Minecraft's first new dimension in more than 14 years arrives next week, and it will not land in Minecraft first. The Sift debuts inside Minecraft Dungeons II, which launches September 29, Mojang Studios confirmed at Minecraft LIVE today. The dimension then comes to Minecraft itself in 2027.
Minecraft Dungeons II will be included with Game Pass and supports Xbox Play Anywhere, so subscribers can play on console and PC at no extra cost. It also ships on Steam, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2, alongside Xbox Series X|S and Xbox on PC. The Sift itself was first shown at Gamescom, ahead of the fuller look today.
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In Dungeons II, the Sift announces itself early: odd events disrupt the Overworld's natural order, unfamiliar enemies show up, and souls drift through the world. Once inside, players meet a visually different, colorful reality with its own mobs, both companions and threats, and its own rules. Shifting tides can affect a character and nearby allies, new hazardous blocks change how exploration works, and new environments test player skill. Two biomes are named, Meadows and Carapace, while Mojang is holding back other areas for players to find.
The bigger question is what the Sift does to Minecraft itself. Mojang is not saying much about how players will reach it or how the Minecraft version will differ from Dungeons II's take, though the studio showed a brief in-development look at the dimension running. The company's advice for now is to play Dungeons II for a taste of its mobs, blocks and biomes, and to watch future Minecraft LIVE events for details on when the Sift arrives.
That leaves the 2027 window as the only firm timing for the Minecraft release, with no date, price or access method attached yet. The announcement also does not address whether the Sift will be a free update or paid content when it reaches the base game.
The reveal follows Xbox's weekly release roundups, which had already listed Minecraft Dungeons II for September 28 at $29.99. The Sift is the first dimension added since the Overworld, the Nether and the End.
Minecraft Dungeons II is an action RPG follow-up in which players return to the world of the original Dungeons to fight a growing threat, with high-stakes encounters and new locations. Xbox has been acting on player requests elsewhere in its ecosystem this year, including a platinum-style completion achievement system its CEO said was in the works.
Mojang has said only that the Sift reaches Minecraft sometime in 2027, and has pushed the rest, including how players get there, to later events.
