Surrey Quays Shopping Centre Archives

Recently opened gig venue, bar and restaurant Corner Corner hosts the immersive pop-up at Surrey Quays Shopping Centre in Canada Water

The immersive pop-up can be found at Corner Corner - image by Minecraft Experience — The immersive pop-up can be found at Corner Corner – image by Minecraft Experience

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Is it really any wonder that a movie tied to the best-selling video game of all time has already more than doubled its $150million budget, even though many critics have branded it cash-in dross?

That A Minecraft Movie appears to be a creative mess is largely irrelevant given the passions its source material stirs in its youthful fan base and their eager-to-please parents. Commercially it’s as close to a sure bet as you can make in the arts.

How hard would it be to take a kid-friendly brand, established on a foundation of more than 300million games sold – plus all its associated merch and tie-ins (Lego, I’m looking at you) – pump it full of film stars and still come out with a proposition that wasn’t at least mildly appealing to guardians’ wallets?

It doesn’t have to be particularly good for companies to collect that sweet, easy cash.

The same logic applies to Minecraft Experience: Villager Rescue, recently installed at Corner Corner in Surrey Quays Shopping Centre.

Here, in a space once occupied by The Range homeware store, we walk down a dimly lit corridor to a desk where bright smiling folk supply us with glowing cubes – securely fastened to our wrists, presumably to prevent them flying off and hitting a llama in its digital eye.

Visitors get glowing cubes - image by Minecraft Experience — Visitors get glowing cubes – image by Minecraft Experience

stepping into the space

Initially it feels pretty cool.

The game’s pixelated aesthetic is well reproduced as we’re introduced to two avatars on a big screen who, it’s explained, will lead us on some sort of quest, or something.

If you find vagueness of plot troublesome, this isn’t the experience for you. Initially we’re corralled in a sort of holding room.

It’s not immediately clear what we’re supposed to be doing other than taking selfies with a couple of giant game characters.

The lit cubes allow us to interact a bit with a Minecraft forest which coats one wall but it’s a clunky experience and there doesn’t seem to be an obvious pay-off for chopping down the trees.

No matter though. The kids in our group are already fully immersed.

For them it’s a first taste of climbing inside the game and it keeps them occupied for a spell.

Eventually our cubes go green and the steward indicates it’s time to move to the next room. Here things are better.

It's not always clear what we're doing or why - image by Minecraft Experience — It’s not always clear what we’re doing or why – image by Minecraft Experience

making stuff at Minecraft Experience

We use our orbs to transport materials to make things to crafting recipe specifications.

There’s probably some kind of story we’re following, but it gets lost to the background noise and instead another steward jollies us into picking up sticks, wood and stone.

Pleasingly the cube changes colour once loaded with items and there are rewarding chimes when we get the mix right.

But overall, as we move through further rooms, it’s patchy.

There’s no obvious tally of what we’re collecting and making (let alone, why we’re bothering).

It feels very much as though we’re mindlessly completing a series of scheduled operations to little clear benefit.

We wave our orbs about to defeat an unnecessarily relentless stream of enemies, we combine water and lava to make a portal (albeit one with disappointingly low production values).

But, unlike the actual game, there’s no jeopardy, no suspense and – worst of all – no building.

At least 60% of Minecraft is about creative construction. It’s like digital Lego, a tool for minds to make whatever a person can imagination.

At one point the floor is digital lava and we’re encouraged to hop from safe block to safe block as they appear. Or not.

Walking across the room works just as well.

No materials must be harvested and no bridge built to cross successfully.

What a wasted opportunity.

That said, for younger kids this is a delight.

It looks like their favourite game and delivers just enough to make it seem as though they’ve stepped into the screen.

Its creators though, could have dug more deeply and made a better world.

*** (3/5)

Kids will love it so - image by Minecraft Experience — Kids will love it so – image by Minecraft Experience

key details: Minecraft Experience: Villager Rescue

Minecraft Experience: Villager Rescue is located at Corner Corner in Surrey Quays Shopping Centre, a short walk from Canada Water station until June 25, 2025.

The experience is suitable for all ages. Under 2s go free and there are discounts for kids aged 3-15.

Tickets start at £27 for adults and £22 for children including booking fees. Family tickets for four people (max two adults) start at £92.

The per person price on group tickets for 7-14 people drop as low as £21.50 per head.

Find out more and book tickets here

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Organisation’s CEO wants facility to be used as an urban playground to help boost Londoners’ activity

The courts have been installed at Surrey Quays Shopping Centre

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Sunlight streams down onto the freshly minted wallball courts at Surrey Quays Shopping Centre.

I bounce the rubber ball and slap it vigorously with my hand.

My opponent steps in, makes an easy return, I dash forward striking the yellow sphere deftly into the bottom right hand corner of the wall, where it bounces back into the court and lands stone dead. The point is mine.

I lose all the other points, of course, but then my opponent is founder and CEO of UK Wallball and a former European No. 1 singles champion. So I don’t feel too bad.

