Microsoft’s Mojang Studios has announced the next major update for Minecraft. Called the 1.16 Nether Update, this is an extensive release that adds new mobs, biomes, and plenty more besides. Minecraft players will start receiving the update on June 23.
You may remember Mojang announced this update back at MINECON 2019 last September.
Users across platforms will be pleased to know the 1.16 Nether Update will drop on all platforms at the same time. That’s important and further Microsoft’s push for Minecraft to be a unified experience on all devices.
Included in this release are several new biomes to discover: Soulsand Valley, Netherwart Forest Red, Netherwart Forest Blue, and Basalt Deltas. Mojang has also added four new mobs to Minecraft: Zoglins, Stirders, Piglins, and Hoglins.
Grab your most fireproof calendar, and start frantically circling June 23rd: the Nether Update starts rolling out on both Bedrock and Java… Why, this Tuesday!
? https://t.co/r4dAXqhlDj ? pic.twitter.com/I9jlE2Ciwx
— Minecraft (@Minecraft) June 17, 2020
Full Update Release Notes
- New biomes:
- Soulsand Valley, an ominous place full of fossils, soul sand, Basalt, blue fog and blue flames.
- Netherwart Forest Red (or “the crimson forest”), which is a dense forest full of nether wart blocks, weeping vines, swirling particles, dense atmosphere.
- Netherwart Forest Blue (or “the warped forest”), a variation on Netherwart Forest Red but with its own unique atmosphere and own unique blocks, including warped fungus, twisting vines, and nether roots.
- Basalt Deltas, a volcanic place consisting of Basalt, Blackstone, lava, and glowstones.
- New mobs:
- Hoglins (formerly known as Piglin Beasts)
- Tusked little terrors that can be bred as a source of food in the Nether.
- Piglins
- All live in the Nether, hate everyone, and love gold. Can be traded with.
- Striders
- Passive mob, spawns on lava lakes, immune to fire and lava damage. Breedable and rideable.
- Zoglins
- Similar to Hoglins, but vaguely more terrifying.
- Hoglins (formerly known as Piglin Beasts)
- New items:
- Netherite Ingot
- Netherite Scrap
- Soul Speed Enchanted Book
- Lodestone Compass
- Warped Fungus on a Stick
- Pigstep music disc
- Snout banner pattern
- New blocks:
- Soul Fire
- Soul Campfire
- Soul Torch
- Soul Lantern
- Nether Roots
- Nether Sprouts
- Fungus
- Warped Wart Block
- Stems
- Hyphae
- Nylium
- Target
- Shroomlight
- Basalt
- Polished Basalt
- Blackstone (and many variants thereof)
- Quartz Bricks
- Cracked and Chiseled Nether Bricks
- Soul Soil
- Weeping Vines
- Twisting Vines
- Block of Netherite
- Nether Planks
- Chain
- Ancient Debris
- Crying Obsidian
- Gilded Blackstone
- Nether Gold Ore
- Respawn Anchor
- Lodestone
- New structures:
- Basalt Pillars
- Bastion Remnants
- Nether Fossils
- Ruined Portals
- New commands:
- /locatebiome
- /attribute
- Changes:
- Zombie pigmen are now zombified piglins, will have a new design.
- Farmer villagers now collect seeds from composters.
- The Normal Nether will become a biome, now known as Nether Wastes.
- Hoes can now be enchanted with Efficiency, Fortune, and Silk Touch with the use of an enchantment table.
- Hoes can now break leaves, warped wart blocks, Nether wart blocks, targets, dried kelp blocks, shroomlights, sponges, wet sponges, and haybales faster.
- The smithing table can now upgrade diamond tools into Netherite tools.
- The compass can now be enchanted with the curse of vanishing enchantment.
- Gameplay:
- Ten new advancements added to the game.
- Treasure loot can only be fished up when fishing in open waters.
- Players can respawn in the Nether with the respawn anchor.
- The Nether now has additional ambient sounds.
- Fire lit on soul sand will also turn into soul fire, like soul soil.
- Fish now despawn when 64 blocks away from the player, unless placed from a bucket or named with a name tag.
- Bartering is a form of trading with Piglins. Players can throw or right-click a Gold Ingot at a Piglin and the Piglin will give an item in return.
- Other:
- Basalt can now be generated when lava runs over soul soil when it comes into contact with blue ice.
- 3 new songs have been added to The Nether.
Recent Minecraft Changes
Last month, a couple of important things happened in the world of Minecraft. Firstly, Microsoft rebranded Mojang as Mojang Studios. Secondly, the game passed 200 million units sold, cementing its position as the best-selling title ever.
It is comfortably the best-selling game ever, topping GTA V (120 million units) and Tetris (100 million units).
“It’s been an incredible year for Minecraft with the global rollout of Minecraft Earth, the release of the game-changing RTX beta for Windows 10 through our partnership with Nvidia, and closing out 2019 as the most viewed game on YouTube. We are humbled that there have now been more than 200 million copies of Minecraft sold to date, and 126 million people are now playing Minecraft every month,” Mojang Studios head Helen Chiang said at the time.
