Here is a helpful write-up regarding this version, including why it is still used and how to get started.
Most players who stick to 1.8.8 do so for one main reason: maicraft1.8.8
Minecraft 1.8.8 is far more than a forgotten point release; it is a time capsule of the game’s multiplayer golden age. Its technical stability enabled the rise of massive mini-game servers, its combat system defined a generation of PvP players, and its modding support gave creators a reliable platform. While Mojang has moved on to richer, more complex updates, the community’s continued affection for 1.8.8—evidenced by persistent server support and client-side backports—proves that sometimes, a “bountiful” update is not the one with the most features, but the one that does a few things perfectly. For many players, Minecraft peaked at 1.8.8, and that legacy will endure as long as players duel in arenas with no attack cooldown, swords raised, and blocks at the ready. Here is a helpful write-up regarding this version,
Paper (formerly PaperSpigot) is a high-performance fork of the Spigot server software. For version 1.8.8, it is often used for "OG" PvP servers or low-resource hosting because it is highly optimized. While Mojang has moved on to richer, more