Gaming News

Minecraft 1.RV - the Trendy Update Pre-release 1

Woho! It’s already time for a pre-release of the next Minecraft version: 1.RV, The Trendy Update! This must have been the speediest update we’ve ever been able to push out, only a few days after 1.9.2. With the Trendy Update we thought; why should we bring Minecraft to modern technology when we can bring technology to Minecraft? It’s time to get in line with the times and make Minecraft a game that feels it belongs in 2016. There has never been so much fuss about gadgets and wearables as in recent months, and trends are meant to inspire innovation. Not has there been a single IT exhibition without the flood of digital bracelets, miniature monitors attached to your glasses, and motion tracking devices. All to make our lives more...

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Minecraft 1.9.2

Update: Minecraft 1.9.2 is now available and fixed the issue that some players could not connect to some servers or their realms. 1.9.1 notes: Woooosh. That’s the sound of the elytra and the main feature of the 1.9.1 release of Minecraft. The second notable change is a new property (toughness) for armor that “makes diamond armor useful again”. Apart from these awesome additions, we also fixed some reported bugs and improved the performance and memory usage of servers a bit. Command blocks in custom maps should also behave much better now, especially with long sequences that are executed every tick. Please report any and all bugs you find in Minecraft to bugs.mojang.com. If nobody reports a bug, we can’t fix it! Notable changes...

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Story mode Episode 5 out today! Much rejoicing!

The adventure didn’t end with the Wither Storm, you know. Jesse and his chums now find themselves on a new journey to Sky City - mysterious, beautiful and very, very keen on rules. (Well, except gravity.) And you can join Jesse and the gang in Story Mode Episode 5 right now! Check out the trailer above for a glimpse of the high drama that awaits or just hammer the download button on your platform of choice. Story Mode’s Season Pass is available on PC/Mac, Windows 10, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and handheld devices. Check the Apple Store for iOS editions, and Google Play or Amazon for the Android version. And don’t forget there are three new Story Mode episodes in the works, too! Good gosh. Check out Owen’s...

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Story Mode Episode 5 incoming. Three more on the way

You’ve recovered from the Wither Storm finale by now, right? Not that anything devastatingly significant happened or anything… let’s carry on with… the… post. ;( I’m happy to announce that Episode 5 of Minecraft: Story Mode will be available to download on PC/Mac, Windows 10, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, Xbox 360, PlayStation 3, and iOS and Android-based devices from March 29th! Jessie and buddies are off to a rather special land known as Sky City. It’s an awe-inspiring, intriguing place to say the least. But does that beauty come at a price? There are only two ways to find out… Play Episode 5 (Recommended. Super fun.) Watch someone else play Episode 5 on YouTube (Significantly less fun unless you’ve already played it in which case it...

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Mega-huge Cobalt patch: new tutorial and more!

If you hadn’t heard, Cobalt is a game about slow-motion robo-blasting, published by Mojang and released on Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Steam for PC. It was already awesome but those busy bees at Oxeye Game Studio have nonetheless launched a massive update to the PC version, adding a slick new tutorial, online Survival mode and all manner of wonderful tweaks, from fine-tuned jet-shoes to better brain-racing controls. Don’t take my word for it, though: watch the video below to see some of the cool things Oxeye have cooked up. Alternatively, why not have a poke at the demo we launched yesterday? It includes the new tutorial and all that fresh patch goodness. And there’s lots more - you can read the full patch notes here. There are so many...

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Play Cobalt's demo! Find secret code! Win stuff!

Hello! You know about Cobalt by now right? A game published by Mojang and released on Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Steam for PC? Here’s a trailer to remind you how awesome it is. Xbox users have had the trial version of Cobalt for some time, but now there’s a demo for PC Steam users too. It includes all arcade modes, the extended tutorial, and even online play. Download it! Even more excitingly, there’s a 13 character code hidden in the tutorial, and we’re giving a free copy of the game to the first players to find it. Email the secret code to Pontus (kinten@gmail.com) and if you’re one of the first 15 to get in contact, he’ll respond with some friendly life-lessons, advice on how to be a cool dude, and a copy of the full game. There is...

