Minecraft is a classic game that continues to evolve and change over time, but its overall visual style has remained relatively static since the game's debut over 10 years ago. Minecraft's visual style is almost unchanged, even on the most powerful current-gen consoles.
Many gamers have been wondering when or if Minecraft will be an Optimized title on Microsoft's new-generation Xbox Series X consoles. The Minecraft experience on these advanced machines is not very different, which has led to disappointment in the community. S would be a reality thanks to Mojang Studios’ first-party status under Xbox Game Studios.
Mojang Studios has yet commit to a proper current gen upgrade for Minecraft on Xbox Series X S.
What is Minecraft on Xbox Series X
The Xbox Series X/S represents a new generation for console gaming. The Xbox Series X/S features evolutionary hardware that delivers groundbreaking features, such as faster SSD storage and ray tracing. This console gaming platform also offers more reliable performance, even with enhanced visuals. Minecraft, being one of Microsoft's biggest and most successful franchises and one of the greatest Xbox games, works on the Xbox Series X|S from day one through the platform's impressive backward-compatibility program, even if it doesn't currently support many of the latest features that the Xbox Series X|S can utilize for current-gen games.
S. Mojang Studios will instead leverage Minecraft: Bedrock Edition if Minecraft receives an update to take advantage of current-gen hardware.
This updated version of Minecraft supports Xbox One and Windows 10, 11 & 11, PlayStation 4 and Android. There is a single code base and feature set for all platforms. This is possible due to the Bedrock foundation (and the Render Dragon Engine), which allow Minecraft: Bedrock Edition adapt to any platform, providing the same great experience that you have with Minecraft: Bedrock Edition.
S. Some of these potential upgrades are already available on other platforms. We don't know the exact timeline or delivery date for these upgrades, but we can discuss all possibilities and what we do know.
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The current console generation is focused on making gaming more intuitive. This means less waiting and more playing. S. You can expect to see a faster loading time due to the Xbox Series X
However, Minecraft actually doesn't appear to run much better on the Xbox Series X|S versus the Xbox One generation, and may actually suffer from running in backward-compatibility mode at times, with previously rarer frame drops and lag becoming more prevalent. I've already discussed how Minecraft on Xbox Series X These issues could be resolved by a Minecraft upgrade to the current-gen.
Quick Resume is the only feature Minecraft has on Xbox Series X Minecraft does support Quick Resume, so players can hop right back into Minecraft without reloading the game, even if the console has been turned off or other games have been played. Other improvements depend on the possibility that Minecraft will be upgraded to the current-gen version.
S is ray tracing. This incredible technology allows games the ability to track the path light beams and provide information in real-time. This results in realistic reflections and shadows, environments, and much more. Ray tracing is already a reality on Minecraft on Windows PCs. But there are reasons to believe that Mojang Studios is also working to bring this revolutionary gaming technology to Xbox Series X
What is ray tracing? Is it for Minecraft on Xbox Series X
Ray tracing, a gaming term that is often overlooked by most gamers, is one of those terms that can be confusing. However, when properly used, ray tracing can have real effects on how a game looks, particularly in the atmosphere department. Ray tracing is a great way to improve photo-realistic games. It allows you to accurately depict lighting and not just guessing, as was the case before. It's complicated, but we're here in order to simplify it all.
Ray tracing requires three things in order to work: capable hardware and supported drivers and software. With Xbox Series X Minecraft could be one of the first games to offer real-time raytracing on these consoles.
It is important to note that Minecraft with ray-tracing is already an option. It looks amazing, completely changing the look and feel this over-10-year-old video game. We even paired Minecraft using ray tracing and a NVIDIA RTX3060 to get even more beautiful results. Minecraft with ray-tracing is only available for Minecraft: Bedrock Edition on Windows 10, and it is limited to certain maps or requires a lot more manual work.
NVIDIA was the pioneer in ray-tracing technology until recently. Microsoft has created a robust set tools for game developers to use to add the technology to their games. Minecraft: Bedrock Edition allows you to demonstrate this because the Render Dragon engine supports the latest technologies such as DXR through Microsoft DirectX 12. However, the Xbox Series X and Series S do not use NVIDIA graphics cards, so they don't support ray tracing, right? They do, but not in the same manner.
The custom-designed AMD hardware used in the Xbox Series X, Series S is for their CPUs and GPUs. This AMD hardware will make use of DirectX 12 Ultimate (Microsoft’s suite a developer-centric tools APIs), as well as AMD's RDNA 2 architecture. It will bring ray tracing (and AMD hardware!) to console gaming for the first time. S is mired in mystery.
Although Minecraft with RTX has been a fully functional product on Windows for months, it still needs to be perfected. S it takes a lot to pair AMD hardware with Microsoft DirectX 12 and DXR.
There is no way to know how far behind Minecraft is on the Xbox Series X or Series S. This is because they are preparing ray tracing using new AMD hardware. This is a relatively new addition to the ray tracing field. Austin Evan has shown Minecraft with ray tracing in action on his Xbox Series X preview. This is as expected. Microsoft made it clear after the fact that this was a technical demonstration on ray tracing using the Xbox Series X. It was not a product launch.
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If Minecraft is Optimized for Xbox Series X Microsoft has been very clear in their position and has even stated to developers that they prefer providing current-gen updates as free updates for existing games rather than separate DLC or new titles. S with a simple upgrade.
In fact, it's likely that Mojang Studios will use Xbox Smart Delivery to deliver the current-gen Minecraft upgrade to Xbox Series X
Smart Delivery is a technology that allows games only to download the required parts for the platform on the which they are being played. The Xbox One player doesn't require the 4K assets and textures or the enhanced visuals of Series S. This allows for smaller download sizes and potentially better performance.
