Minecraft 1.10 has been out since June the 8th, and it is currently June the 20th. We are planning to roll out the Minecraft update tomorrow after an extended wait period. This morning Cayorion and myself discussed the future policies of Minecraft updates, primarily because updating is both a necessary and sometimes uncomfortable experience for the players. Here is what we have decided:

Every time an update comes out:

• We will always wait for Optifine to be updated to the latest version. We recognize that many players cannot play MassiveCraft without Optifine. As such we consider this the absolute minimum crucial thing to wait for.
• We will wait for a maximum of 2 weeks (still reliant on Optifine being released), but at least one week before we start updating the server, the update process lasting anywhere between 24 and 48 hours.

Why can we not wait longer:

• Minecraft updates always bring exciting new features, whether it be blocks or new game-play mechanics. Regardless of how many players felt about the combat update, it still brought cool new features. We want to make sure to roll these out as soon as possible.
• Many new players cannot connect to an outdated server, we risk losing potential new players who run on the latest minecraft version, as they cannot connect to the server without the correct version. Sometimes it’s as crucial as even being able to connect that will cause a player to seek their entertainment elsewhere.
• Many plugins and other programs like Forge simply take too long, Forge sometimes takes a full month to update and other plugins that need Forge take even longer. Forge as a plugin support system simply isn’t reliable.
• We do not benefit from bug fixes in other programs and plugins, modern developers mostly develop only the most recent version, meaning they do not build their plugins backwards compatible. If we stick to older versions, we will get no further tech support from out-house plugins like MCMMO.
• MassiveCraft carries responsibility to other server with our plugins. Many of our plugins are for sale which contribute to the upkeep of the server. Cayorion has a high standard of plugin development which involves fast updates to plugins and backwards compatibility that is missing in other plugins. As we have a financial responsibility to our clients, updating sooner rather than later will provide better service for the product we sell.

We really would like to wait for all plugins and client side mods to update for the players, like MPM and various PVP mods, but ultimately the server’s maintenance and progression cannot be bottle necked on a series of smaller plugins that only really add quality of life, not necessary crucial functionality. So, in the future you can expect us to wait for at least one week after a new Minecraft Update. Then after this first week, if Optifine has been updated, we will update the server in the course of two days. If Optifine has not updated after this first week, we will check back daily up to two weeks. If the two week mark is over, we will update regardless of Optifine and simply hope that Optifine updates soon. Practice shows us however that optifine almost consistently updates within a week, so we hardly think it will ever happen that we update without Optifine. Where applicable we will try to make use of backwards compatibility plugins, but it seems at least for 1.10, the plugin that was used on the current version to allow people with older versions to connect to the server is extremely buggy and will not work correctly. As such, you will only be able to connect with 1.10 when the server updates, even if you are able to connect with 1.8.4 right now. If Forge does not update in time, we heavily recommend looking into manually installing mods or making use of Magic Launcher. Both options are more than feasible to run mods on your Minecraft without Forge, and most modders offer a simple vanilla mod version of their product.