PC Gamer - UK (2022-02)

T

he new Minecraft
version 1.18 has
arrived, bringing with
it giant changes to the
way that worlds are
generated. Mountains now stretch
up into towering Frozen Peaks
biomes the likes of which earlier
versions never would have created.
Massive caves are open along the
surface, earthen maws ready to
swallow you down to deepslate
depths without warning. Entire
mountains are hollow, filled with
new Lush Cave interiors. Each new
world I visit has landscapes that are
dauntingly large, excessively
strange, and ultimately fascinating
in the way Minecraft was when I
first played it.

Back in 2010, Minecraft was still in
alpha. This was long before its blocky
visuals became a popularly mimicked
aesthetic, before the crafting survival
frenzy that it inspired, and back
before procedurally generated worlds
became more common. In the early
2010s, Minecraft was magical. Every
time I started a fresh world, I was
excited just to see what it was
capable of creating.
In the years since, Minecraft has
become a toy box full of known
unknowns – when a new mob is
added we ask whether it’s tameable

and what it drops when killed, while

a new ore often signals new tools

we’ll craft with it. Minecraft has

provided thousands of hours of fun,

but becoming a global phenomenon

has required Mojang to sand off the

rough edges. It’s not nearly as weird

as it once was.

NEXT GENERATION

In 1.18, Minecraft feels magical again,

recapturing some of the original tech

demo flair that I’d missed. I’ve

randomly generated dozens of worlds

in 1.18 and each one feels like

Minecraft is a system re-committed

to surprising me.

So what is it that’s actually

changed? Several things. The actual

ceiling and floor of Minecraft worlds

has been raised, meaning that they

are both 64 blocks taller and deeper

than before. Up on the surface, this

means postcard-worthy mountain

ranges with more towering peaks and

precipitous cliffs. I’ve seen Minecraft

worlds with this style of dramatic

scenery before, but it’s typically been

sculpted with third-party tools like

World Painter. Minecraft now rivals

those builds right out of the box.

Impressive as they are, you may

not spawn in a mountain range when

you create your first 1.18 world. What

you will stumble across – and

perhaps into – are the new caves.

Caves no longer have any chill

whatsoever. Forget coyly stopping at

block level 40 or so. In 1.18 I’m

constantly tripping over giant tears in

the earth that descend, seemingly

never ending, into the deepest layers

of the earth. It’s not uncommon to

ride a waterfall down a ravine, pass

by a cavern of dripstone stalactites,

spill into an underground lake, and

then continue on down until I’m

surrounded by the deepslate stone

that now defines the lowest layers of

the world just above bedrock.

Version 1.18 also brings a subtler

change: the separation of terrain and

biome. Biomes and structures are

able to generate on different terrain

shapes, meaning that combinations

previously created by sub biomes like

Desert Hills and Badlands Plateau

now exist naturally. Mountains freely

spawn with spruce forests climbing

their edges while deserts transition

from hills to shores at will.

The unleashed terrain is most

evident in villages, which is my

favourite part of Caves & Cliffs Part 2.

Now that villages can spawn in a

biome of any shape, they’re often

warped in wild ways that I enjoy

dissecting. Lone houses often stand

apart on outcroppings. Villages fall

into chasms, climb mountains, and

span rivers. Their paths trickle down

unlikely cliffs, attempting to connect

a cobblestone temple to a library ten

blocks down. Villages in 1.18

exemplify the weirdness that I

missed in Minecraft. It’s still a big

sandbox full of rules, more capable

than ever of spitting out new worlds.

Fear not, Minecraft hasn’t become

entirely alien overnight. Idyllic

meadows and swaths of swamp are

all still there, now with the added

promise that avid explorers and

builders won’t ever have to walk far

to find some impressive new view for

their next base.

NEED TO KNOW

RELEASE

November 30, 2021

PUBLISHER

Microsoft

DEVELOPER

Mojang

LINK

minecraft.net

MINECRAFT 1.18

Amazing views in Caves & Cliffs Part 2. By Lauren Morton

CAVES NO

LONGER HAVE

ANY CHILL

WHATSOEVER

VILLAGE SPILLAGE

Case study of a 1.18 tourist trap

1. The village
   centre, where
   things make sense


2. Non-standard
   terrain: a civil
   planning nightmare


3. A completely
   inaccessible field,
   of course


4. Two villagers,
   understandably
   lost


5. Paths: either
   non-existent or
   capitulated

1

5

2

4

3

WHAT’S NEW IN THE BIGGEST GAMES

UPDATE