“Yes, that might seem like a long time away, but it just so happens to be the right amount of time to make it completely awesome. And we all want an awesome Minecraft movie, right?” said Vu Bui, COO of Mojang in a blog post.
We do? Really?
Don't get me wrong: Minecraft is a gaming phenomenon, with a huge fanbase of mostly very young players, and it's going to have a profound effect on the gaming industry for a long time. Extra Credits did a really good analysis of the possible downstream effects of this Minecraft generation:
So, yes, I can see why Microsoft/Mojang would want to see movie tickets to these kids. But will these kids still be playing Minecraft in 2019, especially in the same numbers as they are now? If, not, will they be old enough to feel nostalgic about a game that many of them will only have outgrown and ceased playing shortly before the movie's release?
Even if we assume that three years is a long enough production period that Minecraft: The Movie doesn't suck... will it still be relevant? I honestly don't know the answer to that one, but put me down as "skeptical."