Minecraft: Java Edition releases first 'Caves and Cliffs Update' snapshot of the year, adds glow squid

Minecraft Caves and Cliffs Update Image (Image credit: Mojang Studios)

What you need to know

Minecraft: Java Edition is the legacy PC version of Minecraft, and tests future updates through "snapshots."
The next major update for Minecraft is the 'Caves and Cliffs Update,' which is planned to release later this year.
The very first snapshot of 2021 for the 'Caves and Cliffs Update' is rolling out now, and adds the glow squid and more.
The glow squid was the winner of Minecraft Live's mob vote, and was chosen by the community to be added to Minecraft.

Minecraft: Java Edition is starting today right with the very first Caves and Cliffs Update snapshot of 2021. Snapshot 21w03a is now available for Minecrafters to test, and adds a handful of experimental Caves and Cliffs Update features such as the glow squid. In case you forgot, the glow squid won the mob vote at Minecraft Live, and now you can sneak a peek in Minecraft's latest snapshot.

The Caves and Cliffs Update, on the other hand, is the absolutely massive update slated for release sometime in Summer 2021, and will add a ton of new features, changes, and improvements to, well, Minecraft's caves and cliffs. We've seen some features be tested and teased, but now it seems things are finally in full swing.

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The full changelog for Minecraft: Java Edition snapshot 21w03a includes:

New features

Added glow lichen!
Added glow squid!

Glow Lichen

A dim light source that generates in caves
Use shears to pick it up
Use bonemeal to spread it along block surfaces

Glow Squid

Glow squids have been added, but do not yet spawn naturally. You can find spawn eggs for them in the creative inventory
Glow Squids are well-lit and can be seen from even far distances!
When killed, glow squids drop glow ink sacs
Glow ink sacs can be used on signs to make the text super visible, even at night! Works with colors!
Craft a glow item frame by combining a glow ink sac with an item frame in a crafting table. Any item in a glow item frame is perfectly illuminated, even at night!
Use an Ink Sac on a sign to remove the glow effect
Axolotls will attack any glow squids they see, so…be careful

Changes

Dripstone blocks can be crafted from 4 pointed dripstone

Bug fixes

Mobs suffocate / go through blocks when growing up near a solid block
Spawner with weight 0 crashes game
Shulker rendering position desync and generates ghost shulker when destroying shulker-ridden boat or minecart
Players can't tempt animals with food while other players are closer to the animal
Setting Json text value to null throws exceptions and crashes
Shulkers in boats and minecarts do not sit up if previousely attached to blocks sideways
Shulkers can't be pushed back
Using a monster spawner to spawn shulkers spawns white shulkers
Shulkers cannot be pushed inside non-solid blocks
Random transparent line in shulker box GUI texture
Gaps in an animation's used frames throws ArrayIndexOutOfBoundsException
Shulkers do not teleport correctly when going through a portal
Shulker boxes cannot be opened if next to a shulker mob
Shulkers teleport with original dimension coordinates after passing through portals
Shulkers are afraid of being next to another shulker
Shulkers open into blocks when unable to teleport
Shulkers aren't aligned to the grid for a split second after being spawned in
Boats don't try dismounting you on land
Server is unable to prevent a player from dismounting a vehicle, causing a desync
Shulker bullet subtitles are not capitalized correctly
Right-clicking an empty bundle sometimes plays hand animation
Bundle use stat never increases
Game mode selection is ordered differently
"type" in loot table number providers is not optional anymore
Game crashes when trying to shift-click a chest into the inventory of a donkey whose chest is being removed
block.pointed_dripstone.drip_[liquid/cauldron] has no subtitles
Pointed dripstone can be placed atop each other, even if a player would be inside the hitbox of the lower dripstone
Dripstone subtitles are not capitalized properly
Dripstone caves biome name is not properly capitalized
Dripstone caves generate merging dripstones in impossible ways
Dripstone generated in dripstone caves can replace lava sources which looks weird
Mobs cannot spawn in Dripstone Caves
Issues with chunk rendering when height limit is large
Summoning dust or dust_color_transition particles kicks nearby players when on a server
player sub-predicate of entity_properties predicate only passes if game mode is specified
Shulkerboxes / bundles duplicate items when destroyed by two fire blocks simultaneously
Shulker boxes and bundles drop their items twice when thrown into a lava cauldron

A gaming masterpiece

Minecraft

Available everywhere you play.

Minecraft is an inarguable and complete success. It has sold copies in the hundreds of millions, has a huge following of dedicated players, and lets you unlock your every creative desire. It's also available on every platform imaginable, including Xbox One, Windows 10, Playstation 4, and Nintendo Switch. Play with anyone, and play anywhere.