Minecraft to Get Pillagers, Pandas, And More In Upcoming Updates

It looks like the flow of content updates for Minecraft is still going strong.

At MINECON Earth 2018, Mojang detailed upcoming additions to the game across all platforms. From hostile versions of villagers to a floating theme park, the future for Minecraft enthusiasts is looking bright and exciting.

Check out the details below.

MINECON Earth may be over for this year, but the real fun is about to begin. We announced loads of great Minecraft shenanigans, with plenty of news to look forward to for the rest of 2018 and beyond!

THE NEXT MINECRAFT UPDATE: VILLAGE AND PILLAGE

Hnggh! Hrgggh! Hrghh! Oh, you don’t speak Villager-ese? I’ll just tell you about the new update in boring old English then.

Jens ‘Jeb’ Bergensten and Agnes Larsson took to the stage and talked about the next big update to Minecraft, one which brings loads of new villagers to the game! Village and Pillage will fill the villages of the Overworld with new friendly folk. You’ll even find variations of their designs in different biomes! Allow me to introduce you to the future residents of the jungle biome:

Our most friendly update ever then? Er, not exactly. The nefarious Pillagers and their Beasts will be joining Minecraft to cause all kinds of havoc upon unsuspecting villages. That’s not nice! That’s not nice at all!

Pillagers will be armed with a new weapon, crossbows. Luckily, YOU’LL be able to craft and use crossbows too! They take longer to use than bows, but make up for it with superior power (and they’re even more helpful if you use enchantments on them like fast load or multishot or TOP SECRET ENCHANTMENT WE’RE NOT REVEALING HERE SORRY NOT SORRY) Better start getting ready to defend the villages from the Pillager attacks…

You’ll find a lot more variety in how villages look depending on what biome you’re visiting, too (along with some completely new villages). But enough about what we’re building – we want to see what YOU make with new building materials! That’s why we’re adding – just seven years after it was suggested at the very first Minecon – scaffolding! It’s made from bamboo, which will be great news for when one of the next mobs we announced wants a snack…

PANDAS AND MORE CATS

CUTENESS OVERLOAD INCOMING. Yep, and they’ll be incoming very soon! We’ll have more news about these adorable new Minecraft mobs in the next few weeks – keep an eye on Minecraft.net!

As for Village and Pillage, that update will be coming to Minecraft early next year.

THE WINNING BIOME IS – TAIGA!

As a part of MINECON Earth 2018, we announced upcoming plans to update three existing biomes in Minecraft: Taiga, Desert and Savanna, with the players deciding which biome to update first through a vote. And the winner was…

Congratulations, Taiga! You got the most votes during the livestream, so you’ll be the next biome we update with new features and a new mob! Don’t worry, Desert and Savanna fans – we’ll still be updating those biomes in time.

We love involving our players in decisions like these so a massive thank you to everyone who voted!

INSPIRATION ISLAND

A new piece of Marketplace content that’ll be free to all Minecraft players! Visit Inspiration Island, a floating theme park world filled with creative challenges. Whether you are new to Creative Mode or just need a little extra inspiration, a visit here sets you on the path to craft your own groundbreaking worlds. By the time you leave the island, you’ll be a true blue creator, armed with loads of skills to make awesome things!

Inspiration Island will be free, and will be released in the Minecraft Marketplace later this year.