Minecraft 1.17 update: Expected release date and planned changes

Minecraft has evolved to become a vastly superior version of the game that it was at launch. Its procedurally-generated worlds has been a great success with fans, and this title has managed to reach massive heights.

Minecraft continues to grow in popularity, which is rare for games of its scale, as they plateau and get stagnant after an extended period at the top. But not Minecraft, as the player base has been kept engaged and rewarded for its long-term commitment in the form of content updates.

At Minecraft Live 2020, Mojang announced its plans going into the next year and what it has planned for its game. The 1.17 update for Minecraft, dubbed "Caves and Cliffs", will be focusing on the generation of mountains and caves.

Minecraft 1.17 update: All the details that we know

Mojang included a comprehensive First Look for the new update for Minecraft during the event and covered a lot of ground. However, so far, there has been no exact date for the release of the update.

According to Mojang, Minecraft 1.17 will be available in mid-2021. Therefore, fans can expect the update around June or July. The First Look into Caves and Cliffs included details about the planned changes for this game, such as:

World generation

Caves

• Revamped to generate bigger and more adventurous caves.

A picture of the local water levels in use forming an underground lake or ocean shown in Minecraft Live 2020

Local water levels

• A new underground water level generation aspect has been introduced, which allows for certain areas of a world to generate a specified water level different from that of another location (such as sea level).
• Allows for the generation of larger underground lakes and connections to oceans.
• Allows for the generation of many underground waterfalls.
• Allows for underwater entrances.

The preview of updated mountain generation given during Minecraft Live 2020

Mountains

• Height dependent generation.
• Revamped, featuring some new small spruce trees on the slopes and ice, or packed ice, above the peaks.
• Contain snow blocks, goats, and a new form of snow called powder snow, which is said to be "snowier than snow".

Ore veins

• To be revamped, possibly to balance the generation of copper.
• Some stone appears a little different, and when that stone is mined, more of the ore should be found behind it.

(Source: Minecraft gamepedia)