Endermen coming to Minecraft XBLA
First screens show abandoned mines and hunger gauge also part of next update.
The eerie Endermen, nasty silverfish, spooky abandoned mines and the gnawing pangs of hunger are among the features coming to the Xbox 360 version of Minecraft in the upcoming 1.8.2 update. The details come from a trio of new screenshots uploaded to the official Mojang website.
Endermen are creepy elongated shadow creatures that steal blocks - not what you want when you're building a gargantuan statue of Matthew Kelly out of glass. Silverfish lurk inside blocks and pop out as you chip away, causing damage and startling. Abandoned mines are just what they sound like - existing tunnels and tracks underground that can give a shrewd miner a head start, provided they don't mind dealing with spiders.
The introduction of the hunger gauge is arguably an even bigger addition to the console version. It transforms food crafting from a novelty diversion into a more essential skill, as a full stomach allows your health to regenerate even in normal play, while the lower it gets the less stamina you'll have. Let it run dry completely and you'll start to die.
These features join the likes of the freeform Creative Mode and the blank canvas of Flat Worlds, also due in update 1.8.2. When will it arrive? Mojang hasn't put a date on it, but its Xbox 360 development partner, 4J Studios (which is part of Scotland's phantom games industry) has said it will be "weeks" before it's ready.
While you wait, why not bask in the glory of this just-released footage from one of the new avatar items?