Minecraft has been around for a long time, and its popularity is growing all the time. In 2021, it sold over 238 million copies and had nearly 140 million monthly active players.
Markus “Notch” Persson created the game in the Java programming language.
It was first made public in May 2009, after several early private testing versions, before being fully released in November 2011, with Notch stepping down and Jens “Jeb” Bergensten taking over development.
Minecraft added servers
The term “server” refers to a network of connected servers rather than a single machine. A Minecraft server is a multiplayer game server owned by a player or a business for the 2009 video game Minecraft by Mojang Studios.
Minecraft servers were added to ensure that the single-player game experience is consistent with the multiplayer experience and that game changes, such as bug fixes, apply to both single-player and multiplayer games.
While multiplayer with friends is available, it is usually limited to playing in a world with other people. Servers take it a step further by offering players an online gaming experience that is often completely different from regular Minecraft.
What was the first server added to Minecraft?
Minecraft Online, which was founded on August 4th, 2010, is the oldest Minecraft server. It was developed within an hour of Notch’s release of the survival multiplayer mode.
The server has remained online and has never been reset.
Since its inception, the server has had a staff team and has rules that players must follow. However, this does not always imply that players follow the rules, as over 43,000 players have been banned in the 12 years it has been in operation.
That’s not the only thing that’s surprising about it; the world’s size (remember, it’s never been reset) has reached an astounding 26GB of storage space, for just ONE world.
An intriguing aspect of MinecraftOnline is that you do not need to use plugins to claim or protect your builds. Instead, build protection is enforced by the staff team, who will permanently ban anyone who attempts to grieve/modify your build without your permission.
However, Novylen, like Minecraft online, began on August 4, 2010, when Minecraft multiplayer was officially released. As a result, MinecraftOnline and Novylen are the two oldest SMP servers on what is now known as Minecraft Java Edition. They both came out on the same day, but MinecraftOnline was released within the first hour of SMP going public, leading some to believe it is older.
Novylen’s world is slightly older than Minecraft Online’s world because Novylen’s map pre-multiplayer was the server owner’s single-player world, whereas MinecraftOnline’s map was created on the day multiplayer was released. To put it another way, MinecraftOnline is the SMP that has the oldest truly survival public map.
Along with these servers, many other servers date back to 2011, but not all of them have been around for this long.
More servers have grown, died, and been forgotten over time. Some, on the other hand, have withstood the test and have been around since their inception.
Read also: Can Minecraft Servers Give You Viruses? Let’s Find Out!
The Best Minecraft servers
However, not all servers have been around for a long time and have grown in popularity because it isn’t all about history.
There are numerous best Minecraft servers available today.
With thousands of unique Minecraft servers to choose from, it can be a daunting task for players to sort through the pile and find the best Minecraft servers worth their time.
Below are some of the best Minecraft servers that you can choose from.
#1. Hypixel
Many people will be familiar with Hypixel. Hypixel is still the most popular Minecraft server in 2023, owing to its numerous game modes, which include Cops and Crims, Duels, and a Murder Mystery.
Their SkyWars game mode is a perilous PvP reimagining of the classic Minecraft Skyblock server. The Hypixel Minecraft server has a lot of variety, which makes it a great place to laugh with your blocky friends.
In terms of raw popularity, Hypixel has completely dominated the Minecraft multiplayer scene, with over 100,000 concurrent players at peak times.
#2.Purple Prison
This is the gold standard in the world of prison Minecraft servers. It’s a server that has been updated and refined regularly since its inception over 7 years ago. The gameplay is fantastic, and whether players are looking for PvP, building, mining, or even parkour, Purple Prison has it all.
The sense of community is strong on this old but still hugely popular server, as evidenced by its active discord server community of over 30,000 friendly and welcoming members.
#3. Minr
This is one of the oldest and most dependable Minecraft servers, having been in operation for over 12 years. It is well-known for its original parkour maps, but it also has puzzle, adventure, and maze game modes.
On this server, you can try over 600 challenges before running out of content, and it will take months to complete them all, according to them.
#4. Minecraft Central
This is one of the most well-known names in the Minecraft multiplayer community. It was created in 2016 and has remained popular ever since, with thousands of concurrent players daily.
Players can enjoy a variety of different classic-style game modes at Minecraft Central, each of which has been refined and consistently improved upon over many years of uptime.
#5. LemonCloud
LemonCloud is a Java-only Minecraft server with a friendly and respectful community.
Because their servers are rarely overcrowded, you can use them to play with your friends with little to no intervention from strangers.
It gives you access to nearly all of the best game mods from the larger servers, such as Skyblock, Skywars, Prison, PvP, and others.
Conclusion
Now that you’ve learned about some of the oldest and best Minecraft servers, you can start playing with your friends on the best Minecraft servers.
However, if you want more control over the Minecraft server, you must create your own from scratch.