Mojang’s augmented reality game, Minecraft Earth, is not yet officially available in France. It is, however, possible to install and play it today.
Presented during E3 last June, Minecraft Earth, a geolocated and augmented reality version of Minecraft, was available in preview in a handful of countries. After New Zealand, Sweden, Iceland and Mexico, Mojang has just deployed Minecraft Earth in the United States.
No official date of availability of the game has leaked for France. But for the more impatient, it is quite possible to download and install the game while in France. Here’s how to do it.
1. Pre-register
Start by going to the page of Minecraft Earth on the Play Store and click on Pre-register. This step seems to be necessary in order to be able to launch the game on your device afterwards.
2. Download Minecraft Earth
Then download the Minecraft APK to your Android smartphone. This installation file can only be executed if you have previously authorized the installation of applications from unknown sources.
If you download and open the APK from Google Chrome, an alert message should automatically appear and direct you to the settings to enable this permission.
You can also find it by opening Settings, then going to Apps & Notifications. You will then need to deploy Advanced Preferences and then enter Specific application access.
Then go to the Install unknown apps menu. You will just have to press Chrome and then activate the Allow this source option.
Download Minecraft Earth for Android (apk) (Free)
3. Connect your Microsoft account
Open the Minecraft Earth APK on your smartphone and tap Install.
At launch, the game should offer to download a content update. Tap Yes, wait a few seconds, and then tap the Let’s Play button.
The game should display a window to sign in to your Microsoft account. Enter your username, tap Next, enter and your password and tap Connect.
If you already have a gamertag, tap Let’s play, otherwise create your gamertag. The app requires access to your location to work. Tap Allow only if the app is in use and wait
The game should open directly on the map.
Explore the map to collect resources and start building virtual locations in real life.
Contrary to popular belief, the game does not require you to use a VPN to function.