Caves And Cliffs Ruined Minecraft Forever

From its very essence, Minecraft strives to strike a perfect equilibrium among several key aspects – discovery, advancement, and construction. In my opinion, the releases of versions 1.17 and 1.18 disrupted this delicate balance significantly.

Let me preface my forthcoming thoughts by stating that I was among the first to experience Minecraft, even before Microsoft purchased it. However, it’s essential to clarify that my fondness for its early days doesn’t influence this perspective.

Just so you know, I played Minecraft way back when it wasn’t owned by Microsoft yet. But when expressing my opinion, I want to make clear that my nostalgia doesn’t play a role in it.

I’ve consistently found something appealing in each latest Minecraft upgrade, including those critically panned features, and I think if there’s a part that someone can appreciate, it makes for a valuable improvement.

Indeed, I find that the Caves and Cliffs updates have significantly diminished my pleasure in various elements of the game, affecting exploration, mining, and even the overall atmosphere of the game, and here are some explanations for my sentiments.

World Generation

Among the major features of Caves and Cliffs Part 2, it’s the primary factor that has led me to express strong disapproval towards this update. The fundamental transformation in world generation stands out, introducing a taller world, revised ore distribution, and a redesign of cave formation.

One issue is that the biomes have grown significantly in size, making it rather challenging to reach specific locations, particularly when a vast, snow-covered mountain obstructs your path.

These mountains often require a 5-minute diversion in your journey, be it going around, passing through, or crossing them – all of which are less than enjoyable experiences. It seems like an unneeded hassle for the sake of hassle, and they’re quite frequently encountered.

I dislike being compelled to don the least favorable boot armor solely to mitigate the inconvenience caused by Powdered Snow in video games, and finding myself scaling a mountain intermittently doesn’t bring me joy.

As a devoted explorer, I can’t help but feel the game is almost grabbing me by the collar and insisting that I acquire Elytra or rely on good fortune to delve into any substantial exploration. If I yearn for a Swamp biome brimming with flowers or a Cherry Grove teeming with wood, it consistently takes far longer than seems reasonable.

Earlier, biomes were usually limited to just a few hundred blocks in size, the world had a much flatter terrain that was easier to navigate, and massive mountains were rare enough to be considered breathtaking attractions instead of nuisances.

It seems to me that the issues facing this generation could potentially be addressed by reducing the size of vast ecosystems, restricting powdery snow to mountain peaks, and making towering cliffs less prevalent. However, I’m not optimistic that such changes will be implemented at this juncture.

Since version 1.18, there has been no significant shift in the fundamental nature of the generation. The main difference lies in the introduction of extra biomes, which function similarly to existing ones such as forests, plains, and mountains.

Caves’ Downfall

From a closer inspection beneath the surface, it seems even more problematic. Contrary to popular belief about the latest caves, which are often praised for their stunning beauty and enhancing the appeal of subterranean exploration, my perspective veers in an entirely different direction.

Nowadays, whenever I come across a huge cave system, I typically adjust the path of my quarry operation to avoid it. These places tend to attract mobs like skeletons, making them potentially dangerous and short-lived encounters. Exploring large, deepslate caverns can also become monotonous rather quickly.

Previously, I found pleasure in strip mining. It was almost meditative, spending an hour or two and emerging with a vast trove of valuable resources. Unfortunately, currently, I find myself having to delve into numerous layers to gather a decent quantity of coal, which is quite challenging.

Earlier, mining at the Y-coordinate 11 provided a decent yield of all ores. Now, I’m finding myself in a situation where I can either excavate coal and iron or delve extremely deep to mine deepslate for an extended period, resulting in more diamonds than required.

It’s really annoying how often I return from mining, only to find myself needing to go back due to not having enough common ores. It would be great if mining at level 11 provided a more diverse assortment of ores, similar to my current situation, but it’s just a drag right now.

Either you spend an eternity mining deepslate for a chance at diamonds, or you mine stone to find only a scant amount of redstone and barely any diamonds at all. One solution might be to make Netherite tools break blocks faster, but unfortunately, they don’t differ significantly from regular tools.

In stratified rock formations, you can instantly mine every block using a pickaxe with an efficiency level of 5 diamonds and a beacon that speeds up your work by two times. If I could make one wish in this game, it would be the power to perform the same action, but I’m not optimistic that this will happen.

In layered rocks, you can instantaneously mine every block with a pickaxe having an efficiency of 5 diamonds and a beacon that doubles your mining speed. If I could have one wish in this game, it would be the capability to do the same thing, but I’m pessimistic about the chances of that happening.

From a brighter perspective, Lush Caves and Dripstone are truly valuable enhancements. However, I yearn for additional captivating cave ecosystems that offer exciting exploration opportunities, instead of expansive voids that seem lackluster to me.

