New Year’s Celebration: Doggie Daycare 

We are still sounding the horns for the New Year’s Celebration, so grab your block-shaped confetti and join the party! Have you tried any of the new maps yet? Howl of the Wild for Minecraft: Java Edition and Caves & Cliffs Explorers for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition both dropped this week and it’s time for a new adventure*! This fur-filled map needs your care and attention, but will be your loyal best friend forever. Can you guess what it is? Fine, I’ll throw you a bone!  

Doggie Daycare (by Razzleberries in partnership with Dogtopia) is the puppy paradise of your dreams! You have been entrusted with the family business, a doggie daycare. Take care of both the business and your newfound furry friends. Hire staff and discover over 16 breeds of dogs! There are four mini-games for you to play, but don’t forget to pamper the pups!  

We wanted to know more about the puppy process, so we hounded Razzleberries until they gave us some answers! And here they are!  

What do you wish you knew about map making when you were first starting out?  

Timelines are extremely important and can make all the difference in the quality of a final product. You need to set clearly defined goals for each member and stage of the project. You need to give enough time to be able to solve a problem if one arises.  

Can you tell us a bit about the process, did it go smoothly? 

We mislabeled and mixed some of the textures in the texture pack. So when we updated the texture pack we were met with some crazy looking mountains and strange buildings with bricks going in all directions like some strange Jenga tower. It was a pretty horrific realization at the time.  

What inspired this map?  

Razzleberries is a team full of animal lovers, so when we were given the opportunity to work on a map that was all about taking care of your dog, we jumped right in! We wanted the environment to be comfy and convenient for a dog owner. A great combination of urban combined with hiking trails and nature. The ideal environment for a young entrepreneur handling their own doggie daycare business, who also wants the best for their own pupper. It was simply a map that was a pleasure to design from the very first block set.  

What should players know before diving into this map?  

The map was made with the intention of the player learning and retaining important facts about dogs and dog care. Everything we tell the player is a well-researched fact! We encourage the player to take their time and read all the dog facts posters around the daycare and to talk to the NPCs. You might learn a thing or two about dogs that you didn’t know before.  

Do you have any advice for aspiring map-makers?  

You can’t always work on passion projects, so naturally you may want to go crazy when you have the opportunity to work on something that inspires you, however it's really important to have a feasible and realistic scope of what can and cannot be done within an allotted time, and with the resources and manpower at hand. Communication with your team is also key to developing a balanced map. A team that works well together will problem solve together. Everyone needs to pitch in. From artists to programmers to builders! 

Thanks, Razzleberries! You can get Doggie Daycare on Minecraft Marketplace, where the seasonal sale is still in full swing! Now, I have a bone to pick with my editor regarding the amount of time I spend working versus playing this map.   

*Requires Minecraft: Bedrock Edition with the latest updates (sold separately).  Limit 1 per person/account.