Minecraft Creator Markus 'Notch' Persson Eradicated From Splash Text

An anonymous reader quotes a report from Ars Technica: Microsoft has removed a trio of references to Markus 'Notch' Persson, the creator of Minecraft, from the game's opening menu screen. Random messages known as 'splash text' are printed in yellow on this screen, and they used to include 'Made by Notch!', 'The Work of Notch', and '110813!' (a reference to the day Persson got married), but now all three mentions are gone. Notch is still included in the game's credits, but the change means that Minecraft players will no longer be randomly referenced.

Persson first released the blocky building game in 2009. Five years later, after the game had become a global smash hit, he sold his company Mojang to Microsoft for $2.5 billion, giving Redmond ownership of Minecraft. The references to Notch have remained a feature until their removal in this latest patch. They're reported to have been removed both from the original Java edition played on PCs and the legacy console edition used on PlayStation 4. No official rationale has been offered for the change, but Persson has become something of a polarizing figure on Twitter...

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