Last month we saw the release of the “Minecraft” 1.15 update, which added unexpected creatures to the game: bees. Not only bees, but their hives, and several bee-related mechanics have players buzzing with excitement. The video game is known for its creative intuition when it comes to new additions to the game, and there is never a shortage of elements that players demand to be added or fixed.  With that in mind, Minecrafters are preparing for the long-awaited 1.16 update also know as the “Nether Update.” 

The update has been anticipated for years, with a constant stream of player-recommended features. So far, developers have announced several things, but also claim that there are some additions that they haven’t talked about yet. The greatest change is the addition of three new nether biomes, with the possibility of more. These biomes include the Soulsand Valley, which contains an ominous new blue fire as well as fossils, and two types of nether-wart forests. The forests have and blue variants, with new tree and potentially glowstone types. 

Along with the new biomes come new mobs. There are two new mobs announced as of yet: the piglin, and the piglin beast. Both are hostile and pose a new danger to the Nether dimension. Piglins travel in packs and seem to resemble a pig crossed with the recently added pillagers. They can be traded with, and have a unique feature of not attacking the player if they are wearing a full set of gold armor. The piglins will also be protecting a chest of valuable items that the player can take once defeating the surrounding piglins. The piglin beast is more of a warthog type creature with tusks and a wide frame. This mob has been added to provide an obtainable food source in the Nether, something that has also been demanded for a long time.

Besides just the new Nether additions, players can expect some bug fixes and a new redstone addition called the target block. 

The update is set to release sometime in 2020, with no exact date announced as of yet.

By Christian Collins