Minecraft 1.5 Redstone to be released in a couple of weeks

Minecraft developer, Jens Bergensten, has just tweeted that the next update for Minecraft, Minecraft 1.5 Redstone, will be released in a couple of weeks. The update will be a major update that brings various optimizations to the game, as well as some great added features. Development for the update began around late November 2012 right after its announcement at MineCon 2012.

The Redstone update features a lot of changes to the gaming engine. There will be rendering optimizations that will improve your Frames per second. There will be new texture pack formats that will add support for HD texture packs, as well as allow textures to be animated. There is an added scoreboard system that lets players track kills, deaths, or player commands. There is an improved inventory management system that makes managing your stacks much easier. Death messages now include the cause of death, items used to kill you, and the player who killed you. In creative mode, you can now hit mobs or players from 5 blocks away.

There is a huge list of added items including the Redstone Comparator, Hopper, Dropper, Daylight Sensor, Trapped Chest, Weighted Pressure Plate, various decorative blocks, Activator Rail, Detector Rail, Minecart with TNT, Minecart with Hopper, Minecart with Spawner, and a lot more to improve your Minecraft experience and keep you hooked on the game for eternity. Many of the mobs will feature improved UI, and they will no longer be able to walk over rails unless they are pursuing you. Last, but not least, there is a LONG list of bug fixes that will improve your game play.

This new update will rekindle your love for Minecraft (as if you lost it in the first place), and have you playing hours upon hours of this strangely addicting game. Now you have a lot of new items to help build your insanely designed castles, towns,slaughterhouses, brothels and more. With the new optimizations and bug fixes, Minecraft should use less resources, meaning your computer will no longer double as a makeshift heater. But we'll see about that.

[via Twitter]