If you're an old-school Minecraft player who hasn't touched the game in a few years, now is a great time to get back into it. The development team continues to add awesome content to the experience.
ContentsWhy use Minecraft mods?Introduction to Minecraft ModpacksFinding Minecraft ModpacksInstalling ModpacksThe best Minecraft Modpacks to try1. MC Eternal2. Questioning Mayhem3. SevTech:ages4. Sky Factory 45. Compact Claustrophobia6. Adventures and dungeons of Roguelike7. RepousseMinecraft is a rich challenge for everyoneBut even with that, if you were fed up with the game before, it will probably get old for you again quickly. If that describes you, or if you're a current player who finds the game stale, it's time to explore Minecraft mods.
If you haven't gotten into Minecraft mods yet, you're just getting started with what's possible in the game. For almost as long as Minecraft has been around, people have been making the game even better by modding it.
If you like fantasy and wish there were more systems involved that let you do real magic, there are mods for that. Botania and Thaumcraft are some great fantasy mods that change the whole world and bring new ways to play.
Maybe sci-fi and industry are more your speed; there are also a ton of great mods for it. There are mods like Immersive Engineering that can turn your Minecraft world into something closer to Factorio. You can even travel to other worlds and die from lack of oxygen if you wish.
One of the main arguments against Minecraft is that it is more of a toy than an actual game. Sure enough, there are mods that can turn Minecraft into a full-fledged RPG with skill progression and gear upgrades.
There's a great mod called Pam's Harvestcraft that adds new foods and recipes. There's Open Gliders, which lets you build hang gliders. Meanwhile, Travel Map gives you a great full map of the game.
With all of this, plus the ability to create your own Minecraft mods, the only problem is that there are too many options. It's hard to know what's available and which work well together. This is where modpacks come in.
Modpacks are collections of mods that turn Minecraft into a whole new game. Really, they're almost entire games on their own. The best part is that the modpacks are completely free.
Imagine if the green fields and soaring mountains with grazing sheep and cows were all gone. What if the entire world of Minecraft had been devastated in a long-forgotten apocalypse and it was your job to fix it? There are many modpacks that offer this scenario.
What if you woke up on a 3×3 platform of dirt blocks with a tree in the middle and had to find a way to build a base? There are no caves, chickens, water or minerals. You must use the mods in the pack to create everything from scratch.
Maybe you just want to get lost in a fantasy world with dragons and warlocks. Or maybe you want to explore deep underground dungeons loaded with epic loot. What if you could open doors to other dimensions where all the rules have changed? There are packs that provide all of this and more.
If you like ticking boxes and getting achievements, there are plenty of quest packs out there. These packs give you a ton of challenges that increase in difficulty as you play. The best ones even teach you how to use mods without feeling like a tutorial.
The three best places to get modpacks are Feed the Beast, Tech Pack, and CurseForge. All three have their own installers, making it easy to get started.
For newcomers, the best is CurseForge. It has the largest selection of modules and makes it easy to find them with search, sort and filter options. The site has most or all of the Feed the Beast packs, as well as some of the Technic packs.
It is possible to encounter issues with individual loaders working on different platforms. You also may not want to install three loaders in addition to your Minecraft launcher. Fortunately, there is a better way.
Multi MC is a tool that works great on macOS, Windows, and Linux. It will allow you to play any version of Vanilla Minecraft – up to pre-alpha if you're feeling nostalgic. And it makes installing mods and modpacks super easy.
Get started, download MultiMC. Once you have it installed, the next step is to choose a modpack. You can download a modpack from Curse Forge by clicking on it and then selecting the file to install from the list of options in the right menu.
You will want to choose a file that has a green R (final version). Also make sure you are getting the normal installation file, not a file for a server. Following the download link will take you to a page with a download button. Use it to grab the pack.
Next, open MultiMC and click Add Instance .
Then select Import from zip and click Browse . Select the modpack you downloaded, click OK , and wait.
Installing and running modpacks takes much longer than with vanilla Minecraft. It also requires more memory. If your system is a little slow, it's best to stick with the Minecraft 1.7 modpacks.
Looking to try out modpacks, but not sure where to start? Take a look at these great choices.
Minecraft version:1.12
This is a great kitchen sink style modpack with over 750 quests that can help you learn about some of the best mods available. You can find sci-fi, fantasy, and automation mods in this epic pack. It's a beast though, and may not work on older, slower systems.
Download: MC Eternal
Minecraft version:1.07
If your system isn't robust enough to handle 1.12 mods, this is another awesome full-pack. It will introduce you to the world of mods and give you quests to learn the ins and outs of each. With over 1400 quests, this one should keep you busy for a while.
Download: Quest Mayhem
Minecraft version:1.12
This beautifully crafted evolution pack makes Minecraft a whole new experience. It takes you from a Stone Age caveman who can't do much more than bang rocks together (literally) and evolves your game all the way to space travel.
Many items such as mapping, item identification, and even ores are hidden until you unlock the appropriate level.
Download: SevTech:ages
Minecraft version:1.12
This is the fourth installment of a classic “sky island” pack. You are only given land and a tree and you have to build an empire. This pack involves magic and automation, plus several options and biomes to keep it fresh and interesting.
Download: Sky Factory 4
Minecraft version:1.12
This is a crazy-fun pack where you start locked in a miniature 3x3x3 cube and have to escape. But the only way out is to create more miniature cubes and dig yourself deeper and deeper. This is a high-tech modpack that involves a lot of automation, machinery, and large functional structures.
Download: Compact Claustrophobia
Minecraft version:1.12
This is a real RPG style modpack with dungeons, dragons and progressive difficulty. But it's still Minecraft, so how you play it is up to you. There are plans for instant structures like a hobbit house to get you started. It also has recipes for yurts and backpacks that allow you to become a dungeon-crawling nomadic adventurer.
Download: Roguelike Adventures and Dungeons
Minecraft version:1.12
This is the modpack with all the brown and gray blocks pictured above - as you might expect, it's extremely difficult! You start in a dead world with no resources and must bring the world back to health through farming.
Almost all of the materials and resources that you would normally find in Minecraft can be farmed through farming mods. This makes progression quite slow at first, but offers incredible opportunities for automation later on.
Download: Regrowth
Many people think that Minecraft is just a kid's game. But there is so much more than that. Modpacks turn gaming into a deeply empowering obsession that will keep adults playing for hundreds or thousands more hours.
And for children, there is no need to stop at building castles. Minecraft Hour of Code can also spark a passion for coding and STEM in kids.
