A decade and a half since it first tottered onto our PC screens, the humble Minecraft pig has become as iconic a character as Doomguy, Fallout’s Vault Dweller, and Geralt of Rivia. But our favorite porcine companion is about to change, courtesy of the latest Minecraft snapshot that also teases some refreshed biomes and a new, simplified means of navigation. As original creator Markus ‘Notch’ Persson teases (and then unteases) ‘Minecraft 2,’ Mojang’s monolithic builder lays out an ambitious stall for 2025.
We’re still waiting on the next Minecraft update to arrive in full, but in the meantime, Mojang offers a small glimpse and tease of what’s to come. This is the first Minecraft snapshot of 2025, and it transforms two of the building game’s key components. If you want to test them out, make sure you check the best Minecraft seeds so you get the richest worlds available.
First up, the pigs. Our oinking pink pals have been with us for 15 years and now they’re about to get some company. The snapshot contains two new pig variants. The cold pig is coated in fur and can be found relaxing in chiller, arctic biomes. The warm pig is a suitable beach color and enjoys the warmer climes of sunny biomes. I’m not going to insult you with any pig puns. After all, these new variants are nothing to pork fun at.
Speaking of Minecraft biomes, forested areas have been given new life thanks to ‘ambient features.’ Look up, and you’ll see leaves gently fluttering to the ground. Keep your ears open, and enjoy the ASMR crunch of fallen leaves underfoot. These can be used for decoration, and so can wildflowers, another addition that can also be used to make dyes. Wildflowers have four different growth stages and if you want to accelerate their development, you can do so with bonemeal.
But there’s no point building and decorating a beautiful base if you can’t find it again. This is where the new lodestone recipe comes in. In the past, we’ve crafted and deployed lodestones to serve as physical map markers – they pull your compass in a certain direction so you can find your way back from whence you come. In the new snapshot, the recipe for crafting lodestones has been simplified; all you need to do is combine an iron ingot with chiseled bricks.
If you want to test these features and you’re using Minecraft Java Edition, click the next to the ‘Play’ button. For the Bedrock Edition, find the ‘Minecraft Preview’ tab in the Minecraft Launcher. In other news, you might have heard rumblings of an unofficial, spiritual ‘Minecraft 2.’ Unfortunately, that’s not happening.
Check out the best Minecraft mods to make the game even better, or get the best Minecraft skins for 2025.
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