Minecraft is well-known for its steady release of new content and updates, but plenty of players want Mojang to also keep one eye on the past. In the eyes of many members of the community, the developer shouldn't overlook features added in past updates that could use reworking or improvement. From structures to game mechanics to mobs, there are a lot of options available.
This isn't to say that Mojang shouldn't introduce new content in the upcoming 1.21 update, just that it should re-evaluate some aspects of Minecraft along the way. There are a number of features that haven't had much attention in recent years.
Among these features, there are some that immediately come to mind when looking ahead to Minecraft 1.21.
Note: This list is subjective and reflects the opinions of the writer
Top features that Mojang may want to address in the Minecraft 1.21 update
10) Food
There's no doubt that Minecraft has plenty of food items available for players to chow down on. However, the best food items have remained the same for quite some time. It may be time to take another look at the game's consumable foods or at least introduce new ways to prepare them.
The modding community has provided countless instances where players can collect and consume an immense number of new food items. It also offers new ways to cook and prepare them. After years of relative stagnation, it may be time for Mojang to follow suit with new cooking methods or food items.
9) Tool customization
Since netherite tools hit the scene in Minecraft's 1.16 update, tools have remained about the same in subsequent years. Frankly, it may be time to re-examine tools and how players interact with them.
If Mojang isn't keen on introducing completely new tool types, they could at least add fresh means of customizing tools past what enchantments can accomplish.
8) Bundles
Bundles were originally marked for a release during Minecraft's Caves & Cliffs update but remain an experimental feature. Considering how useful they could be for item storage and inventory management, it's truly a shame that bundles haven't become a vanilla feature by now. Moreover, it's quite confusing as to why Mojang hasn't stated why the item remains an experimental feature.
It would be a small but significant olive branch to the community if bundles finally made their way to the game in the 1.21 update without the need to toggle certain world settings first.
7) Dungeons
Dungeons, now typically called mob spawner/monster rooms, may have been one of Minecraft's earliest generated structures, but they could use some attention. Aside from mob spawner blocks and oft-substandard loot, there just isn't much utility for these structures aside from converting them into mob farms.
Considering the types of dungeons that several mods have been able to accomplish, Mojang has some catching up to do in vanilla.
6) Fossils
Fans who venture through Minecraft's warmer biomes may have happened upon a fossil or two. There's even a fossil variant that can be found in the Nether. However, aside from mining blocks of bone, diamond, and coal, there simply isn't much to get excited about when players find a fossil.
Considering archeology was implemented in the Trails & Tales update, it may be time to give these structures another look. They can certainly be more interactive than they are in their current state, and it may be an opportunity for Mojang to implement some new game lore about the creatures that left these bones.
5) Villagers
Although villagers are receiving some attention from Mojang, many players aren't exactly on board with the development direction. The proposed villager trading rebalance has upset some fans, but Mojang may be able to smooth things over by adding new villager types or giving them additional functions worth utilizing.
Villager professions are worth a look, at the very least. There's a ton of potential for new villagers that can perform various tasks, from production to protection of the village alongside iron golems.
4) Boss mobs
Technically, to this point, Minecraft only has two boss mobs: the Ender Dragon and the Wither. The Warden, while considered to be a boss by fans, isn't classified as such by Mojang in the game. Since that's the case, it may be time for a new boss to make its way to the sandbox title since the Wither was introduced way back in 2012.
The form this boss could come in can be as varied as the game itself, but the ideas of massive golems, sea beasts, and interdimensional creatures have been proposed by fans in the past.
3) The End
Fans have asked Mojang time and time again for an update to the End that matches version 1.16, which remade the Nether into a much more compelling and dangerous locale. Aside from the Ender Dragon, endermen, and end cities/ships, the "final" dimension of this sandbox title remains pretty barren.
Adding new locations, structures, and inhabitants would go a long way in making the End a more thrilling place to visit well after the Ender Dragon has been defeated.
2) Magic
With the exception of enchantments, there simply isn't much magic to be witnessed in Minecraft. Although Mojang may not want to lean into it too heavily to the point where it messes with game balance, the title could stand to use more magical features beyond applying enchantments to gear.
What's perplexing is the fact that Mojang has released several DLCs featuring crossovers with magical IPs like Magic: The Gathering and Dungeons & Dragons. These paid expansions could serve as a template for what the vanilla game could accomplish with a little magic of its own.
1) Combat
For a sizable segment of the fanbase, combat hasn't quite felt right since the 1.9 Combat Update. Although Mojang is unlikely to simply revert the changes it made in that update, there's a lot of room to improve on the in-game combat in new and exciting ways that should make battles a little more entertaining regardless of whether fans are engaging in PvE or PvP.
Whether this means new weapon animations, tweaked attack cooldowns, or other implementations, spending some time on the combat system may just bring old-school combat fans back around to the 1.21 update.