A new Minecraft special answers questions about the 'Caves and Cliffs Update' and Minecraft Live 2021

Minecraft Caves and Cliffs Update Image
Minecraft Caves and Cliffs Update Image (Image credit: Mojang Studios)

What you need to know

  • 1.17 'Caves and Cliffs Update' Part One is right around the corner, and is practically finalized for release.
  • Before launch day, Mojang Studios has released a new Minecraft special to answer some critical community questions.
  • Not only do we learn more about the 'Caves and Cliffs Update,' including Part Two, we also learn more about Minecraft's future.
  • The 'Caves and Cliffs Update' will span two version numbers, and Minecraft Live 2021 has been confirmed for later this year.

Minecraft has been incredibly busy recently, as Mojang Studios scrambles to finalize the massive 1.17 Caves and Cliffs Update Part One for release on June 8, 2021. Today, Mojang Studios has dropped a new Minecraft special which answers a ton of questions from the Minecraft community about the Caves and Cliffs Update Parts One and Two, the future of Minecraft, and more.

Following earlier specials that specifically talked about the blocks and mobs coming in 1.17 Caves and Cliffs Update Part One, the latest Minecraft special answers a wide range of questions from the Minecraft community. It's worth watching if you're interested, but the highlights from the special include:

  • Confirmation that Caves and Cliffs Part One is Minecraft version 1.17, while Part Two will fall under the 1.18 version number
  • In Part Two of the Caves and Cliffs Update, biomes will become "3D," meaning different biomes can potentially sit on top of each other (like lush caves sitting under a different biome)
  • Mojang Studios is working hard on "blending" old worlds with the new world generation in 1.18 Caves and Cliffs Update Part Two
  • Minecraft Live 2021 is happening at the end of the year, and will reveal Mojang's future plans for Minecraft

It's exciting to know that, while Mojang Studios' focus is primarily on making the Caves and Cliffs Update as awesome as possible, they also already have ambitious plans for what comes next for the world's largest game. Minecraft Live 2020 was a huge event, so it'll be exciting to tune into Minecraft Live 2021 and peek at what Mojang Studios is working on behind the curtain.

In case you missed it, earlier today Mojang released Release Candidate 1 for 1.17 Caves and Cliffs Update Part One. As long as Mojang doesn't encounter any other major problems, this snapshot could actually be the Caves and Cliffs Update we get on June 8, which will add three new mobs, up to 91 new blocks, and lots of other improvements and changes.

Minecraft is one of the best Xbox games around, to the point where we even have a list of best Minecraft merch, toys, and gifts for the millions of Minecraft fans out there.

Zachary Boddy
Staff Writer

Zachary Boddy (They / Them) is a Staff Writer for Windows Central, primarily focused on covering the latest news in tech and gaming, the best Xbox and PC games, and the most interesting Windows and Xbox hardware. They have been gaming and writing for most of their life starting with the original Xbox, and started out as a freelancer for Windows Central and its sister sites in 2019. Now a full-fledged Staff Writer, Zachary has expanded from only writing about all things Minecraft to covering practically everything on which Windows Central is an expert, especially when it comes to Microsoft. You can find Zachary on Twitter @BoddyZachary.