For a small indie studio, selling more than 4.7 million copies of your debut game is pretty incredible. Beginning in 2009, the blocky but absorbing sandbox fantasy realm within Minecraft grabbed a hold of gamers’ hearts (and eventually, their wallets) with surprising ferocity. Its runaway success on PC skyrocketed creator Markus “Notch” Persson and his development team, Mojang, into the mainstream public eye, generating some serious green in the process.

It’s no surprise that plenty of “me too” imitators have come pouring out of the woodwork to vie for a piece of the action, especially on platforms like the Xbox 360, where it has been unavailable. If you’re an Xbox 360 owner itching to get a taste of Minecraft’s RPG-survivalist building, crafting, and exploring adventure, that’s not such a bad thing. The Xbox Live Indie Games Channel is already packing a few crafty clones that offer a similar experience — and they’re pretty awesome for the few bucks you’ll spend on them. We still have a few months to wait before Minecraft hits Xbox Live this spring, so why not dig into these indies in the meantime?

FortressCraft — Chapter 1 (240 MS Points, Projector Games)

In its current state, FortressCraft is a shinier-looking HD take on Minecraft’s freeform creation mode. Dropped atop a water tower in the middle of a randomly generated landscape, you’re free to roam, build, and explore without fear of getting chomped-on by beasties. Future updates aim to beef up the features and add more modes, but for now the building aspect alone is worth tinkering with, thanks to the scores of block designs available.

You can plunk down pulsing lanterns and jump blocks, deck out your fortress in sci-fi future-tech, or craft that secret Barbie-pink chamber you’ve always wanted. Even cooler: your inventory includes little RC dumptrucks you can send to deposit blocks as they travel. Beyond mere building, there are hidden relics like speed boots, a jetpack, and a headlamp to hunt for in order to expand your abilities. Crafting cooperative is more fun than going solo, though, so be sure to grab a few online pals for this one.

CastleMiner Z (240 MS Points, DigitalDNA Games)

If you’re up for a more action-focused romp, CastleMiner Z’s grim first-person shooter approach mixes pared-down building elements with lots of gunfire and undead slaughter. That’s right. The “Z” stands for zombies…and zombie dragons, both of which stalk you and your comrades while you struggle to create a shelter and explore the stormy landscape. Construction options are disappointingly limited — only a small range of block types are available – but mining ore and harvesting other resources lets you piece together all manner of weaponry to fend off your attackers.

GunCraft would have been a more fitting title for this one, since the main crafting system revolves almost solely around making guns. From pistols and shotguns to uzis and automatic assault rifles, there are a satisfying number of choices to pursue. You also have to craft all of your own bullets too, which is a nice DIY touch.

Total Miner: Forge (240 MS Points, Greenstone Games) 

Perhaps the closest representation to Minecraft, both in visual style and in gameplay, Total Miner’s main Dig Deep mode focuses on a balance of crafting, combat, building, and exploring. One of the things that makes it unique is you can only craft items after you’ve found the recipe blueprints needed to make them. This adds a fun treasure hunting element to the usual search for raw materials, since an onscreen arrow points in the general direction of the next available blueprint.

Even with a ton of goodies to build — from swords and spears to decorative furniture and practical items for your makeshift abodes — it’s a single item that really ratchets up the fun in Total Miner. Your first priority should be building yourself a grenade launcher. Blasting massive holes in the world or harassing your friends in PvP equals good times!

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