Minecraft's next big update takes you on a new adventure in the fiery dimension on June 23

(Image credit: Mojang Studios)

The next big update coming to Minecraft in The Nether is officially launching on PS4, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, iOS, Android, and PC on June 23. 

The Minecraft Nether update is the next adventure coming to the blocky world and will take you to an ancient realm as yet unexplored by players. As one of the largest updates for a long time, it will be adding new biomes, blocks, and mobs to the fiery, lava-filled dimension, to bring you a host of new challenges.

The announcement came in an official post on the Minecraft website, with Minecraft.net editor Per Landin announcing that you can also listen to a 20-minute soundtrack of the upcoming update composed by Lena Raine on Spotify

In the upcoming update, mobs known as the Piglins have mined all of the Minecraft Netherite material. As the strongest resource in the game - surpassing the strength of diamonds - Netherite can now only be obtained by searching for Netherite scrap amongst ancient debris. 

And speaking of Piglins, you can choose to battle or barter with the oinking grumpy mobs, who will be willing to trade with you for the right goods. The Piglins are said to have a great fondness for gold, so wearing gold armor will ensure these new mobs won't attack you. Hoglins and Zoglins also appear in the Nether, but they're far more hostile and will attack on sight. 

The new biomes include the Warped Forests, Soul Sand Valleys, Crimson Forests, and the Basalt Deltas. Each biome contains various different resources, with the likes of Nether Wart, Basalt, Blackstone, and Soul sand to name a few. With new enemies to face, biomes to explore, and blocks to mine, there's oodles of content in the Nether update to look forward to. 

Stay on top of all of the latest releases with our upcoming games 2020 list. 

Heather Wald
Senior staff writer

I started out writing for the games section of a student-run website as an undergrad, and continued to write about games in my free time during retail and temp jobs for a number of years. Eventually, I earned an MA in magazine journalism at Cardiff University, and soon after got my first official role in the industry as a content editor for Stuff magazine. After writing about all things tech and games-related, I then did a brief stint as a freelancer before I landed my role as a staff writer here at GamesRadar+. Now I get to write features, previews, and reviews, and when I'm not doing that, you can usually find me lost in any one of the Dragon Age or Mass Effect games, tucking into another delightful indie, or drinking far too much tea for my own good. 

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