Minecraft, a beloved sandbox game, offers endless possibilities for creativity and exploration. However, as with any other online game, ensuring that young players are safe and have an age-appropriate experience is crucial.
Fortunately, Minecraft offers a suite of powerful parental controls, allowing parents to monitor, manage, and limit various aspects of the gameplay environment.
Step 1: Create a Child Account on Microsoft or Xbox Live
To access Minecraft's parental controls, your child needs a Microsoft or Xbox Live account. This account setup is essential even if your child isn't playing on the Xbox or Microsoft platform.
- Create a Microsoft account: If your child doesn't have an account yet, you can set one up by visiting Microsoft's sign-up page.
- Designate the Created Account as a Child Account: Once the account is created, set it as a Child Account to make sure it falls under your parental oversight. Accounts for users under the age of 16 in the US and EU or under 19 in South Korea are designated as child accounts by default.
- Link with your Parent Account: To manage the Settings of the child account, link it to your adult account. To do so, visit account.xbox.com/settings.
Step 2: Control Multiplayer and Chat Settings
Minecraft offers several online interactions, including multiplayer gameplay and chat functions. By customizing the settings, you can decide who your child interacts with and under what conditions.
- Limit Multiplayer Access: Under Online Safety settings, you can choose if your child can join multiplayer games and clubs or access Minecraft Realms (private multiplayer worlds). However, disable these options if you want them to stick to solo gameplay.
- Set Chat Restrictions: To ensure your little one doesn't contact or gets contacted by strangers, go to the Privacy tab and select who can communicate with your child. Options include limiting communication to Everyone, Friends, or Block.
- Friend-Adding Options: Decide if your child can add new friends within Minecraft by adjusting the Online Safety settings to Allow or Block based on your preference.
Step 3: Monitor Content and Social Interactions
Minecraft has taken significant steps to make social interactions safer by adding features like a Player Reporting Tool and Chat Moderation. Here’s how each option works:
- Player Reporting Tool: Available in the Pause menu of Minecraft's Java Edition, this feature allows players to report inappropriate chat messages and dangerous behavior. This tool is beneficial when your child encounters an uncomfortable or harmful situation in chat. They can further flag it for review by the Minecraft moderation team.
- Message Blocking: If required, your child can block specific players from messaging them within multiplayer servers by selecting the chatbox icon next to the player's name in the Player Reporting section.
Step 4: Manage Privacy for Realms and Servers
Minecraft Realms and private servers allow for a more secure way for your child to play with friends in a more contained environment by giving more control over multiplayer interactions.
- Realms Subscriptions: If your child plays frequently with a specific group of friends, consider investing in a Minecraft Realms or Realms Plus subscription. This will allow them to play within a private, invite-only world and limit interactions with strangers.
- Personal Servers: For more tech-savvy parents, setting up a private server will offer more control over who can join. This is an ideal and free alternative to Realms but requires added management to maintain security.
Step 5: Update Minecraft Regularly
Lastly, try keeping Minecraft updated. It is essential for accessing the latest security and parental control features. Beginning with version 1.16.5, Minecraft introduced a suite of player safety updates, and each subsequent version increases the protection level.