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Minecraft 1.9.1 Pre-Release 1

Elytra sounds are now ready, so we bundled them with a few bug fixes and decided to make a Minecraft 1.9.1 pre-release available for everyone to test these changes. Most of us are going to San Francisco next week to attend GDC, so we will release Minecraft 1.9.1 in two weeks. Notable changes: Added Elytra sound effects Improved AI Improved entity selectors Tweaked cooldown mechanics to be less confusing Applied paper patch 0078 Loot tables now also work in dispensers and droppers Hoppers can now pull items out of blocked chests Increased limit for “executed command blocks per tick” Bugs fixed: [Bug MC-56162] - Worldborder damage 0 [Bug MC-96219] - Block Duplication Bug with Pistons (ghost blocks) [Bug MC-98327] - Elytra texture...

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Where in the world is MINECON?

Hello! It’s that time of year again, time to mark off your calendars and start making plans. MINECON is coming! That means thousands of you will come together for fun (and this time even some sun) and to celebrate the Minecraft community. As usual, we will have a weekend event and as usual, we will be live streaming the entire time, so even if you can’t come in person, you can still enjoy the Minecrafty goodness from the lovely comfort of home. Details will be coming soon right here on the blog including pricing, ticket sales dates, and more! Vu (@vubui) Continue reading...

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Minecraft 1.9 - Combat Update

The arrow struck the shield with a impactful “thud!”. Steve peeked around the shield’s edge and saw the arrow was wrapped in a note! Steve excitedly pulled it loose to see what it said… “You’re happy you had that shield, aren’t you?” And yes, Steve was pretty happy. Minecraft has been updated to 1.9! It contains a lot of changes. Most remarkably, the combat mechanics have been updated to make fighting more interesting and offer more map-making options. Here’s a almost complete list of the new and changed features: Added shields Attacking now has a “cool-down” delay, making it more important to time your attacks You can now hold items in both hands (default quick key to swap items is ‘F’) Swords have a special sweep attack Axes...

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Cobalt updated with new languages, new controls and a map-making challenge!

Hello blue faces! As you probably know, we’re working with the fine gentlemen at Oxeye Game Studio on Cobalt. They’re a super small sweet team of 2.2 people (it’s Daniel, Pontus and our Jens) and they’ve been listening to you guys and updated the game accordingly. Thanks to your feedback the game is still very much evolving! If there’s something you’d like to say to the devs they’re on twitter (linked above), Steam Community and at cobaltvault.no What’s new in Cobalt? First thing first, a nasty bug affecting online play on the Xbox One has been found and fixed. A patch will be rolled out very soon, and it includes a whole bunch of other improvements as well. You can see all Steam update news here...

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Minecraft 0.14.0 is out! Skin Pack, livestream and more!

Hey hey! We’re happy to let you know that the first update of the year for Minecraft: Pocket Edition and Windows 10 Beta Edition is now out! So what cool things are there? Let’s take a closer look! Like previously talked about we got some nice additions for you Redstone builders and adventurers. Repeaters, maps and item frames among other things will help you in your building adventure and assist you making greater things, but be aware of the witches that may lure you into wrong paths… We got a new skin pack out as well! Since we want you to build great things, we also want you to look great while doing so. These Redstone Specialists skins are inspired by the builds we’ve seen you create and I think they look great. We hope you’ll...

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Minecraft 1.9 Pre-Release 1

It is time to stop waiting and start playing. A pre-release of Minecraft 1.9 is now available. We are very excited to enter the final stage before the new version is released. First the answer to the most asked question: We are currently planning to release the final version of Minecraft 1.9 next week, on Thursday, 25th of February 2016. And now to the usual release notes. Once we release the final Minecraft 1.9 update, we will also provide a complete list of changes between Minecraft 1.8 and Minecraft 1.9. Notable changes: Bugs fixed Increased durability of shields Some crystals in the end are protected by cages again Added 34.7% more hype for Minecraft 1.9 Bugs fixed: [Bug MC-96863] - Marker ArmorStand Should Not Have...

