Minecraft- Late to the Party

Our son LOVED Minecraft and had a great time with it. One thing to consider is that a youngster can interact with others through voice and through typing. The program has filters set up to screen out unsavory language in theory, however it's not fool-proof. One of our son's classmates set up a private server where the only people who could access it were those whom he (or his parent) approved. That might be an option for you if you want tighter control over whom he interacts with online. We did not go that route because our son was a little older than yours when he began using it, however I could see why you might want to filter a bit more, with a pretty young kid.

I just realized I didn't answer your first question... I don't know how to answer it, actually. In any case, I hope your kid enjoys it.

I know that when my (now teen) son first played it, his friend had it on their home PC, and so my son saw it there and came home and asked if we could get it. So we had to buy it (my son purchased it) and we read everything and he seemed to kind of play on his own with it. He wasn't that interested to be interested (short lived).

Another one of my kids got into it with a friend a few years ago, and they played on their iPods and iPads and they just got the app (off the app store). They play together. I think (?) they could play with others but we said no (if I recall) unless we knew them and said so. We monitored all that stuff. This was a few years ago. They would just play if they were together at each others' homes or by themselves, but mostly if together.

My 9 year old uses the Java version of Minecraft. Her big brother set her up so she can play with him.The Bedrock version is only for Windows and is maybe easier for little kids. The Bedrock version will have paywalls saying you can use your coins to buy this skin, or whatever, which is a downside. My kids say they don't like the Bedrock version bc you can't do as much. In the Java version you can customize your world a whole lot more. (They play the Java version on PCs at home. We do have the Bedrock addition on the ipad as well, although they don't use this much anymore). My son has his own private server and does not play with strangers. He lets a couple friends on to play and now his little sister. He used to play with more people (He's 14) but it got to be a pain bc someone would think it's fun to dynamite what you spent time building. Our daughter does not have her own ip address and so it's not possible for her to play with strangers. PS - My son said for someone young just starting off the Bedrock version of Minecraft is probably easier and good to start with.

Are you using it only on a handheld device or on a PC or gaming system? On a handheld device, you play only with people who are on your same WIFI (so, if a friend came over and they are both on your WIFI, they could play together). Or, he could play by himself and build all kinds of stuff. My kids played this way for a long time. It's kind of like virtual legos.

If you get into the PC or gaming system versions, then it's a completely different ballgame because they join servers and play with strangers (unless someone you know sets up a private server as Anne notes below).

(This info may be a few years old, so YMMV)