In June 2022, Mojang made a huge announcement – the Overworld is transforming in its biggest way yet through the release of Minecraft Legends. The world’s best-selling game is tapping into the strategy-action genre, giving players an entirely new universe to explore.
While we’re at least a few months away from the release, we have quite a bit of insight into Minecraft Legends and what it will look like. So let’s go through everything we know so far.
Minecraft Legends Release Date
Minecraft Legends still doesn’t have an official release date. However, we have some idea on when to expect it.
Mojang announced the game at the Xbox Showcase, which took place in June 2022. Microsoft noted that the event largely focused on the games that will be released within the next year. With this in mind, Minecraft Legends should see the light of day during the first half of 2023.
When it launches, the game will be available on various platforms.
- PC Game Pass
- Xbox Game Pass
- Windows
- Xbox One
- Xbox Series X/S
- PlayStation
- Nintendo Switch
- Steam
Much like the original Minecraft game, most players will likely play Minecraft Legends on their PC. If you want to be ready for the release, have a look at the game’s minimum system requirements.
Operating System: Windows 10, 8, or 7 (64-bit; some features not available on Windows 7 and 8)
Processor: Intel Core i5 2.8GHz or equivalent
Memory: 8 GB RAM
Graphics: AMD Radeon HD 7870 or NVIDIA GeForce GTX 660
DirectX: Version 11
Storage: 8 GB space
Minecraft Legends Trailer
Mojang released the first trailer for Minecraft Legends, which you can find on their website and also on YouTube. At this point, we only have a glimpse into the gameplay and what everything will look like.
The trailer features an animated cinematic, much like other trailers for Minecraft projects. It introduces players to a new world in which they must gather their former enemies to fight Piglins.
This means you’ll unite all unlikely companions of the Overworld – zombies, creepers, and skeletons – to stand up to Piglins and kick them back to the Nether they came from.
Now, if you look closely, you’ll notice that the trailer reveals quite a bit about the gameplay. Let’s dive into it a bit deeper.
Minecraft Legends Gameplay
The core idea of Minecraft Legends is simple – enraged Piglins are taking over the Overworld, and you must lead your troops to a hard battle against them. Otherwise, Piglins will spread their corruption over your settlements.
The nitty-gritty of how exactly you’ll fight Piglins is unclear, except for a few details. First, the trailer shows the hero riding a horse, which fits into what Mojang said about the game: players will spend most of their time on their horse as they prepare for various battles.
We can also see the hero’s mobs following them as they wave the blue flag calling their troops to arms and getting them into position. The point of view switches as needed, and players can use the pulled-back view to organize their troops. Then, there’s a closer, third-person view allowing them to focus on the battle.
The mechanics are similar to those of Minecraft Dungeon, though there are many differences and improvements. First, there are new mobs, like armored skeletons and zombie farmers. There are also small golems, coming in ranged and melee varieties. The creators highlight Cobblestone Golems as especially effective at destroying various enemy structures. On the other hand, Plank Golems spit out projectiles, making them suitable for your ranged unit.
As you can imagine, the enemy will have a few tricks up their sleeve as well. According to Mojang, Piglins will be split into different hordes, each having a unique set of abilities you’ll have to fight against. They’ll also have different Piglin units, such as the announced “pigmadillos” that can curl up into a wrecking ball or “bruisers” with huge razor blades.
According to Magnus Nedfors, Mojang’s creative director, the main point of the game will be gathering your troops and partnering up to defeat Piglins. There won’t be as much focus on individual improvements like armors.
Of course, Minecraft Legends will still retain the collect-and-build component that popularized the original Minecraft game. Players will explore vast biomes to find all the resources they need to build strong defenses for their settlements.
Minecraft Legends Multiplayer
Mojang confirmed that Minecraft Legends would have a multiplayer mode. There will be both co-op and competitive versions, which greatly enrich the game.
The details of what these multiplayer modes will look like are still unclear, as there hasn’t been much talk about them. However, based on how Mojang has handled them in the past, we can assume that competitive multiplayer will look a lot like Age of Empires – players put together an army and resources and then challenge their opponents to a match.
The co-op mode could feature the popular drop-in, and drop-out mechanics that let players contribute to campaigns.
There’s also the question of cross-play. Minecraft Dungeons received full cross-platform support for multiplayer, so we might get it with Legends as well. At the very least, we should see cross-platform support for PC and Xbox devices.
Developer Team
Mojang announced they wouldn’t be developing Minecraft Legends themselves. They already have quite a bit of work with the original Minecraft and Minecraft Dungeons, so they hired Blackbird Interactive to develop Minecraft Legends.
BBI is a reputable developer that stands behind titles like Hardspace: Shipbreaker, Homeworld 3, and Crossfire: Legion. Their games have received excellent ratings, so there’s no doubt the development of Minecraft Legends is in capable hands.
Easter Eggs
Minecraft Legends has been in the works long before its official announcement. Dennis Ries, Mojang’s executive producer, pointed out an Easter Egg that nobody noticed.
Namely, Minecraft Legends had a codename – Project Badger. At Minecon 2018, Jens Bergensten, Minecraft’s lead designer, wore a t-shirt with a badger on it. Of course, nobody could’ve known that he was hinting at Minecraft Legends at the time.
Unite and Conquer
Minecraft fans across the globe rejoiced at the Minecraft Legends announcement, and there are many good reasons for this. Based on what we’ve heard so far, there’s no doubt it will be an outstanding game that you won’t be able to put down.
It’s great to see Mojang’s most popular game evolving while still staying true to its core. Players will get a chance to enjoy the legendary title in an entirely new way while still embarking on thrilling adventures.
You can stay up to date on everything regarding Minecraft’s Legends on the game’s official website. Developers are regularly posting updates, so make sure to check in every once in a while to get all the relevant updates.
Are you excited about Minecraft Legends? What do you expect from the game? Feel free to share your thoughts and predictions in the comments section below.