Beta 1.7.3 came out in July 2011. It has no hunger bar, no sprinting, no Ender Dragon, no villages worth the name, and terrain generated by an algorithm that made the mountains people still get nostalgic about. It was the last version before the Adventure Update changed the game for good. RetroMC has run a survival server on it since 2014, and calls itself the oldest running English-language Beta server. Our pinger found 25 people playing 2011 Minecraft on a Friday night.
Why Beta
Because it plays differently, and some people prefer the difference. Without hunger, food is only for healing and the game is about building and exploring rather than farming. Without sprinting, distances matter. Nights are dark, the ambient cave sounds are terrifying, and the terrain, with its floating islands and sheer cliffs, is the version everyone means when they say "old Minecraft." The 2026 trailer describes the server as "dedicated to preserving the classic experience of early Minecraft," and that is the whole idea.
Beta 1.7.3 had exploits. RetroMC runs Project Poseidon, a fork of the old CraftBukkit that patches the critical ones without changing how the game feels.
JVillage handles player towns; a player-based economy runs on top; there are minigames for when the survival gets quiet.
Owned by JohnyMuffin, with a wiki, a forum and a YouTube channel that has documented the world for years.
Joining takes one launcher setting
The official launcher can run any old version. Create a new installation, choose "old_beta b1.7.3" from the version list, launch it, and add the server. The address is mc.retromc.org on port 28265 (the port matters; the default won't connect). Old versions have no built-in server list, so you'll type the address each time unless you use a launcher profile that remembers it.
Live counts from our pinger:
Live from our pinger · checked 4 min ago
Things to relearn
Beds skip the night but there's no respawn anchor. Ladders climb differently. Boats break on impact. The Nether exists but has no fortresses. And when you hear a cave noise, it's not a bug; it's 2011.
For a modern server that keeps a 2010 map alive instead of a 2011 version, read MinecraftOnline. If your client won't connect, our guide on the outdated client error explains version matching.
Quick answers
How do I join RetroMC?
Create a launcher installation for version b1.7.3, then connect to mc.retromc.org on port 28265.
Is RetroMC free?
Yes. Ranks are cosmetic and the server is community-run.
Is PvP on?
RetroMC is PvE survival. Fighting is limited to arenas and minigames.
Why Beta 1.7.3?
It's the last version before the Adventure Update: no hunger, no sprint, old terrain, and the feel of 2011 Minecraft.
Sources
- RetroMC wiki: RetroMC (history, software, features)
- RetroMC: official site
- RetroMC: Minecraft Beta 1.7.3 Server Trailer (YouTube, 2026)
Player counts, votes and uptime on this page are live from our own checks. Everything else comes from the sources above. Spot a mistake? Tell us.
