Are Game Drops Right for Minecraft?

The way Minecraft releases updates is changing; we're now getting 'game drops' which are smaller, more frequent updates. Is this new system right for the game or were bigger, deeper updates better?

(This is an affiliate link. I may earn a small commission on sign-ups)

[Mat]

The comments make me believe not many remember that Sarc made a face-reveal over 9 years ago ^^

[slightlyniceron]

As a Data Pack Creator I am so not sure what to think of more frequent updates. On the one hand it is very cool to get a somewhat constant flow of new additions but it is very hard to keep up with all the changes and even harder for people who are not that deep into minecraft to even make sense of what mods/data packs/plugins goes with what MC version. I do think that the massive changes in the backend will eventually be less over time but if not I honestly rather take one big update with weekly snapshots throughout the year.

[Fidgtt]

This game drop period seems like a good time to add in popular but smaller community suggestions, such as the lost mob vote mobs, graplling hooks and revamped combat

[ajdude]

What worries me about the Shallower vs. Deeper content comparison is that, if these drops continue with such shallow content (like all the mobs added by mob votes - which do one thing and one thing only, much like how the Pale Garden is just...the creaking, amber and a wood type) Minecraft will sort of lose its core identity under a blanket of fluff content. Look at mods like RLCraft or Orespawn which add a truckload of content to Minecraft where you literally can't turn a corner without encountering something non-vanilla. I worry that 'drops' will turn Minecraft into something like this - tons of one-note single-use disposable bits of content that lack the actual depth that going spelunking for Iron Ore or exploring the world for a Village or temple have.

[dugoose]

I REALLY like how you described the recent updates, they aren't bad they're just not updates to make players stick.

[greenstonegecko]

Absolutely agree that the updates do not have a "come back to play" feeling...

Been playing this game for 13 years... I just haven't been excited about Minecraft since 1.17

[Benseer]

I don't know too much about Minecraft modding, but it seems like this would be a massive pain in the ass for modders if they have to constantly work on patches instead of new content. I also think it's a weird choice to make the updates smaller and less impactful on the community.

[ispy]

Minecraft has a massive bloat problem. Most new things added to the game aren’t properly integrated into the game properly. Mojang seriously needs to dedicate at least half of every new update to improving what’s already in the game. There’s so many useless mobs and things like copper are still nearly useless if you’re not going to build with it.

[clothieredward]

I remember TheMisterEpic saying something that summed up very well why modern updates and especially these drops don't stick the landing as much as they used to:
"It's very easy to get hyped for a Nether Update, A Cave Update, or the warden and the deep dark. It's much harder to get hyped for camels and the cherry blossom biome, features which you may not even interact with when playing."
Updates such as 1.13-1.18 do much better because they commit to a theme and expand upon it with as much depth as possible. However, with updates such as 1.20 and the pale garden drop, the majority of the content feels shallow and basic since the majority of new features are only for building and decoration, making the updates forgettable.

[jakest]

I've said before and I'll keep saying it - snapshots may be useful for bugfixes but they kill the hype cycle. When an update finally releases, there's no reason to play it because there's nothing new to experience that we didn't see in snapshots and youtube videos. I'd imagine a lot of peoples' interaction with the game isn't even through the game, but through videos of the game.

The April Fools updates are what every update should be in concept - something that appears out of nowhere and makes you want to go into the game to explore and discover the new features, not just a changelog every week that adds one or two things and you find out exactly how they work through a Youtuber. Imagine if the Creaking had dropped out of nowhere and we had to figure out the solution to beating it, rather than being told *exactly how to* in Minecraft Life and youtube videos.

Bring it back to the old days of mystery drops, secret friday updates, not being told all the features and having to boot up the game to find out yourself.

[Mr_Mimestamp]

6:40, okay good, it’s not just me! It’s so weird to have to memorize what features are going to be in the next drop, what are going to be pushed until the next full update, what’s staying an “experimental feature” that might be in development limbo for years (looking at you, bundles).

[ngabel]

I think it depends on the type of content in the updates / drops. Tricky Trials has a very explicit theme and Mojang did a good job giving depth to the trial chambers. On the other hand, Trails and Tales feels like a bunch of random features slapped together, and I think it could have actually benefited from the drop system. Features like bamboo planks were finished early in the development cycle, but still arbitrarily locked behind snapshots because other unrelated features were still in the works. Segmenting the update process may have even given greater attention to features like the sniffer and the camel. As is, the pale garden has a lot of unrealized potential. Whether or not that potential would have been realized in a big update is impossible to know. I suppose that by June, when big updates usually released, we'll have a good idea if the past year of drops have been a net positive or negative for Minecraft.

[EmdyMC]

One thing I like about the game drop system is that it allows them to make more behind the scenes changes. There have been some incredible changes to datapacks, resource packs, mapmaker tools, game optimization and more which cannot be understated. In the classic update system these wouldn't be possible since they take a lot of time away from the theme development. With the drops the devs can afford to work on more drastic and much needed background changes even if they won't be seen very well because the "shallower" updates don't take up so much time and energy. Once they are happy with the codebase I'm sure they'll move to grander updates as the current codebase slightly holds them back from big future proof changes

[VoidMamaFrost]

This format might be hell on mod development, especially if it messes with stuff mods rely on. It's probably going to result in more mods getting "version locked" as if it messes up mods with every drop, its going to beat the initiative for keeping mods up to date getting beat out of them, very quickly in fact.

[Eligriv_maitre_constructeur]

Before I watch the video, here is my current opinion in case you change my mind :
I really like drops, and I know mojang will from time to times release big updates.
If it allows them to be more creative, then be it. As a player I am thanksfull we are still getting free updates after 15years. And now multiples a year.

[Surfboarder]

I don't mind this system if it means we actually get things like the minecart improvements, the combat rework, an inventory overhaul, and then the bigger updates, maybe every 2-3 years, can be revolutionary updates: A complete end overhaul, a magic, (potions, enchanting, beacons, etc) overhaul, a big farming update, etc.

[just__jt]

I think there are benefits to both, but I rather have bigger updates over a longer period. We haven’t seen a “big update” yet so I do have concerns that we might never get that type of content again. But with smaller more focused dev cycles I hope they actually take advantage of it and finally do stuff the community has wanted like parity for example, a drop seems like the perfect way to do that.

[redyoshicraft]

I think Drops will ultimately prove beneficial for the game, as while the big cohesive "Updates" were really good, they're also limiting in a way.
Not every idea is necessarily going to fit seamlessly into a theme, such as Pale Garden currently being developed. I believe that's largely what happened with 1.19 & 1.20.
When they have one-off ideas they'd like to add, they don't have to make it fit into a larger picture anymore, and when they have larger more expansive ideas (such as, I dunno, and End Update?) they'll put it all in one bigger, more impactful package.

[Lordodragonss]

If smaller updates will FINALLY polish existing biomes - I am in.
My main problem with Minecraft is a lot of stuff just...exists while IMO older approach unlocking new biomes = unlocking new tech is way better.
The newly relased pale forest for example - I litteraly want to go there to take a sampling and few flowers. The updates lack connection with rest of the world.
IMO the pale saplings should not drop from trees- you should get SNIFFER to dig them out. Not only if that would elevate Sniffer asa mob, but also made the new wood harder to obtain.

[TheletterR.]

early!!!
also your face is cool but please dont ditch your old editing style it was literally why i subscribed