Does the Minecraft End Poem have a hidden meaning? Story behind game's ending

Minecraft's ending hasn't changed in any major way since the game's official release. This is when both the End dimension and Minecraft's ender dragon final boss were added to the game. Once defeated, the dragon drops a huge amount of XP, and the player is free to enter the portal. The first time the portal is entered, however, players are met with the game's mysterious ending poem.

While there isn't an official meaning to the poem, written by Julian Gough, found within the end credits, at least that Mojang has confirmed, there is no shortage of fan theories and ideas, the most interesting of which are detailed below.

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The Minecraft end is a literal dream

The End is a Dream... Minecraft byu/Situoder inGameTheorists

This interpretation of the ending poem sees the poem as a literal series of events that happens when the player enters the portal. The player is taken by these two mysterious beings, or otherwise can hear them converse, before being forced to wake up from Minecraft's End dimension—a literal dream—and returned to the waking Overworld.

There is also some evidence and additional speculation posed in the version of the theory posted by user u/Situoder, including the fact that players can't sleep in the End and the dimension's flat lighting matches how our brains see in dreams. One of the best pieces of evidence provided is the fact that phantoms cannot spawn in the End, presumably because the player is already asleep.

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Minecraft is a distraction

The End poem is a reminder that for as pretty as the game is, none of it is real (Image via Mojang Studios)

Some members of the community take the poem at face value. It is literally the voices of the game telling you that Minecraft is a distraction from the real world or the bigger dream. When being told to wake up, it isn't the player being given a loose piece of world lore; it's instead a literal message: the game is over, take a break, wake up, and smell the real roses rather than Minecraft's pixelated flowers.

The poem even references the feelings of air in one's lungs, the movement of one's fingers, and the weight of gravity pushing the body down—all things that immersion within distracts from.

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Sleeping Gods in Minecraft

Who are the God's we see in the End Poem? byu/CountDoDo15 inminecraftlore

One of the fan-favorite interpretations of the poem is that the two beings are some kind of gods or mythical figures within the game itself. Two of the most common figures referenced are the game's original creator, Notch, often deified by the community, and Jeb, commenting on the journey the player has taken to reach this point, as well as reminding them to stop and appreciate life.

However, another theory is that Minecraft's Herobrine and Notch represent the dichotomy between good and evil within the game. There's also a third theory that they are just two unnamed gods waiting and watching the player's journey.

The idea that these beings are higher-level entities comes from language in the poem, such as "It has not yet achieved the highest level." This implies that players have yet another step, another ending to reach before they are truly done.

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The Universe Itself in Minecraft

Comment byu/CountDoDo15 from discussion inminecraftlore

Another of the most widely agreed upon interpretations of the poem is that the two entities conversing are not distinct beings but two personalities of the universe itself, encouraging the player to wake up from the game. This explains the language referencing allowing one's limbs to return as they fade out of their immersion and back into reality. However, there is an implication of more.

Players not only need to metaphorically wake up from the game, but reality itself, which is called the long dream. As if confirmation of some sort of life after life that is entered once this dream ends, the implication is enough to cause an existential crisis.