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Bring Minecraft Into Your World With Mine Chest!

Hello! When you play Minecraft, you never know what you’re going to find when you break past those next few blocks, and that feeling of anticipation can be quite exciting, yes? Well, we wanted to bring that same sense of discovery and creativity, but with cool monthly shipments of Minecraft gear, exclusive items, and neat DIY crafting recipes! Introducing the new and improved, Mine Chest! Now you can subscribe for a monthly box of Minecraft goodness, even some items that you can’t mine anywhere else. This brilliant chest travels around all different areas of the Minecraft world collecting wonderful things to be delivered straight to you! Currently, only our US Minecrafters will be able to subscribe, but don’t worry, we are working...

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Minecraft snapshot 16w07a

A snapshot on a Monday? How is that possible? We could just pretend it’s Wednesday, or explain what’s going on. So, here we go: It’s actually Wednesday, so all is good… …just kidding. It’s not Wednesday and here’s the real reason: As we get closer to the first pre-release for Minecraft 1.9, we will release snapshots more frequently to get more feedback on our changes and bug fixes. In this phase of development all the bug reports and feedback on Reddit or via Twitter are helping us a lot to work on the right issues to get to a stable release. Notable changes: Bugs fixed Removed the cages that were protecting the crystals during the dragon fight Treat every day as if it’s Wednesday internally Bugs fixed in this snapshot: [Bug...

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Minecraft: Pocket Edition & Windows 10 Edition Beta out soon!

Hello cube heads! :) I hope you’re as excited as we’re, because we’ve been really looking forward to this! So let’s get to the juicy bits! Here’s the super awesome exciting change log! 0.14.0 is a bit focused on redstone pieces, but also other things. Repeaters, comparators, dispensers, droppers, hoppers, trapped chests, minecraft with chest/tnt/furnace/hopper (pewh) Witches! Make sure you’re avoiding the splash potions they’re throwing at you! They can make you move slower or even poison you. Spooky stuff! Armour dying. Tired of the usual look? Why not try the other 10 000 000 colours? Put your pants in the cauldron together with a dye and enjoy the new design! Item frames. Show off your adventurous loot or put up one of...

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Minecraft snapshot 16w06a

Some bugs in the game are more annoying than others. So we decided to take care of some of the bugs that were good candidates for winning a “most popular bugs” contest. We are very sorry for closing tickets with a large fan base. These issues will be missed, but we are relatively sure that their fans will find other interesting bugs to follow. We are also getting very close to the first 1.9 pre-release. Please make sure you vote on the most severe bugs in the bug tracker if you want to make sure we look at them before releasing 1.9. Notable changes: Better riding mechanics for boats, horses, minecarts and saddled pigs The elytra texture now defaults to the cape texture if no custom texture is uploaded and the player owns a cape...

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Journey to the West skins now on PE and Windows 10

Hello! We’ve made even more skins for you players of Minecraft: Pocket Edition and Windows 10 Edition Beta. In celebration of Year of The Monkey, we’ve created a pack based on Journey to the West - an ancient Chinese novel by Wu Cheng’en. You might not have heard of that, but you probably know about such awesome things as Digimon, Monkey, and Dragon Ball. All of those were inspired by Journey to the West. The story is full of over the top, awesome-looking, adventurers, which is why we thought it would be an excellent fit for Minecraft. Check below for an illustrative moving image. Everyone can download Red Boy and Guanyin for free, but pay $1.99 (or equivalent) and you’ll get Princess Iron Fan, Lord Hundred-Eyes, Bull Demon King...

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Race, Jump, and Explode Through These 14 New Realms Maps

It’s been some time since we last checked in on new maps for Minecraft Realms, so let’s get into it! Here are a bevy of new adventure maps, survival starters, and minigames ready for you to play right now! Half Heart Race by Team Wooloo Since the 2015 Minecon speedruns, it seems there’s been a bit more interest in going really fast in Minecraft. This map lets you do that with up to ten players! Are you up to it, with just a half of a heart of health? For an overview of the challenges you’ll face, take a look at this handy map panorama. Jump Arena by NateT_Bird Jump Arena is rooted in Minecraft, but feels like its own game. Custom textures and command blocks add new features from double-jumping to confetti guns. Run, jump, earn...

