Watch London burn in the Museum of London's incredible Great Fire 1666 Minecraft map

Some people just want to watch the world burn. Other people want to learn about history via the medium of Minecraft. If you're in the middle of this particular Venn diagram then might I point you to an astonishing creation by the Museum of London. Working with crafting masters, Blockworks, the museum has created three different Minecraft maps to tell the story of the Great Fire of London in 1666. 

It's the 350th anniversary of the Great Fire this year and the flamey second map is out on September 2, the day the fire started as a mere spark in a bakery on Pudding Lane. It raged for a staggering four days, destroying a quarter of 17th century London. “The first map in the Great Fire 1666 series has allowed us to really immerse players in the life and times of London in 1666, reconstructing the narrow streets, wooden buildings and iconic landmarks such as St Paul’s Cathedral and London Bridge to set the scene of the fire," explains the museum's digital learning co-ordinator Joshua Blair. 

"This second map is where the Great Fire story really unfolds and we hope that players will enjoy getting to grips with this watershed moment in London’s history in a fun and engaging way.” There'll be mini games to interact with and you can even meet with historical figures from the day such as Samuel Pepys. You can download the maps for Minecraft on PC for free here. Until September 2 you can check out the burny trailer above. 

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Louise Blain

Louise Blain is a journalist and broadcaster specialising in gaming, technology, and entertainment. She is the presenter of BBC Radio 3’s monthly Sound of Gaming show and has a weekly consumer tech slot on BBC Radio Scotland. She can also be found on BBC Radio 4, BBC Five Live, Netflix UK's YouTube Channel, and on The Evolution of Horror podcast. As well as her work on GamesRadar, Louise writes for NME, T3, and TechRadar. When she’s not working, you can probably find her watching horror movies or playing an Assassin’s Creed game and getting distracted by Photo Mode.