Smart Delivery makes it easy to upgrade a game for Xbox Series X
Developers are encouraged to offer upgrades for existing games in order to enable current-gen features. Still, the final decision is up to the developers. Even if they offer a free upgrade (which many already do), the delivery method is entirely up to them. Microsoft's Smart Delivery has been the easiest to use. This involves publishing a single title and then having the console download all the necessary files to deliver the best possible gaming experience.
I fully expect Minecraft to take advantage of Smart Delivery, being a first-party title. While it hasn't been confirmed, it would genuinely be shocking if Microsoft ignores its own advice and chooses an alternative upgrade path for players downloading Minecraft on their Xbox Series X and S consoles. Smart Delivery pairs nicely with Xbox's already-excellent cloud saves to make it as seamless as possible to transition to Xbox Series X
Will crossplay and cross-platform features remain in Minecraft on Xbox Series X
Minecraft has been a poster child for cross-platform support, and was one of the earliest games to offer crossplay across platform lines. While many people feared that Microsoft would take Minecraft away from other platforms in favor of Xbox and Windows, that fear never came to pass, and Mojang Studios has continued its cross-platform philosophy by releasing the Bedrock Edition for PlayStation 4. Even Minecraft Dungeons, an all-new IP for Mojang Studios that expands on the Minecraft franchise, launched simultaneously on Xbox, Windows, PlayStation, and Nintendo Switch, and now features cross-play.
Minecraft being upgraded for current-gen consoles shouldn't affect cross-platform features in any way, as it'll all still be built on the universal Minecraft: Bedrock Edition. Xbox Series X As it's all done client side, real-time ray-tracing shouldn’t have any effect on this. S players in the same lobby will see Minecraft as they always have.
There's always the possibility that something might change. Mojang Studios has confirmed nothing about Minecraft on Xbox Series X That being said, I firmly believe that a current-gen upgrade wouldn't affect Minecraft's cross-platform and crossplay features.
Will I keep my data and purchases with cross-save in Minecraft on Xbox Series X
Since the version of Minecraft you'll play on the Xbox Series X and Series S will be the exact same as the version you'll play on other platforms, and will be synced through your Microsoft account, Minecraft Marketplace purchases and other save data should still carry over. S offers.
This is the benefit of taking advantage of features like Smart Delivery, because instead of having to figure out how to connect two entirely separate games (if a developer even bothers), Mojang Studios can use all the existing features in Minecraft that protect your progression. That means it should be easier than ever to keep all of your information moving forward and ensure any money you spent purchasing new maps, worlds, or packs in Minecraft doesn't go to waste on Xbox Series X
Protecting cross-save also matters if you're coming from Minecraft: Bedrock Edition on another platform to Xbox Series X
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There was a technical demonstration of Minecraft running on Xbox Series X with ray tracing, Minecraft RTX working flawlessly on Windows 10, and it is easy to assume that Minecraft will be upgraded for Xbox Series X Mojang Studios has yet to confirm that it is happening. Therefore, we cannot speculate on a release date.
S through Minecraft Preview, giving a few players access for a short time. The Minecraft community was clearly excited about this release. Many felt it meant that Mojang Studios was ready to announce and officially start testing the feature.
Mojang Studios unfortunately removed the prototype code and released the following dismissive statement.
The previous Minecraft Preview build, which was made available for Xbox Insiders, inadvertently contained prototype code for raytracing support for Xbox consoles. This early prototype code has been removed from Preview and doesn't signal near future plans to bring ray tracing support to consoles.
S Minecraft fans in the dark. S following this debacle. Even though the feature test is still in progress, players still deserve to be able to confirm that it is in development and that Mojang Studios will release it at some point in future.
S. We will update you as soon as we learn more. Minecraft works on Xbox Series X, Series S, and other devices that support backward compatibility. It is working well for the most parts. S and Xbox One. The experience is almost identical.
Minecraft on PlayStation 5 will be upgraded to Minecraft on Xbox Series X
So what about the PlayStation 5? The current-gen console from Sony has many of the same benefits that the Series X and Series S Xbox, so will Minecraft be upgraded for PS5 as well? Although the answer is not clear, we can be more confident about certain things on PS5. The PS5 is a true current-gen console, just like the Xbox Series X PS5 differs in that it handles these technologies differently than Microsoft, choosing to use more custom solutions rather than Microsoft's DirectX or AMD's full RDNA 2.
Microsoft may decide not to fully support the PS5 because of the technical aspects of bringing Minecraft on the PS5 with an upgrade to the current-gen. Minecraft is still a cross-platform video game that receives updates simultaneously on PS5 and Microsoft platforms such as Xbox and Windows. But that doesn't necessarily mean that Microsoft has to fully support PS5. S optimized but has not yet received similar treatment on PS5.
The Minecraft Dungeons' current-gen upgrade is also far simpler than the one that may be happening with Minecraft and Ray Tracing. We know PS5 supports ray tracing and already has it in several games, but it's not clear how difficult it would be to implement it in Minecraft without using Microsoft's DirectX technologies.
If I had to guess, I would say that Minecraft won't get an upgrade on PS5. S or PC.
S. However, there are a lot of unknowns here, so we'll have to wait a little longer to get a definitive answer.
S as well as other formatting and grammar tweaks.
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Minecraft is an undisputed and complete success. It has sold millions of copies, has a large following of dedicated gamers, and allows you to unleash your creative potential. It doesn't take proper advantage of Xbox Series X
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