Minecraft is one of the most successful and well-known games of all time, and has steadily evolved into a powerful brand made up of toys, books, merchandise, and more. Mojang Studios has also expanded the Minecraft universe into other video genres with the release of titles like Minecraft Dungeons. Next, the legendary creators of Minecraft turn to the action-strategy genre.
Minecraft Legends is the upcoming Minecraft spin-off title, and it’s unlike anything we’ve seen from Mojang Studios so far. Here’s everything we know, including what the game is like, where you can watch the trailers, and when you can expect to play.
What is Minecraft Legends?
Minecraft Legends is an upcoming action-strategy title set in the Minecraft universe, developed in a partnership between Mojang Studios and Blackbird Interactive. Mojang Studios has long expressed an interest in creating new Minecraft experiences, and Blackbird Interactive is an experienced developer of strategy games, making the duo a suitable match to bring Minecraft Legends to life as another excellent Xbox game. .
During Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase 2022, Mojang Studios took the stage to announce Minecraft Legends with a cinematic trailer, which also showed off a handful of games towards the end. We know that Minecraft Legends tells the unlikely story of all the mobs and people from the Overworld dimension in Minecraft coming together to fight the invading forces of piglins swarming from the terrifying Nether.
Players will take control of an unnamed hero to unite the Overworld and lead his forces in a furious war against the invading Nether corruption. Minecraft Legends will differ drastically from its Minecraft brethren when it comes to gameplay and story, though it must remain true to Mojang Studios’ philosophies and the nature of Minecraft as a franchise.
Where can I watch Minecraft Legends trailers?
Minecraft Legends Reveal Trailer
What is the gameplay in Minecraft Legends?
So far before its release, we don’t know everything about the gameplay in Minecraft Legends. With that said, we can glean a lot from the limited gameplay footage we have and information provided by Mojang Studios on the Minecraft Legends part of their site.
Minecraft Legends is a unique action-strategy game that combines elements of third-person shooter games with real-time strategy titles. At its core, Minecraft Legends is a strategy game that challenges players to command armies in real time to emerge victorious in fast-paced battles. However, you will be in the middle of the action, becoming the center of each battle alongside your forces.
You’ll also explore a new interpretation of Minecraft Overworld, discovering valuable resources, peaceful settlement in villages, and more. Minecraft Legends will task you with defending these settlements, fighting hordes of piglins, seeking out new allies to add to your army, building outposts, and more.
As mentioned above, we don’t know much about the details. Information is sparse, but we can see that players will be spending a lot of time in Minecraft Legends atop a trusty mount and will be able to command nearby friendly mobs with various commands. Minecraft Legends also has its own third-person combat mechanic, though we haven’t seen much more than the usual swinging of a sword.
We know that Minecraft Legends will support online co-op for its campaign experience, allowing players to join in with their friends. Minecraft Dungeons and Minecraft offer great online co-op experiences, and we hope Minecraft Legends does the same. The game will also feature a competitive multiplayer mode, although we know absolutely nothing about what this mysterious mode could entail.
Hopefully, we’ll learn a lot more about Minecraft Legends and its genre-blending gameplay as we get closer to the game’s final release, whenever possible.
What is the release date for Minecraft Legends?
Minecraft Legends was revealed during the Xbox & Bethesda Games Showcase, which was strictly focused on games coming “within the next 12 months.” With a generic 2023 release window attached to the game, it’s reasonable to assume that Minecraft Legends will arrive sometime before June 2023. Of course, plans could absolutely change from time to time. A year is a long time for video game development.
We’ll be sure to update this section as soon as we know more about the exact release date for Minecraft Legends.
What platforms get Minecraft Legends?
Mojang Studios maintains a strong “cross-platform” philosophy and prides itself on being approachable and accessible to a wide range of gamers across all demographics, geographies, and platforms. With Minecraft Dungeons, Mojang Studios committed to this philosophy, despite being technically part of Xbox Game Studios.
Some have raised concerns that Microsoft could push for Mojang Studios to change their ways with Minecraft Legends, but those fears are unfounded. Minecraft Legends is fully cross-platform, as is likely for any future title in the Minecraft franchise. Crossplay support has yet to be confirmed, though I expect Minecraft Legends to add it, even if it comes in a post-launch update (like with Minecraft Dungeons).
Minecraft Legends will launch simultaneously on Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One, PS5, PS4, Switch, and PC on the Microsoft Store and Steam. Minecraft Legends is also a day one launch title for Xbox Game Pass, PC Game Pass, and Xbox Cloud Gaming, making it easy to play on any device via the cloud.