Editing Steve (Minecraft) (section)

==Description==
===Character overview===
Steve is one of nine default character [[Skin (computing)|skins]] which are available for new players of ''Minecraft''.{{sfn|Goldberg|Larsson|2013}}<ref name=":2">{{cite journal |last=Smolčec |first=Marijana |date=August 2014 |title=Using Minecraft for Learning English |url=https://tesl-ej.org/pdf/ej70/int.pdf |journal=The Electronic Journal for English as a Second Language |volume=18 |page=9}}</ref> A skin is the appearance of the player's avatar that represents the player in the game world, which can be changed, altered, or replaced by the player.<ref name=":0" /> Players are allowed multiple options to change the [[Texture mapping|visual appearance]] of their player character's skin.<ref>{{cite web |title=Minecraft: Java Edition Skins |url=https://help.minecraft.net/hc/en-us/articles/4408894664461-Minecraft-Java-Edition-Skins |access-date=September 25, 2021 |website=help.minecraft.net}}</ref><ref name=":2" /><ref name=":0">{{Citation|last1=Lane|first1=H. Chad|title=Playing With Virtual Blocks: Minecraft as a Learning Environment for Practice and Research|date=2017|url=https://www.researchgate.net/publication/318448771|work=Cognitive Development in Digital Contexts|pages=145–166|publisher=Elsevier|doi=10.1016/b978-0-12-809481-5.00007-9|isbn=978-0-12-809481-5|access-date=September 26, 2021|last2=Yi|first2=Sherry}}</ref> All zombie mobs found in ''Minecraft'' appear to be wearing the same clothing as Steve, although no official explanation was ever given.<ref name="Everything">{{cite web |last=Coles |first=Jason |date=December 24, 2020 |title=Everything you need to know about Steve in Minecraft |work=[[PC Gamer]] |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/minecraft-steve-skin-herobrine/ |access-date=April 15, 2022}}</ref>

Prior to Alex's introduction, Steve was the only official skin available to players on the PC and Mobile editions of the game, though players of the PC version could use skins they've designed themselves or found online. On the original console editions of the game, up to eight variants of Steve were also offered, none of them female, in addition to a greater variety of characters that were available to those who purchased them as part of bundles.<ref name=":1">{{cite news |last=Harwell |first=Drew |date=April 27, 2015 |title=Minecraft is finally fixing its huge gender problem |newspaper=[[Washington Post]] |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/the-switch/wp/2015/04/27/minecraft-is-finally-fixing-its-huge-gender-problem/ |access-date=September 26, 2021 |issn=0190-8286}}</ref>{{Efn||name=editions}} Like Steve, Alex initially could not be manually selected in these console versions, and her use is randomly assigned whenever players start a new game.<ref name=":1" /><ref name="Everything" /> As of 2022, both Steve and Alex, as well as the other seven default skins, can be manually selected in all versions of the game, either via an in-game menu or in the game launcher, depending on the version of ''Minecraft'' being played.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Antonelli |first=Emma Witman, William |title=How to change your character's skin in Minecraft to give them a different appearance |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/guides/tech/how-to-change-skin-in-minecraft |access-date=2022-10-23 |website=Business Insider |language=en-US}}</ref>

According to backstory provided in ''[[Lego Club Magazine]]'', Steve and Alex are in a romantic relationship and both have distinct interests outside of their shared aptitude for building: Steve has a penchant for mining and alchemy, whereas Alex prefers exploring and hunting. In the next bimonthly release of the Lego Club Magazine, it is told that Creepers got into their clubhouse and wrote over their original words, and that Steve and Alex are actually best friends instead, correcting the aforementioned statement in the prior release. Due to this, the characters in Minecraft are generally considered asexual, except for villagers and some animals, who can be seen having children in-game.<ref>{{cite magazine |author=<!--Staff writer(s); no by-line.--> |title=Max Comic |magazine=[[Lego Club Magazine]] |publisher=[[The Lego Group]] |date=September 2016 |page=2 |quote=In the August issue of Club Magazine, Minecraft Creepers got into our clubhouse and wrote over our words! Steve and Alex are actually best friends!}}<!-- page number guesstimated from https://www.parrygamepreserve.com/media/magazines/lego_club/2016/lego_club_2016_09_September.php Accessed 2023-08-10 --></ref><ref name="Everything" />

