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My kids are playing Minecraft on 2 PCs, creative mode. They are connected by the way of one of them starts a single player game on the other one than joins that game over the LAN.

Can I, using Minecraft PE on my iPad, join their game as well?

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  • Could you accept a different answer? Mine is outdated. I think this one has the most precise and relevant information.
    – BlaXpirit
    Aug 30, 2016 at 19:48
  • You could use an emulator for true "Pocket edition" (the very old versions), but the controls would likely be horrible to use.
    – Fabian Röling
    Apr 24, 2020 at 23:32

11 Answers 11

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32

No, you can't. They're entirely different games.

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+200

There are now two different versions of Minecraft on PC

You cannot join their Java version on PC, but you surely can on the Windows 10 version. Of course, they need Windows 10 on their PC to install it

It is possible to get the Windows 10 version for free if you have already existing Minecraft accounts, just go on the website in account management and you should find the option

(There might be some elaborate way to play the java version on your ipad, but this would require so much work it isn't worth it, if you do get it working, you will still have the Controls issue (how will you control a game designed to work with keyboard and mouse?))

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19

To expand a bit on BlaXpirit's answer, the PC version, the Pocket Edition, and the XBox 360 Edition are all separate games, with separate features and in separate states of development.

The games are written in different languages for different platforms, and the XBox version is actually developed by a different company than Minecraft is, so it is (unfortunately) very unlikely that these versions will ever be able to join each other in online play.

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    I wish that they would make them all compatible some day!
    – pattyd
    Jun 22, 2013 at 18:38
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This is impossible because the different versions of the game are not compatible. They use different protocols and have different features. Here is a short list of what can play together:

  • Java edition (original): All 3 major PC platforms: Windows (any), Mac, and Linux. Supports the most customization, mods, and has the most content.

  • Bedrock edition: Android, iOS, Amazon Fire Phone (on these it's called the "Pocket edition"), and Windows 10 (on Windows 10 it's called the "Windows 10 Edition"). Less content, less mods, if you have Windows 10 the primary advantage of using this version instead is cross-play with mobile.

  • Pi Edition: Only supports the Raspberry Pi's Raspbian OS for ARM.

  • There are also console versions (PS3/4/Vita, Xbox 360/One, Wii U) which I believe are only playable if you own the same console.

Anyway, if you want to play together with your kids you'll need to purchase a PC. Their world is and will only be compatible with the Java version of the game.

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6

It depends if your children are using Minecraft for PC or Minecraft Windows 10 Edition. Minecraft for PC and minecraft Windows 10 Edition is 2 different games. With Minecraft Windows 10 Edition you can play with Minecraft PE users via LAN and multiplayer servers.

You can get Minecraft from PC to Windows 10 Edition for free.

Claim Windows 10 Edition: https://mojang.com/2015/07/get-minecraft-windows-10-edition-beta-for-free/

For more info: https://mojang.com/2015/07/announcing-minecraft-windows-10-edition-beta/

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    I don't think "upgrade" is the right word
    – BlaXpirit
    Aug 30, 2016 at 19:53
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Java Edition and Bedrock Edition do not have native crossplay. However, you can use a proxy like Geyser to connect to a Java server from a Bedrock Edition client. You will need to run a standalone JE server.

Download the server software from Mojang's official page, put it in its own folder, and run the downloaded .jar file. You can copy the folder of your existing world and paste it into the server folder, but you have to rename it to "world".

After setting up the server, you must set up Geyser.
This section of the Geyser wiki explains how to set it up.

You can connect with the server IP "localhost", and Bedrock players can connect with your LAN IP on the port 19132.

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4

No

You cannot do this for several reasons!

  • They are entirely different games

  • They both rely on different programming languages

    Pocket edition and PC minecraft both have different features, which is why this will not work.

    • PE: Nether Reactor Core
    • PC: The End
    • PE: Lacks some textures that PC has
    • PE: Minimal or No red stone support

There are many many more reasons out there, but those are just a few examples!!

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  • 29
    The fact that they are different programming languages should make no difference. The games are communicating over a network, so as long as they use the same communication protocol there is no reason the games could not work together. Programming languages should not be an excuse.
    – user50776
    Jun 25, 2013 at 21:27
  • @Tony I guess the point is that they aren't using the same communication protocol.
    – badp
    Jun 25, 2013 at 22:05
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    @Tony I think that's why this answer still has a score of zero despite being otherwise correct.
    – SevenSidedDie
    Jun 26, 2013 at 0:32
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    -1 The list of feature differences is no longer accurate.
    – SevenSidedDie
    Aug 24, 2016 at 17:15
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Yes. You can now play Pocket edition with PC edition as of pocket edition version 0.12.1 This has been true as of September 2015, so this feature has been out for almost a full year as of the day I am typing this. The feature requires players to play on the same network, but allows Pocket Edition players to use the many features of PC edition and do things such as going to the nether. This does not work the other way around however. Also the host PC player must be online in order for the Pocket Edition player to be able to play on that world. If the host quits (or their computer shuts off, etc.) then the Pocket Edition player(s) will be forced off of the world, unlike servers. Hope this helps out.

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2

Speaking of desktop Minecraft, now there are two editions for desktop:

  1. Which mostly everyone knows, the PC version.

  2. Windows 10 Minecraft version.

If you wanted to link up the PC version, you can't. I will describe the solution below at last.

However if you have Windows 10 Minecraft running as server then you can join your MCPE to that specific world.

Now, unfortunately if you had PC version, consider switching to Windows 10 edition. There are few world converters available, so try to convert PC world to PE world and play it from windows 10 edition. (Here is one converter but it is old.)

The problem is: it can't be said that these converters will work with latest versions of minecraft, because Minecraft gets constantly updated. If this method fails then you will have to start a new world.

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It depends if they're using Minecraft PC or Minecraft Windows 10 Edition. If they're using Minecraft PC, no, I'm afraid it won't work. With Minecraft Windows 10 Edition, people using Minecraft PE will be able to join using LAN or servers. This link can be used to upgrade Minecraft PC into Minecraft Windows 10 Edition: https://mojang.com/2015/07/get-minecraft-windows-10-edition-beta-for-free/

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THIS IS NOT POSSIBLE...

Yet. According to the official Minecraft wiki, cross-platform compatibility will be added in PC/MAC edition 1.14! This update is scheduled for late 2017

Woo!

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    I remember the update happening and it only applied to cross-platform play between Windows 10 edition, console and mobile edition.
    – TheKodeToad
    Oct 13, 2021 at 10:20

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