Mojang Digs Up Details On New Minecraft Editions

With over 12 million units sold, Minecraft has been an incredible success on the Xbox 360. Despite the limitations of the console version, Minecraft: Xbox 360 Edition has captivated players of all ages and increased the game’s mainstream visibility immeasurably. A December 2013 release on the PlayStation 3 only added more momentum to the indie game-turned merchandising empire. Owners of other consoles have been eagerly waiting for a chance to dig, build, craft and fight in the game’s voxel-based worlds, and today Mojang revealed a slew of new details about all of the new versions of Minecraft coming to consoles soon.

Boasting larger maps and longer draw distances, Minecraft will be available on the PS4 and Xbox One in August for $19.99. Players who have already purchased Minecraft on the 360 or downloaded it from the PSN will have at least one year to upgrade to the next-gen version for a reduced price of $4.99. The developer is still working on upgrading from PS3 retail copies, and will announce more details soon. Mojang reiterated that saved maps on the PS3 and 360 will transfer over to the new versions, allowing players to expand on previously built worlds. Transferring maps from the newer console to the older, however, will not be possible, nor will cross-platform play.

Mojang stated that due to licensing issues, most, but not all of the DLC skins and texture packs will transfer to the new editions, and promised more details to come.

Minecraft: PS3+Vita Edition will launch in August, also at $19.99 or $4.99 to upgrade from the PSN version. Similarly, the upgrade from the retail copy is TBA. This version will be identical to the original PS3 edition, but will feature cross-play with the Vita, including transferrable save files. All of the DLC purchased for the PS3 version will be available in the PS3+Vita version.