, mobile, PC, PS4, Xbox One, and most legacy platforms.
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