Minecraft 1.18 Experimental Snapshot 1 for Java Edition: Full list of changes revealed 

After a long wait, Mojang has finally added massive mountains to Minecraft. This feature was already available to Bedrock players in a beta version. But now, Java players can also experience the glory of new mountain biomes.

It's just been a month since the release of the Caves and Cliffs update Part 1. Developers are already working towards adding new features for the second update. Mojang has officially revealed the new world generation in Java Edition through an Experimental Snapshot release.

The 1.18 Experimental Snapshot changes the overworld terrain generation of Minecraft. In older snapshots, Mojang had added new cave generation but that still required changes and improvements, and the cave generation has been improved in this snapshot.

The brand new world generation for the next version of Minecraft is now available for testing in an experimental snapshot. Check it out! https://t.co/E2o6nbbBGV

— slicedlime (@slicedlime) July 13, 2021

However, caves aren't the main attraction of the Experimental Snapshot. Mojang has finally added mountain biomes to the natural generation of Minecraft. Developers have improved the terraforming to make mountains look more natural.

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Minecraft 1.18 Experimental Snapshot 1 for Java Edition

The 1.18 Experimental Snapshot is not just about adding new cave generation and mountain biomes. In previous snapshots and beta releases, both caves and mountains didn't fit well with the generation of other structures and biomes.

Developers have tried to fix these issues in the 1.18 Experimental Snapshot. New mountains and caves now blend in with other biomes in a more natural way. Here is the official list of changes announced by Mojang:

Changes in 1.18 Experimental Snapshot

• New world height and depth
• New mountain biomes (lofty peaks, snowcapped peaks, grove, meadow, and snowy slopes)
• New cave generation (cheese, spaghetti, and noodle caves)
• Local water levels and lava levels in the underground
• New cave biomes generate naturally underground and inside mountains (lush caves, dripstone caves)
• Natural variation in terrain shape and elevation, independently from biomes. For example, forests and deserts could form up on a hill without needing a special biome just for that.
• New ore distribution
• Large ore veins
• Integrated mountains, caves, and cave entrances
• Monsters will only spawn in complete darkness

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Things to note about Minecraft 1.18 Experimental Snapshot

This snapshot is completely experimental and different from the regular snapshots Mojang releases. Any new features in the 1.18 snapshot are subject to change and do not represent the final version.

One of the main reasons for the release of the 1.18 Experimental Snapshot is to obtain feedback from the Minecraft community. Mojang generally responds to feedback from players and makes the necessary changes to the game.

News will come back on Thursday after 2-week vacation.So, it's happening soon?! 👀 pic.twitter.com/BTFpZdfd9f

— Minecraft News (News will come back on Thursday) (@UA_Minecraft_EN) July 13, 2021

Players cannot upgrade any older worlds to this snapshot. Worlds created in this Experimental Snapshot can only be played within it. Since it's an experimental release, there are a couple of performance issues and navigating in this Minecraft snapshot may be a challenge.