Next year is going to mark 15 years of Minecraft, and Microsoft-owned developer Mojang is celebrating the milestone by launching Update 1.21, which will introduce a host of new things for players to look forward to like a new item, a new monster, new randomly generated underground structures, and the ability to have autmoated crafting when it lands in mid-2024.
The features of the update were shared during this past weekend’s Minecraft Live showcase, leading off with the Crafter, a redstone-powered item that will let players automatically craft items. This new Crafter will also introduce some new UI in order to make redstone tech matters easier to understand.
On the subject of new items, the update will also add a new copper bulb that emits light. This new craftable will suffer from oxidization like other copper blocks, with its light dimming as oxidization worsens, and can also be waxed and scraped with an axe.
For those who plumb the game’s underground depths, they’ll be facing several new features like randomly generated trial chambers that promise new challenges for players, as well as trial spawners that generate enemies to fight and loot to find and a new wind-blasting Breeze enemy. Finally, the Minecraft Marketplace will be getting some new Star Wars-themed DLC that lets players move from padawan to Jedi knight.
The broadcast also offered additional details for other Minecraft games, including new content for Minecraft Legends in October and December, Planet Earth-themed DLC for Minecraft Education, and the promise of more updates and surprises through the rest of 2024 as part of the game’s 15th anniversary.
The bevy of new content details comes on the heels of a widespread player “revolt” in the lead-up to Minecraft Live, as players were agitating for more content in the survival sandbox by way of propaganda posters and a petition. It would appear as if the broadcast has mollified most of those fans, as many replies on the game’s subreddit are effusive or intrigued, though there are still a few salty posts sprinkled throughout.