Dan Grant and the governing body for the sport he runs are on a mission to get as many people as possible outside, active and bouncing balls against walls.

Installed in partnership with British Land, the two UK Wallball courts on the Rotherhithe Peninsula will be free to use (if you’ve brought your own ball) and can be turned to any number of game variations following their forthcoming launch on May 12, 2022.

Dan said: “Wallball is a simple, accessible sport where you hit a ball against a wall with your hands. Lots of people will have done it at school – called it pat-ball, Eton Fives, one-wall handball – there are lots of different names for it, but ‘wallball’ is the one they play around the world.

“This is the one wall version and it’s the international standard.

“Basically, you have one big rectangle marked out on the wall and one big rectangle on the floor. The main thing is – all you need to do is hit the ball with either hand so that it hits the wall and lands in the court.

“It can bounce once before it’s hit again and then you rally away until it either bounces twice or it goes out.

“The way it’s scored is that you get a point for each rally won on your serve – if you lose the rally then it’s your opponent’s serve. Games are usually played up to 11, 15 or 21 points.

“The easiest way to think of it is that it’s like playing squash against one wall – but there’s no line to hit it above, so you can hit it low and kill the ball.

“For the service, the ball has to hit the wall and land in the back half of the court and then it can land anywhere in the box.

“There’s also a blocking rule – if I hit the ball and then don’t move, I’m a legitimate obstruction that the other player has to try and get around.

“You can’t rugby tackle the other person out of the way – it’s a non contact sport – so they have to get round you to get the ball back.”

UK Wallball CEO Dan Grant pictured at the new courts

Having travelled the world playing the game Dan subsequently trained as a doctor, so his interest in promoting sport goes beyond pure publicity and is firmly rooted in the physical and mental benefits of outdoor activity.

“Our aim at UK Wallball is to try to get as many people from as many different backgrounds as possible active.

“In cities where grey space is increasing and green space is disappearing, we think people should use walls for things like this.

“There are official rules, but our motto is: ‘Any wall, any ball, anytime’. We don’t care how people use the courts, so long as they are being used.

“If people want to invent their own rules, they absolutely can. This whole space at Surrey Quays can be used for a lot of other things – not just traditional wallball.”

The Rotherhithe installation is the first multi-court facility for free use in the country.

Alongside the two playing areas is a third space where those waiting to have a go can hang out, spectator searing and a vending machine selling balls and gloves.

Dan said: “Last year, we did our first proper community court at Bankside, which was also a really vibrant installation.

“That was us working with the Jack Petchey Foundation to target young people in London.

“When it went up it got a lot of media traction, which was awesome. I think a lot of people during the pandemic realised exercise in the open air was a pretty good thing, and that wallball is cheap too – in fact, if you have your own ball, it’s free.

“Off the back of that, British Land, which is regenerating the area around Surrey Quays and Canada Water, saw it, thought it was pretty cool and got us down to find out if they could do something for the community here.

“I persuaded them that they should and so we’ve installed the courts.

“We got our artist back – Dan Gurney – to make them look great. I really like his geometric approach. It works really well in an urban space.

“When you do this kind of thing, you want the courts to feel like they belong, so the design is inspired by both the greenery and the docks on the Rotherhithe peninsula.

“We’ll also have posters telling people how to play and how the design of the courts fits into the local area.

“The way we think of it is as an urban amphitheatre – yes, we want it to be used for wallball, but other sports and arts organisations can get in touch with us and use the space as well.

“It’s also that street to elite philosophy – I want a kid who’s played on these courts, hasn’t had to pay for anything apart maybe for a couple of quid for a ball and then for them to go on and play for Team GB. That would be really cool.”

A vending machine will sell balls on site or players can bring their own

Dan, who works as a doctor in emergency medicine and medtech, believes wallball could be the next big thing in the UK – something he believes would be beneficial to the health of the nation should urban environments embrace it.

“Everything we’ve learnt over the last few years suggests it will catch on in the UK,” he said.

“It’s already big in Ireland, Spain and the Basque Country – it’s huge in the USA. In New York there are 2,500 courts. Wallball is taking off here too.

“We’ve started working with schools over the past couple of years and the kids love it. It’s not just sport either – when we put a court in a school we can give them a blank canvas and they can design it, so there’s a creative element there too.

“Our ethos is that it’s not super-serious.

“Of course, there are pathways for GB Juniors to go straight to the top, but if you just want to turn up and play, that’s fine too.

“I feel like if the kids are enjoying it, then that’s good for all of us.

“As a doctor I’m interested in prevention. We know that if you’re just active and walking around, then that’s really good for you.

“As you travel you see people from the lowest socio-economic backgrounds have the worst outcomes in terms of health. So, having an urban space that feels safe and fun is much better than the alternative.”

The UK Wallball courts at Surrey Quays are set to launch on May 12, 2022, from 1pm-3pm.

The courts will be in place on an ongoing basis.