The Hardest Game. For Adults.

This was my impression as well.

I think you're probably right. Although the article did remind me about something I noticed with my younger cousin. He was visiting (about 11 at the time) and would play Halo with his friends online. They would play custom games though and make up their own rules. A lot of them were similar to games I remembered playing outside (cops and robbers, tag, etc.). I played with him a few times and found it incredible boring (since most of the time they were just arguing with each other about who should play what).

I thought it was interesting that this kind of play moved into the digital realm and I could see how the lego-like nature of Minecraft kind of relates to this.

It's not a matter of being adult or not. It's just a matter of being able to be in a place where you don't have social rules, life goals, or "responsibilities", and still have pleasure to be in such conditions and create your things.

Because other than creativity, it has to have a point. Because in the end, you are sitting in front of an imaginary world, which exists only for yourself. Not everyone has the motivation to build something big, just for for themselves.

In a way, (good) Minecraft multiplayer servers are more appealing, according to this. Because people rebuild social communities there, and build things together. They make plans, of how to build the place, they interact. They build little cities, they build monuments. And other people can see it too, and maybe improve their constructions.

If you are not going to export what you did (as a video, for example), or build it in a "persistent" place, shared with others, it can indeed be hard to summon the willpower to build something, without hitting the "what for?" wall.

Minecraft lacks purpose not only because of the almost non-existent rules, but also because at some point, it is really bare, and the "reward" for your creativity is only contained within itself, if you play alone.