In-game currency is now available for Minecraft Earth Android beta testers
"Rubies are linked to your Xbox Live account and will stay with you through Early Access and beyond!"
In-game currency is now available for Minecraft Earth players participating in the Android beta test.
As with its iOS sibling, the Android beta has launched in just a handful of cities - just London, Mexico City, Seattle, Stockholm, and Tokyo at the moment - but as a thank you to Android users who've had to wait a little longer than those with iDevices, Mojang has given Android beta participants early access to its in-game currency, "rubies".
Rubies will also be rolling out to iOS beta players, too, but as yet there's no specific confirmation on when that might be.
"Rubies are a form of in-game currency that everyone can earn by playing the game that allows you to buy buildplates during the closed beta," Mojang explains in a blog post.
"Android users will be able to purchase rubies during the closed beta, but don't worry iOS users - we have plans to roll this feature out to you very soon! Rubies, whether you buy or earn them, are linked to your Xbox Live account and will stay with you through Early Access and beyond!"
If you've not been keeping abreast of developments, the core of Minecraft Earth, much like Pokémon Go, plays out on a stylised map reflecting players' real-world surroundings. As players explore the map, nearby items known as Tappables appear. For the purposes of Minecraft Earth's closed beta - which began rolling out to iOS players in July - Microsoft is letting participants tinker around with Tappables, tabletop build plates, and life-size AR features. More is expected to be added to the beta build over time.
If you're interested in giving it a go, beta sign-ups are still live, so providing you have a mobile device that runs on at least Android 7.0 Nougat or iOS 10 and a Microsoft/Xbox Live account, you can apply now.