Minecraft Village and Pillage update tries to show it's still got game

Gaming news these days often revolves around Fortnite, PUBG, and the other battle royale clones that have sprung up because of those two. That was a prestige once enjoyed by Minecraft, which helped bring about other voxel-based survival and building games. It may no longer have the spotlight but Minecraft's latest update has just started to roll out to prove that it still has what it takes to be popular and profitable, without the shooting mayhem that seems to be the fad these days.

As the name not so subtly points out, this update is all about the new villages that have popped in plains, deserts, and other biomes. These aren't just simple villagers, though, as each has their jobs and lives, denoted by the clothes they wear. They can even sleep on beds because why wouldn't they.

No peaceful in-game village would be complete, however, without someone messing things up. Thankfully, these pillagers are not the sharpest knives in the drawer but you'll still want to equip yourself with the new crossbow and shield items.

Non-humanoid mobs have also been given an update, making them behave more realistically in the process. Pandas can roll and foxes can leap. And Ravagers can headbutt anything in their path, including you. A bit unfair that illagers can ride on them.

Village and Pillage is such a big update to the Minecraft world and, thankfully, it's available on all supported platforms. That means both Bedrock (Xbox One, Windows 10 Edition, iOS, Android, and Nintendo Switch) and old-school Java editions will get the update, though exact arrival times may vary.