When is Minecraft 1.19.4 update coming out?

Over the past few weeks, Minecraft: Java Edition has seen a number of pre-releases introduced to prepare for update 1.19.4. The wait appears to be ending, as update 1.19.4 for Java is slated to be released on March 14, 2023.

While 1.19.4 won't be quite as impactful as the upcoming 1.20 "Trails & Tales" update, it still offers more than a few changes.

New commands will be introduced to the in-game command console, a few technical tweaks will be made to gameplay, and a large score of bugs will be fixed. Additionally, the rest of the upcoming features intended to preview update 1.20 will be included in Java's experimental datapack.

While Minecraft 1.19.4 will make some impactful changes, it isn't a bad idea to take a look at its most significant alterations and additions.

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Most important changes coming to Minecraft 1.19.4

It's one thing to take a look at every change being made in Minecraft 1.19.4, but many of the additions and tweaks are under the hood for one reason or another.

Most of the alterations made are applied to entities, in-game code, bugs, and other properties within the game world that aren't typically seen during ordinary gameplay. However, there are still changes that can be noticed or measured during gameplay that players may want to be aware of as 1.19.4 approaches.

Notable changes and additions to Minecraft 1.19.4

• Jukeboxes in Minecraft: Java Edition will now display music notes above them when playing a music disc, as they do in Bedrock Edition.
• Droppers and hoppers can now interact with jukeboxes.
• Sculk sensors have had their sensitivity changed and can now be activated by many other events in the environment.
• Armor and Elytra can now be swapped equipment-wise by using the item. For example, a player can place a chestplate into their hands and use it to immediately swap it with an equipped chestplate. No need to open the inventory screen.
• The colors of potions and tipped arrows have been changed to better reflect which enchantment they bestow or status effect they inflict.
• A sound now plays when a shield is placed in a player's off-hand slot.
• Donkeys, mules, skeleton horses, and zombie horses have had changes made to their textures.
• Armor stands will now retain their custom names even when broken and replaced.
• Minecarts with hoppers will no longer upset piglins when opened.
• When breeding horses and similar mobs, the child will no longer have its stats skewed toward the average and will instead present better quality stats if the parents have good stats themselves.
• The world creation menu has been reorganized into a three-tab format.
• F3 + S can be used as a shortcut to dump dynamic textures into the screenshots/debug folder.
• The Minecraft Realms screen has been re-adjusted to be more similar to the single-player and multiplayer menus.
• The crafting table recipe is unlocked automatically upon joining a new Minecraft world.
• Crossbow and soul campfire recipes are no longer unlocked by sticks.
• Experimental features seen in recent snapshots previewing Minecraft 1.20 have all been collected into the experimental data pack, which can be toggled on and off in the world creation screen.

In addition to the changes and implementations listed above, there are many more content inclusions that have appeared with regard to commands, NBT Tags, and block/entity properties. This is certainly worth looking into for players who enjoy taking a more in-depth look at the game's mechanics.

However, the additions listed above should help players get up to speed on what the new version will bring and leave them excited for the arrival of the Trails & Tales update later this spring.