===Herobrine===
[[File:HerobrineMinecraft.png|thumb|upright|A screenshot of a Minecraft creepypasta, Herobrine: a figure with white eyes said to haunt Minecraft from 2013.|alt=A screenshot from the waist up of the character Steve, except the eyes are white.]]
Herobrine is an [[urban legend]] and [[creepypasta]] which originated as a hoax propagated by an [[anonymous post]] on the English-language imageboard website [[4chan]].<ref name="Creepypasta">{{cite news |last=Morton |first=Lauren |date=February 1, 2021 |title=The story of Herobrine, Minecraft's decade-old creepypasta mystery |work=[[PC Gamer]] |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/minecraft-herobrine-story-creepypasta-explained/ |access-date=September 26, 2021}}</ref> A "ghost" who haunts single-player ''Minecraft'' worlds, the character is supposed to look like a standard character model for Steve, except for a pair of glowing white eyes which lack pupils.<ref name="Creepypasta" /> Theories that explain the character's supposed origins range from his purported identity as Persson's supposedly deceased brother to an "unlucky miner" who haunts living players out of a desire for vengeance.<ref name="Creepypasta" /> The first purported sighting of Herobrine was from the time period when ''Minecraft'' was still in the [[Software release life cycle#Alpha|alpha phase of development]]: an anonymous 4chan poster claimed that they spotted a character who stared at them from the dense fog between the trees before vanishing and that they received a private message from a user called Herobrine, which simply said "stop".<ref name="Creepypasta" /> This occurred after a subsequent post they made which inquired about the sighting was allegedly removed without explanation.<ref name="Creepypasta" />

===Other appearances===
Steve has been featured in video game media outside of ''Minecraft''. He appears as an exclusive playable character in the PC version of ''[[Super Meat Boy]]'' as "Mr. Minecraft".<ref>{{cite web |last=Devore |first=Jordan |date=November 3, 2010 |title=Mr. Minecraft's blocky Super Meat Boy debut |url=https://www.destructoid.com/mr-minecrafts-blocky-super-meat-boy-debut/ |access-date=April 16, 2022 |website=[[Destructoid]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Gilbert |first=Ben |date=December 2, 2010 |title=Mr. Minecraft is a god in Super Meat Boy |url=https://www.engadget.com/2010-12-02-mr-minecraft-is-a-god-in-super-meat-boy.html |access-date=April 16, 2022 |website=[[Engadget]]}}</ref> Steve's head appears in ''[[Borderlands 2]]'' as an unlockable cosmetic.<ref>{{cite news |last=Wilde |first=Tyler |date=September 19, 2012 |title=How to find Borderlands 2's Minecraft Easter egg |work=[[PC Gamer]] |url=https://www.pcgamer.com/borderlands-2-minecraft-easter-egg-discovered-heres-how-to-find-it/ |access-date=October 24, 2021}}</ref> Steve's head is also unlockable to those who managed to reach level 20 as the Paladin in ''[[Hybrid (video game)|Hybrid]]''.<ref>{{cite web |last=Groen |first=Andrew |date=July 17, 2012 |title=Minecraft helmets to appear in 5th Cell's Summer of Arcade title, Hybrid |url=https://www.gamesradar.com/5th-cells-hybrid-offers-minecraft-helmets-level-20/ |access-date=October 10, 2021 |website=[[GamesRadar]]}}</ref>

Steve is featured as a playable character in ''[[Super Smash Bros. Ultimate]]''; his alternate costumes transform him into Alex as well as the Zombie and Enderman enemies from ''Minecraft''.<ref>{{cite web |last=Walker |first=Ian |date=October 5, 2020 |title=A Few Alt-Reality Takes On Smash's Latest Character Reveal |url=https://kotaku.com/a-few-alt-reality-takes-on-smashs-latest-character-reve-1845281920 |access-date=October 11, 2021 |website=Kotaku}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Gilbert |first=Ben |date=October 1, 2020 |title=Nintendo's iconic 'Super Smash Bros.' is adding the main character from 'Minecraft' as a playable fighter |work=[[Insider (website)|Insider]] |url=https://www.businessinsider.com/super-smash-bros-adding-steve-from-minecraft-2020-10 |access-date=September 26, 2021}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |last=Faulkner |first=Cameron |date=October 1, 2020 |title=Steve and Alex from Minecraft are coming to Super Smash Bros. Ultimate on October 13th |url=https://www.theverge.com/2020/10/1/21495481/steve-minecraft-super-smash-bros-ultimate-nintendo-switch-fighter-pass-vol-2 |access-date=September 26, 2021 |website=[[The Verge]]}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |last=Holt |first=Kris |date=October 1, 2020 |title=The next 'Super Smash Bros. Ultimate' fighter is Steve from 'Minecraft' |work=[[Engadget]] |url=https://www.engadget.com/super-smash-bros-ultimate-dlc-fighter-steve-minecraft-145258285.html |access-date=September 26, 2021}}</ref>

Steve and Alex appear as skins in ''[[Minecraft Dungeons]]'', where Steve was the most commonly selected skin among players.<ref>{{Cite tweet|number=1536787640426450944|user=dungeonsgame|title=The Dungeons 2nd Anniversary Event is quickly approaching its finale, so we’ve gathered and compiled the latest stats from your adventures in the Overworld, Nether, and End. Feast your eyes upon our history and enjoy!|author=Minecraft Dungeons|date=14 June 2022|access-date=23 October 2022}}</ref>