Cavalcade Of Filler

17 additions are quite disappointing to me, as I find the cost of Amethyst for Tinted Glass to be overly high and the Spyglass is usually more of an unnecessary inventory item rather than a useful tool.

1. Azalea trees resemble oak trees in a tailored coat, contributing minimally to the overall picture.

2. Candles make for elegant decoration, yet they tend to be easily overlooked.

3. Deepslate looks attractive but can be frustrating to excavate, and Moss seems like an interesting novelty, but that’s essentially its extent.

Copper in Minecraft seems to be quite underwhelming compared to my expectations for a new feature. It mostly serves a decorative purpose, and its practical uses like creating Lightning Rods or a Spyglass aren’t particularly helpful or beneficial to players.

21 update introduced a new dimension for copper, making it more intriguing as it now crafts numerous attractive decorative items and the Copper Bulb. However, compared to ores like Lapis, it still seems incomplete or not fully developed.

As a devoted fan, I must admit that while each new update brings fresh content, it often feels like we’re revisiting familiar territory. The additions are usually standalone features that don’t seem to connect seamlessly with the existing gameplay elements. These one-off contents, although interesting at first glance, tend to be elements I seldom revisit or integrate into my gaming experience.

Are these enhancements improving the game for you? Generally speaking, they aren’t, but I really dislike dealing with copper ore. It seems to appear more frequently than other ores, making it feel like an annoyance because of its lack of value and how often I encounter it during mining.

It seems as though the additional features in Caves and Cliffs were initially promising, yet they give an impression of being hastily developed, leaving Mojang with limited time to explore their full potential beyond a fundamental implementation.

It seems like additional bulk, on top of an already overstuffed game, is less appealing compared to meaningful enhancements that positively impact the gaming experience. I can tolerate elements such as bees or Archeology if they don’t interfere with the main progression, but Caves and Cliffs makes it feel excessively slow.

Pitiful Promises

The main reason Caves and Cliffs tends to receive criticism is because Mojang has overpromised and underdelivered, leaving many players disappointed.” The phrase “getting your expectations up with Copper” has been replaced with the more straightforward “leaving many players disappointed.

The update was divided into two variants; one featuring the latest additions and another showcasing the next generation. This approach works well, and I have no intention of advising against spending more time on video games. However, the division continued to fragment even more in subsequent stages.

In simpler terms, cities didn’t appear until two updates following 1.19, and many consider them the most exciting aspect of what was initially promised. Regrettably, we never received the stunning Birch Forest concept art that was teased as imminent content, and now it seems as though they’re acting like it never existed at all.

Initially, Archaeology and Bundle features were introduced at a later stage, resulting in mostly standalone, unrelated content. This update lacks a unified approach, making it feel disjointed. Dividing the content into so many parts only served to magnify this issue further.

Progression’s Bane

Personally speaking, I’m cool with standalone content that doesn’t significantly enhance my Minecraft gaming experience. However, what truly excites me are well-integrated additions that genuinely feel valuable to the gameplay. That said, a casual, fun extra feature here and there is by no means unwelcome!

When there’s only small tasks to do, exploring biomes becomes challenging, and the journey to get stronger and acquire better gear feels laborious.

If you’re aiming to gather an entire Diamond Armor set before adding enchantments or venturing into the Nether, what used to be a quick 30-minute task in the past has now become a lengthier and more tedious process. Instead of just mining, it involves exhaustive deepslate excavation at Y54 for hours on end.

Even a dedicated Redstone enthusiast such as myself, who prioritizes construction over everything else, finds themselves affected, since now obtaining the necessary materials for my desired projects has become tiresome and frustrating, regardless of my proficiency in Minecraft.

“Just Play An Older Version”

As a dedicated Minecraft enthusiast, when an update doesn’t sit well with me, my initial instinct might be to revert back to the familiarity of an older version of the game. However, using this as a criticism isn’t fair or constructive. It’s more of a convenient way for some players to avoid expressing any dissatisfaction with the new changes.

Among my favorites are Trial Chambers, Froglights, Mangrove wood, and Leaf Litter blocks in a game. The Crafter is truly amazing, and I find joy in them. However, enjoying these elements is often hindered due to the new world creation interfering.

As a gamer, I prefer to keep up with the latest updates in Minecraft rather than downgrading to older versions like 1.16 or 1.17. Unfortunately, Bedrock players don’t have the option to do so. Instead, I choose to offer constructive criticism on the newer versions of the game, hoping that it will lead to improvements and enhance my overall gaming experience, rather than turning a blind eye to them.

I’m yearning to dive back into the latest version of the game and experience the same level of enjoyment as I did in my previous playthrough, prior to the new generation. However, it seems that is not possible at this moment. I can only hope that Mojang reconsiders these changes someday, although I’m rather skeptical if they will.

2025-04-21 17:11