In this guide, we’ll break down everything we know about Minecraft 1.20, including when you can access these features in the Snapshot and Preview branches, and any new mobs and new blocks set to arrive in the Minecraft 1.20 update.
Minecraft 1.20 expected release date
Minecraft 1.20 will launch in 2023. However, you can access the new Minecraft 1.20 content as of Wednesday October 19 2022 by accessing a new Java Snapshot or Bedrock Beta. Those on Minecraft Java edition can access the new Minecraft 1.20 Snapshot by opening the Minecraft Launcher, pressing the arrow next to the Play button, and selecting the latest Snapshot. Make sure to activate Experimental Features to ensure that Minecraft 1.20 content is active in your world. Those on Minecraft Bedrock edition must also open the Minecraft Launcher, and then head to the Minecraft Preview tab. Install the Preview branch and then make sure to activate Experimental Features in your world. Regardless of your version, the method to activate Experimental Features is the same. When you create a new world, look under Game Settings and toggle on Experimental Features. You can also activate Experimental Features in an existing world by heading to settings and looking for the Experiments section. The team has not yet shared an exact release date beyond 2023, but we will update you as soon as we hear more. The previous major update, The Wild Update (which was previously dubbed Minecraft 1.19), released in June 2022. It was announced at Minecraft Live 2021, so we can probably expect a similar release window for Minecraft 1.20.
What’s coming in Minecraft 1.20?
Minecraft 1.20 is aiming to make Minecraft feel “Minecraft-ier”, with the developers focusing on expanding player creativity, self-expression, and intrinsic motivation. Essentially, that means Minecraft 1.20 should inspire Minecraft players to be more creative, while making them feel more at home in the game. Below, you’ll find a list of everything coming in Minecraft 1.20. If you want to skip to the parts that excite you most, you can use the links below to jump down the page:
Minecraft 1.20 new mobs Minecraft 1.20 new blocks
Minecraft 1.20 new mobs: Camels and the Sniffer
Mojang has confirmed that Minecraft 1.20 will have at least two new mobs: Camels and the Sniffer. You can learn more about both of these new mobs coming in Minecraft 1.20 below.
Camels
Camels are a new mount that you can ride in Minecraft 1.20, but there are two huge differences to the standard horse. Firstly, Camels have a dash feature that allows them to quickly cross chasms and ravines without falling and taking damage. Secondly, two players can ride a Camel at once, with the back player able to aim and fire a bow at any nearby enemies. This makes them great for going on adventures, as you can have one player focus on riding while another defends them from any hostile mobs that appear along the way. To breed Camels, you must feed them a piece of cactus. They will then enter love mode and make a baby Camel. Cactus is commonly found in the desert, where you will also encounter the new Camel mob in Minecraft 1.20.
Sniffer
The Sniffer is the winner of the Minecraft Live 2022 mob vote, earning over half of the total votes cast. The Sniffer will arrive in 2023 as part of Minecraft 1.20, but there are some details that we know now. The Sniffer is an ancient mob that’s long been lost in the world of Minecraft. However, you can hatch one for yourself by delving into underwater ruins and retrieving a Sniffer Egg. While it’s not clear if we’ll need to perform a specific action to hatch Sniffer Eggs, we do know that once hatched, Sniffers will seek out and dig up Ancient Seeds. They’ll presumably do that by sniffing with their nose. Upon retrieving an Ancient Seed from a Sniffer, you can plant it to grow new types of plants and flowers.
Minecraft 1.20 new blocks: Bamboo, Hanging Signs, and Chiselled Bookshelf
Minecraft 1.20 will have a new Bamboo wood type, along with the Hanging Signs and Chiselled Bookshelf blocks. You can learn more about these new blocks below.
Bamboo
Bamboo is the new wood type coming in Minecraft 1.20. You can use it to craft any blocks that you can usually craft with wood, such as doors, stairs, and trapdoors, and it has a gorgeous new design. However, you can also use Bamboo to craft the new Bamboo Mosaic block, which functions similarly to a plank but has two large rectangles on each face. The Bamboo Mosaic block is one of the new options that players have to show their artistic flair in Minecraft 1.20. Finally, you can also use Bamboo to create a Raft, which is a Bamboo variant of the boat block. The Raft functions identically to the Boat, but it has a new aesthetic that Mojang say should help players feel more adventurous as they explore the world.
Hanging Signs
Hanging Signs are another new block type coming in Minecraft 1.20. However, they should feel familiar in practice, as Hanging Signs are used like normal Signs to write messages, notes, or otherwise mark things around your world. You can craft a Hanging Sign using Stripped Logs and Chains. You can then place it in three different ways to create some subtly different variants of the Hanging Sign.
When hung from a wide block, such as planks, the Hanging Sign will have two chains hanging vertically on the top two corners. When hung from a narrow block, such as a fence post, the Hanging Sign’s chains will attach to the sign diagonally. You can also place Hanging Signs from the side of a block, which will make them stick out on a small rod extending from the block.
Chiselled Bookshelf
The final new block that’s currently announced for Minecraft 1.20 is the Chiselled Bookshelf, and it’s also the most exciting. The Chiselled Bookshelf allows you to properly store your books, rather than ditching them all in a chest. You can then pull off individual books by hovering over them, so you don’t need to hop into an inventory menu. Perhaps the best part for us nerds obsessed with building new house ideas, though, is the ability to interact with the Chiselled Bookshelf using Redstone. You can use Redstone to make the Chiselled Bookshelf remember the last book that you interacted with, which you can then use to open the bookshelf and reveal a secret passage or room in your base. That means you can make hidden dungeons! Cue evil laugh! That wraps up everything we know about Minecraft 1.20, but there’s plenty more Minecraft on the way! Mojang also announced seven new default skins at Minecraft Live 2022, which are set to arrive later this year. They also revealed the new Fauna Faire update for Minecraft Dungeons, and showed off new Minecraft Legends gameplay. If all the Minecraft mayhem has you itching to jump back into a blocky world, take a look at our list of the best Minecraft 1.19 seeds and the best Minecraft 1.19 shaders.
