‘Minecraft’ Title Update 9 Brings ‘The End’

It’s no secret that block-building enthusiasts all over the world have been keeping busy in the Minecraft realm, resulting in the Xbox 360 edition dominating top spots in the Xbox Live Arcade monthly sales leaderboard. Thus, it’s no surprise that 4J Studios has been working overtime to try and get the latest edition of console-based Minecraft bug-free and certified by Microsoft. If all goes well, the newest update should hit gamers in about a month.

The long-awaited Title Update 9 will bring console gamers new mobs including Endermen and Blazes, adding an important dynamic to the game in terms of the loot that they drop. Endermen drop Ender Pearls, which can be used (with dropped Blaze Rods) to create both Ender Chests and create (well, locate and fix) an End Portal, which is teased in the official trailer above. And with The End comes the Ender Dragon.

Blazes are also often hunted for the Blaze Rod, which is an integral ingredient when it comes to setting up an area to craft potions. While potions themselves weren’t shown in the video or mentioned by 4J Studios, we wouldn’t be surprised to find out they’re included in the update.

The official Title Update 9 trailer above was created by Hat Films and shows console gamers what they can expect in the forthcoming update.

While there’s no confirmed release date yet, the studio said they were almost finished with bug-testing, meaning the official changelist will likely be posted a few days from now. Keeping pace with the PC variant of the game is no easy task, as everything needs to be completely re-coded and then certified by Microsoft before release (a step which may factor into a possible PSN port being created once Microsoft’s exclusivity license expires). Most estimates pin the ninth title update, which was initially slated for February, as a late April release – likely around the same time as the boxed retail edition of the game.

What do you think about the console-based Minecraft, Ranters? Are you excited to fight off the ‘new’ mobs, or do you think this update took too long in the making?