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Check out the Minecraft.net beta

Hello! Some time this year we’re planning on launching a new, upgraded, Minecraft.net. It will include fancy features, community content, and extra special secret stuff that we don’t want to share quite yet. It’s going to be spectacular. But that’s some time in the future. For now, we’re testing out an early redesign of Minecraft.net. It’ll include bugs, typos, and placeholder bits and pieces that might not work as you’d expect. It doesn’t show off our awesome merch. There is a high chance it’ll explode into a cloud of pixels. Still, we’re happy for you to have a poke around. You can log in, change your skin, and do most of the things that the current Minecraft.net supports. Soon we’ll be setting up a place for you to send us...

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Minecraft snapshot 16w05a

This weeks snapshot contains only few fixed for bugs reported on the bug tracker. We started looking at the Realms integration to make sure everything is up to date with the changes that were introduced during the lifetime of the 1.8.x versions. We also started automating more of our internal workflows. It doesn’t make much sense to mention that here, because it’s nothing you can see in the game and it only makes our lives easier as developers, but for the sake of having a slighly longer post this week I decided to keep it in here. Notable changes: Fixed some bugs Tweaked boats a bit more Hidden a small recipe change Endermites or now 2.44% more happy than before, especially in boats Bugs fixed in this snapshot: [REDACTED]...

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Cobalt now available to download

Cobalt is available to download for Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Steam for Windows. It costs $19.99 / £15:99 / €19.99. Stop reading this and download it right now! Still here? OK - here’s some information to help you make a more informed decision. Our new launch trailer! A copy-and-pasted description from our Steam store page “Forget everything you’ve learned about combat. Cobalt’s slo-mo mechanic lets you perform moves that other games can’t comprehend. Discover the secrets of a distant colony in a cosmic campaign, take on challenges and rule the leaderboards, or face off against others in local and online multiplayer.” A press-release type thing STOCKHOLM, Sweden, January 2nd, 2016. Leading developer of video games and reasonable...

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Cobalt is out tomorrow! Learn the basics today!

HELLO! It’s an exciting time for fans of good video games. Cobalt will be released on Steam for PC, Xbox One, and Xbox 360 tomorrow! It’s going to be glorious! I’ve written about why Cobalt is so great in a previous post, but for now, I’m going to let Oxeye’s series of tutorial videos speak for themselves. I’ll be back in the morning with a new trailer and a big bag of HYPE! Owen - @bopogamel and an excited Oxeye Game Studio. Continue reading...

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Minecraft snapshot 16w04a

Yet another week has passed, lots of bugs have been inspected, turned around and hopefully fixed. We’re inching ever closer to 1.9 and our focus is on stability, performance and the remaining polish. This week’s snapshot is all about boats! We did another iteration on them so please have a swim with them (watch it, they can sink!). As always we’d like to thank everyone who is reporting bugs, testing the snapshots and sending us feedback on our changes. While we get closer to 1.9 this will become more and more important. Please continue doing it and thanks to you all! Notable changes: Boats are 7% moar boatier. Boats. Boats can sink. Boats > lily pads. Did someone mention boats? Updated sounds, try standing in the rain! Bugs...

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Pocket Edition Beta 0.14.0 available for Android

Hello! We are back with a delicious beta test of Minecraft: Pocket Edition, available for download for Android devices. Continuing to the second phase of discovering Redstone with Droppers, Hoppers and Dispensers - just to mention a few! Currently the beta test is available to Google Play Store users, but keep in mind that this update will be coming to Minecraft: Pocket Edition and the Minecraft: Windows 10 Edition beta in the near future. Here’s a quick explanation of how to join and leave the test group. We strongly recommend you make backups of your existing worlds first. You’ll need three things to join the test: An Android device that can run Minecraft Pocket Edition. Minecraft: Pocket Edition Android purchased from Google...

