For grown-ups
Block-building games & your family
Kids love building worlds out of blocks — and the most popular block-building sandbox game is a wonderful, creative place. It is also an online place, so a little setup keeps it safe. This is a plain, independent guide: how our own building apps are safe by design, the practical controls for the popular game, and how to spot when something online is off.
How our building apps are different
Our voxel and block-building apps are built so the safety questions below mostly don’t apply — there is nothing to lock down because there is nothing open in the first place:
- No chat, ever. There is no free-text messaging with strangers — or anyone. Playing together uses a few preset, tap-only signals.
- No real names. Playing together uses a friendly, made-up name for the session and forgets it afterward. No profiles, no identity.
- Room codes, not public rooms. Together play is a short code you share with someone in the room — never open, public matchmaking with strangers.
- On-device, no account. No sign-in, no login, no data leaves the device. What your child builds stays on their device.
- Nothing to buy. No marketplace, no in-game currency, no subscription, no “free item that later costs money.” It is free, and it stays free.
- A clear stopping point. Our building activities are made in short, finishable pieces — not an endless world with no natural place to stop.
For the full account of every rule our apps follow — and every kind of AI a child can meet — see How our AI works → and See what this app knows →.
Six controls that make it safe
If your child plays the popular block-building sandbox game, these six settings — most of them one-time — do the heavy lifting. They live in the account and family settings, not inside the game itself.
- Which edition your child plays The popular block-building game ships in two forms. The Bedrock edition (phones, tablets, consoles, Windows) is the one most kids use and the one with the online marketplace and cross-play. The Java edition (Mac/PC only) has more community servers and mods. Knowing which one your child runs tells you which controls apply — the family and spending settings below live in the account, not the app.
- Set up a child account Create the account as a child account under a family group, not an adult account you hand over. A child account lets you approve who they play with, cap spending, and set screen-time limits from your own device — and those choices follow the child across the game, the store, and other apps on the same account.
- Decide who they can play with The safest default for younger children is solo or local-only play, then friends-only (people you have actually met) once they are ready — never open, public matchmaking with strangers. In the family settings you can turn off joining random online worlds and require your approval to add a new friend.
- Servers, Realms & worlds A “server” or “Realm” is someone else’s online world your child joins. Prefer a private Realm you run for your own child and their real-life friends, or a small, moderated, family-run server — not a big public server where anyone can join and chat. If your child asks to join a specific server, look it up together first.
- Marketplace & subscriptions The Bedrock marketplace sells skins, worlds, and texture packs with a real-money in-game currency and there is a monthly subscription for Realms. Turn on ask-to-buy / purchase approval so nothing can be bought without your OK, and check the account for any active subscription. Talk through the “free” items that later ask for money — that pattern is worth naming out loud.
- Screen time & natural stopping points Open-ended building worlds have no natural stopping point — the game never says “you’re done.” Agree on a stopping point before play starts (a timer, or “finish this build then save”), use the account’s screen-time limits, and make the save point the ritual: save, then stop. Habits, not battles.
Spotting when something is off
Any online game with strangers can be misused by an adult who means harm. You don’t need to become an expert — you just need your child to know a few patterns, and to know the one safe move.
Patterns worth naming out loud
- Someone your child hasn’t met in real life wants to move the chat off the game — to a private app, a call, or a screen-share.
- Someone offers free items, in-game currency, or “admin powers” in exchange for something — a photo, a favour, a secret, or account details.
- Someone tells your child to keep their friendship or a conversation secret from their parents.
- Someone gets pushy, guilt-trips, or gets angry when your child says no, logs off, or wants to check with a grown-up.
- Someone asks personal questions early — where they live, their school, their real name, their age, when a parent is home.
The one safe move
If anything feels off — even a little — your child’s job is simple: stop, and tell a trusted grown-up. They are never in trouble for telling you, even if they clicked or said something first. Make that the rule you repeat: “You can always tell me, and I will help.” There are also people whose whole job is to help families with this — free and private — and a trusted adult can help you reach them.
This guide is practical setup and awareness, not a promise. No setting makes any online space perfectly safe, and no app — ours included — replaces a grown-up who is nearby and easy to talk to. The best control is a child who knows they can always come to you.
Spark & Anvil is an independent studio and is not affiliated with, endorsed by, or sponsored by Mojang Studios or Microsoft. Minecraft is a trademark of Mojang Synergies AB. This page is independent educational information for families and describes general family-safety settings that may change; always check the current controls in your child’s account.