Minecraft players have waited a long time for the massive PC update released today, and it’s a game changer.
Lead Minecraft developer Jens Bergensten revealed this morning that update 1.8 is now available for the PC version of the hugely popular creative open-world game. It’s the culmination of 300 days of work at independent Swedish game studio Mojang.
The update brings a spectator mode to Minecraft, which allows players to fly through other worlds without interacting with them.
It also adds many new block types to the game, including Slime, underwater Prismarine, and the light-giving Sea Lanterns. New land and water-based mobs are also included, which will attack players in survival mode.
Oh, and bunnies. Lots of bunnies. You’ll now find rabbits in the game, which you can kill and turn into mutton. Or, you can just keep them as pets, I guess. Be careful not to make friends with the rare “killer rabbit” variety, though.
Along with the many visible updates, Mojang has also changed how Minecraft runs under the hood. These “large game structure changes” and “performance enhancements” should significantly improve gameplay, according to Bergensten. “This is the update that to date has taken the longest time to create (over 300 days) and is the result of many, many changes,” he said on the Mojang website earlier this month.
Originally created by just one person, Markus “Notch” Persson, Minecraft now has now sold more than 50 million copies across PC, iOS, Android, Xbox 360, and PlayStation 3. Upcoming Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PlayStation Vita versions should help grow the game’s popularity further.
You can read the full details of update 1.8, dubbed “The Bountiful Update,” below:
+ Added Granite, Andesite, and Diorite stone blocks, with smooth versions
+ Added Slime Block
+ Added Iron Trapdoor
+ Added Prismarine and Sea Lantern blocks
+ Added the Ocean Monument
+ Added Red Sandstone
+ Added Banners
+ Added Armor Stands
+ Added Coarse Dirt (dirt where grass won’t grow)
+ Added Guardian mobs with item drops
+ Added Endermite mob
+ Added Rabbits with item drops
+ Added Mutton and Cooked Mutton
+ Villagers will harvest crops and plant new ones
+ Mossy Cobblestone and Mossy Stone Bricks are now craftable
+ Chiseled Stone Bricks are now craftable
+ Doors and fences now come in all wood type variants
+ Sponge block has regained its water-absorbing ability and becomes wet
+ Added a spectator game mode (game mode 3)
+ Added one new achievement
+ Added “Customized” world type
+ Added hidden “Debug Mode” world type
+ Worlds can now have a world barrier
+ Added @e target selector for Command Blocks
+ Added /blockdata command
+ Added /clone command
+ Added /execute command
+ Added /fill command
+ Added /particle command
+ Added /testforblocks command
+ Added /title command
+ Added /trigger command
+ Added /worldborder command
+ Added /stats command
+ Containers can be locked in custom maps by using the “Lock” data tag
+ Added logAdminCommands, showDeathMessages, reducedDebugInfo, sendCommandFeedback, and randomTickSpeed game rules
+ Added three new statistics
+ Player skins can now have double layers across the whole model, and left/right arms/legs can be edited independently
+ Added a new player model with smaller arms, and a new player skin called Alex?
+ Added options for configuring what pieces of the skin that are visible
+ Blocks can now have custom visual variations in the resource packs
+ Minecraft Realms now has an activity chart, so you can see who has been online
+ Minecraft Realms now lets you upload your maps
* Difficulty setting is saved per world, and can be locked if wanted
* Enchanting has been redone, now costs lapis lazuli in addition to enchantment levels
* Villager trading has been rebalanced
* Anvil repairing has been rebalanced
* Considerably faster client-side performance
* Max render distance has been increased to 32 chunks (512 blocks)
* Adventure mode now prevents you from destroying blocks, unless your items have the CanDestroy data tag
* Resource packs can now also define the shape of blocks and items, and not just their textures
* Scoreboards have been given a lot of new features
* Tweaked the F3 debug screen
* Block ID numbers (such as 1 for stone), are being replaced by ID names (such as minecraft:stone)
* Server list has been improved
* A few minor changes to village and temple generation
* Mob heads for players now show both skin layers
* Buttons can now be placed on the ceiling
* Lots and lots of other changes
– Removed Herobrine