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Minecraft snapshot 16w03a

Here is a new snapshot. We made it. For you. So that you can see what we’ve been working on most recently and tell us what you think about it. Nothing in it is final, everything could change before Minecraft 1.9 is relased, but most things won’t. Some things that were broken in the previous snapshot (16w02a) are not fixed or changed back in this snapshot, because we had to focus on few very important bigger tasks to work on before we can go back working on smaller changes. This is nothing to worry about and perfectly normal so close to finishing a release, so don’t get upset if you see things that are still in the same state as last week. We’ll take care of them soon and definitely before we call Minecraft 1.9 done. Once again, thanks...

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Announcing Minecraft: Education Edition

Hello! News from a slightly different, arguably smarter, place today. We’re announcing Minecraft: Education Edition. Of course, every Minecraft player learns essential life-skills like tree-punching and good Creeper-defence but, when used in the right way, Minecraft can help people around the world to learn lots more. Over the past few years, educators around the world have been using Minecraft to explore subjects that might not spring to mind when you think of our b-based game. Since 2011, MinecraftEdu - a version of Minecraft built for the classroom - has been used in over 40 countries. Lots of people have learned loads of things since then. Microsoft has acquired MinecraftEdu and is building upon its proven success to create...

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Play BET ON COBALT! Honestly, it’s great

The code-wizards at Oxeye Games Studio have outdone themselves. We present… BET ON COBALT. Team Strike is one of Cobalt’s most intricate modes. And it makes for a fantastic spectator sport, even when it’s played by BOTS. With that in mind we’ve set up a two week twitch stream where teams of bots battle each other to the death. TWO WEEKS of awesome. But what’s a sport without a little wager and real-life prizes? Pointless, that’s what. HOW DO I BET ON BET ON COBALT? This is where things get really exciting. BET ON COBALT gives you the chance to bet Volts (which have no real money value) on the outcome of each match. you start with 100 volts. It’s up to you whether you keep things simple and just vote on the winning team of each...

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Minecraft: Story Mode coming to Wii U this Thursday

Hello! I bring even more exciting news for Wii U owners. Just a few months ago you got Minecraft, and now I’m delighted to announce that Minecraft: Story Mode is coming to Wii U this Thursday, January 21st. The Wii U version will feature off-TV play and mirroring for the Wii’s GamePad controller, so you can play when someone else is doing less-fun things on the TV. You can even use the nifty touch interface if joysticks and buttons ain’t your bag. The first episode will cost $4.99 or equivalent, but you can also buy a season pass for $19.99. That way, you’ll get access to episodes 2-5 as they become available to download. Minecraft: Story Mode is an episodic game series from Telltale Games. You play as Jesse who can be a male or...

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Cobalt coming to Xbox and Steam on February 2nd

Hello! I bring exciting news! We’ve locked down Cobalt’s release date. It’s coming to Xbox 360, Xbox One, and Steam for PC on February 2nd. It’ll cost $19.99 or equivalent. I am slightly biased, but it’s worth mentioning that Cobalt is an excellent video game. Your experience may vary, but I’ve been playing the multiplayer for over three years, and I still think it’s great. Why? Read on for an impartial breakdown of Cobalt’s awesomeness. Note that Cobalt is developed by Oxeye Game Studio and published by Mojang. I work for Mojang. ROLLING Rolling things in real life isn’t usually that much fun. Well, it’s kinda fun. But rolling in Cobalt is extremely fun, especially when you do it mid-battle. Time a manoeuvre correctly and you...

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Minecraft snapshot 16w02a

A new year has started and it’s time to celebrate it with a new Minecraft snapshot. The list of things we want to finish before the 1.9 release is getting shorter, more bugs are getting fixed, fewer new bugs are getting introduced. Thanks to everyone who is reporting bugs, testing the snapshots and sending us feedback our changes. You are all helping to make 1.9 awesome. Notable changes: Fixed more bugs Less rendering issues with glow effects More balancing of the combat related mechanics Tamed artificial enderdragons (artificial means /summon) Changed everything, then changed it back Bugs fixed in this snapshot: [Bug MC-779] - Mobs are displayed outside of their spawner [Bug MC-1072] - No Translation for “Air” in the superflat...

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