Minecraft: Java Edition Snapshot 21w44a is here with fixes and world blending tweaks

What you need to know

• Minecraft: Java Edition continues to test the upcoming 1.18 'Caves and Cliffs Update' Part Two with new snapshots.
• Snapshot 21w44a is now rolling out to testers with all-new changes to world blending, bug fixes, and more.
• This is overall a minor release, though, as Mojang Studios continues to focus on polish ahead of release.
• In case you missed it, Minecraft: Java Edition is now available through Xbox Game Pass for PC.

Right after Minecraft: Java Edition officially joined Xbox Game Pass, as was announced during Minecraft Live 2021, Mojang Studios has released a brand-new snapshot for Part Two of the Caves and Cliffs Update, which is now available to all players.

Minecraft: Java Edition Snapshot 21w44a includes new changes to the recently introduced world blending feature from the last snapshot, alongside other various bug fixes and tweaks. Despite this being the first snapshot available through Xbox Game Pass for PC, this is overall a minor release that focuses on polish before 1.18 'Caves and Cliffs Update' Part Two officially releases later this year.

Minecraft: Java Edition is by far one of the best PC games you can play, and now it's even easier to find through Xbox Game Pass for PC. The upcoming Caves and Cliffs Update will add a ton of significant new features to the legendary survival sandbox game, including revitalized world generation and more.

The full changelog for Minecraft: Java Edition Snapshot 21w44a includes:

Features

• New world generation is now inserted under existing chunks when upgrading a world to the new world height
• Added an Online options screen where you can now find the Realms Notifications option and Difficulty when on a server
• Added an "Allow Server Listings" option to opt-out of having your name displayed in server listings

Changes

• Sleeping now only resets the weather cycle if it is raining
• Blocks and fluids are now also affected by simulation distance. It might be a good idea to test that the behavior of your redstone contraptions remained the same
• Optimized entity collisions

Technical changes

• Servers can now set property hide-online-players to true in order to not send a player list on status requests
• When JFR profiling is started from an external source, the JFR events for network packets are now aggregated instead of one event per packet

Fixed bugs

• Sleeping always resets time until rain
• Foxes can't spawn on podzol or coarse dirt
• In mineshafts, torches can generate attached to blocks other than the wooden supports
• Mineshafts can generate with light but without any torches
• Torches not spawning in abandoned mineshafts under y=0
• Large dripstone structures can be generated outside the caves
• New mountain biomes don't count towards "Adventuring Time" advancement
• /jfr stop output does not have a link
• Mobs specific to structures aren't spawning in their structures
• Foxes & Wolves don't spawn in Groves
• Adventuring Time does not account for the new cave biomes
• Deep Ocean & Ocean is not needed for the "Adventure Time" advancement
• Values of Infinity in noise settings in default worldgen
• Powder snow strips can't generate exposed to the surface
• Icebergs go all the way to ocean floor.
• Old Growth Spruce Taiga and Old Growth Birch Forest aren't part of the "Adventuring Time" advancement
• Windswept Gravelly Hills & Windswept Savanna aren't a part of the "Adventuring Time" advancement
• Withers do not move down to follow the player when the wither's health is half or lower
• All torches in mineshafts are facing the wrong way
• Wither Skeletons can only spawn on Nether Bricks
• The "amplified" boolean in noise settings does nothing
• Nether and caves world is missing bedrock
• Nether decorations can be generated on the original bedrock layer
• Terrain shaper in noise_settings is not used