Minecraft
players on the
Xbox 360 can expect a major update sometime this week or the next that will add new enemies, new structures, and new items to the game. Also amongst the list of new content is
Creative Mode (a popular feature from the PC version) and the ability to sprint in game.
For those of you living under a block (pause for uproarious laughter), Minecraft is the immensely popular sandbox game that throws players into randomly generated worlds made out of cubes. Players build shelters, fight off skeleton archers, ride in mine carts, and, basically, just have fun with creativity. The 360 version of the game can be found on the Xbox Live Arcade and has just recently reached a milestone of over 4 million sales. It’s currently being developed by 4J Studios and has a huge community of dedicated fans online.
An abandoned mine with an Enderman and a Cave Spider.
Diving into the update, let’s start with some of the basics.
1.8.2 will have new food like apples, melons, raw chicken meat, and rotten flesh (which can give your character food poisoning). Players will now have a hunger bar and will need to keep eating in order to sprint, a nifty feature that should shave hours off moving around. There will also be new building materials like glass panes and fence gates, and new structures on the maps like abandoned mineshafts and ravines. Adding to the game’s iconic soundtrack are 12 new music discs to be played on your in-game jukebox as well.
1.8.2 will also introduce three new enemies. The first are
Endermen, which are these creepy, tall silhouetted figures with purple eyes. They can teleport and are a reference to Internet meme “Slenderman”. Then there are
Cave Spiders, which are a small blue version of regular spiders. Don’t let their size fool you, though; according to the Minecraft Wiki they are actually more dangerous. Finally, the new update will add
Silverfish, termite-looking creatures that pop out of Monster Eggs (which, coincidentally, look like regular stone blocks until you mine them and all you get are angry Silverfish).
The real highlight of all the new content, though, is Creative Mode. Creative Mode is all about, well, creating! Players have access to a menu with all of the materials in Minecraft and are free to design and destroy as they please. They can also fly and have no health bars or enemies to worry about. This new mode originally from the PC version should contribute nicely to the already amazing online collection of Minecraft creations, and fans (myself included) couldn’t be more pleased to finally be getting it on the console.
Creative Mode
Just the other day, 4J Studios announced on their Twitter page that they will likely have the update ready for Microsoft Certification Testing early this week. The Microsoft Testing is estimated to take another few days to weeks before the content is available on Xbox Live. In the meantime, check out the
Minecraft Wiki, this
post by Mojang Studios, and the
4J Studios YouTube channel for pictures, videos, and more details on update 1.8.2.
As always, stay tuned with Gaming Illustrated for more news and articles about Minecraft as they develop.
Romtin Erfani is just another kid in college whose been playing video games as long as he can remember. FPS games are his favorite, but he's been known to dabble in a little of everything.
