Microsoft rushed Minecraft XBLA deal ahead of E3 according to Phil Spencer

Microsoft had only reached an agreement with Minecraft creator Mojang one week ahead of the company's big E3 2011 announcement according to head of Microsoft Studios Phil Spencer.

The deal was so rushed that the graphic made for the announcement was only produced the night before Microsoft's E3 conference. In fact, according to Spencer, the announcement came as such as a shock that many at Microsoft weren't even sure what Minecraft was.

"Even the people inside Microsoft, as they were looking at it, were thinking, 'What is that Minecraft thing and why are we putting it on stage?," Spencer confessed to Destructoid.

Despite the haste of the announcement, Microsoft has been completely overwhelmed by the title's performance on Xbox Live Arcade.

"And then the thing comes out and sells 2 million copies in a month. Did I know that? No. Even Mojang didn’t know that."