With the fact that the gaming industry is more profitable than the global film industry, it comes as no surprise that studios are falling over themselves for a piece of that gaming pie.

And you only have to look at the incredible success of The Super Mario Bros Movie -which joined the exclusive billion dollar club – to see why.

The latest gaming franchise to get the film treatment is Mojang’s sandbox game Minecraft.

Moving to the sleepy town of Chuglass, Idaho are sister and brother Natalie (Emma Myers) and Henry (Sebastian Hansen). It’s a new start for the siblings, following the death of their mother, as they try to fit in.

Henry visits Game Over World, a video game store run by Garrett Garrison (Jason Momoa), who was the best video game player of 1989, where he earned the name “The Garbage Man”. It’s there that Henry discovers an orb and a crystal, that he combines together, that opens up a portal to another land, where he finds himself with Garrett.

They are now in the Overworld, which has been built by a man called Steve (Jack Black). The pair are soon joined by Natalie and Dawn (Danielle Brooks) - their real estate agent, and soon learn that they have to embark on a major quest to return home. But as they are not alone, they must be prepared for anything to happen in this strange blocky world, if they’re to survive.

You wouldn’t necessarily think that the Minecraft game would lend itself to a big screen outing, especially as it’s been around since 2011. But the fact that it has become the biggest selling game of all time, selling over 350 million copies, suggests otherwise.

The one ray of hope of it being, at the very least, mildly entertaining is the fact that its director is Jared Hess, whose debut was the 2004 cult classic Napoleon Dynamite .

And to be fair, there are times when you can see touches of that wonderful film here. This is creatively curious, a little offbeat and quirky, and at times, undeniably fun.

This is said from a point where we obviously enjoy a spot of gaming, but that said, the world of Minecraft is one that has never grabbed us. So perhaps it would help to be gaming adjacent, if not fully into the world, to appreciate it, but not essential.

The fact is that many gamers did turn up for it, as although the film may not have been a critical success, it put the block into blockbuster at the box office; not only did it become the second highest box office film of 2025 – raking in an impressive $954 million – it also becomes the second highest video game film after Mario.

And many critics may have been snooty towards it, but let’s face it, this film was not aimed at them, and for the demographic it was aimed at, it’s no wonder it went straight to the top of the high score table.

Hess certainly has fun with his cast and his film, which has elements of Jumanji in places, as well as a little of Tim Burton too, and even if you don’t get every gaming reference, which it certainly and expectedly leans into, it still makes for a highly entertaining, albeit silly, spectacle.

We’ll openly admit to not really looking forward to this one, but are also happy to admit we were pleasantly surprised by this blocky adventure, that is visually appealing and is littered with laughs, and completely deserves the success it’s found thanks to the loyal gaming community, of all ages, that have unequivocally embraced it.

It also features compelling performances from both Black and Momoa, neither of whom take themselves that seriously, which just adds to the undeniable energy of it all.

And to borrow the biblical and Field of Dreams line - “If you build it, they will come.” Boy, they weren’t wrong, and they certainly did.