Everything you need to know about 'Jungle Awakens' for Minecraft Dungeons ~ System Admin Stuff

Making a great game even better, with new areas, enemies, and loot.

With a very positive review from our team, it's clear that Minecraft Dungeons is something special. Mojang Studios is hard at work on future expansions to make the game even better, and the first two that will probably be included with the Hero Edition have already leaked. The Jungle Awakens and Creeping Winter DLC will add a whole lot of stuff to the ARPG title.

Here's everything we know so far about the Jungle Awakens DLC.

Not your average Minecraft

Minecraft Dungeons

$30 at Microsoft (Xbox One Hero Edition)

Minecraft explores the dungeons.

Minecraft Dungeons is the next saga in Minecraft's story, and Mojang Studios have knocked another one out of the park. Awesome co-op combat paired with powerful loot, all at a crazy affordable price? There's not much more you could ask for in an epic dungeon crawling ARPG.

What do I need to know about the Jungle Awakens DLC for Minecraft Dungeons?

Now that Jungle Awakens is officially out and in the wild, it's not necessary to speculate any longer about the DLC for Minecraft Dungeons. We know exactly what this expansion pack contains for fans of Mojang Studios' co-op ARPG, and it's a decent amount of change ahead of the game's second DLC, Creeping Winter. From our early preview with Jungle Awakens, we saw the game's long-term potential with these expansions.

So what do you need to know now that the DLC is finally out? We've compiled all of our guides and news in one place to make it as easy as possible for you.

Guides and changelogs

Jungle Awakens was more than just more levels and mobs, and also fixed a lot of issues and balancing problems with Minecraft Dungeons, launching alongside a free update that came to all players, whether or not you purchased the DLC. The changelog for Jungle Awakens is extensive, but we've organized it to make it easy to read and understand.

Beyond that, there are two levels in the Jungle Awakens DLC that may not be immediately noticeable, since you don't casually unlock them while playing through the DLC. The first is Lower Temple, which is added as part of the free update. You can find this level inside of the larger Desert Temple level on the main island, rather than the new Jungle Awakens island. That's not to say Jungle Awakens doesn't also have its own hidden level, as you can find the hidden Panda Plateau level by exploring the Dingy Jungle area.

What comes next?

Now that Jungle Awakens has been released, what's next for Minecraft Dungeons? The team is far from done, as they have a second DLC on the roadmap, and more content even further out than that. We were lucky enough to chat with a Minecraft Dungeons lead about the future of their game, which outlined some of the plans, as well as what could happen after the upcoming Creeping Winter DLC.

Speaking of the Creeping Winter DLC, we now have an official release date for Minecraft Dungeon's second expansion. Creeping Winter, along with another free update, will drop September 8, 2020, and add lots of new content to Minecraft Dungeons. New levels, mobs, equipment, and vendors for the camp should all be expected. And, as promised, Creeping Winter will be available as part of the Hero Edition or Hero Pass (or available to purchase separately, if you wish).

But that's not all that's coming. On the day that Creeping Winter launches, Minecraft Dungeons is getting a physical release! That's right, if you want a physical copy of Minecraft Dungeons, you'll be able to starting September 8, 2020. Physical copies will be available for Xbox, PS4, and Switch, and will feature all of the Hero Edition content. Even better, interested parties can pre-order Minecraft Dungeons on disc from Best Buy right now.

Now in physical

Minecraft Dungeons: Hero Edition

$30 at Best Buy (Xbox) $30 at Best Buy (PS4) $30 at Best Buy (Switch)

Dive into the dungeons on disc.

Minecraft Dungeons is already an epic co-op ARPG adventure on your favorite digital platform, but it has yet to be seen in the real world. Now that's about to change, with Minecraft Dungeons coming to discs for the first time with a physical release. Even better, the physical release is the Hero Edition, so it includes everything you need right out of the box.

What is the Jungle Awakens DLC for Minecraft Dungeons?

Update, August 14, 2020: Jungle Awakens is now officially out, so we've compiled a short section on all your need-to-know info right above. Everything below is a history of all the leaks, speculation, and pre-release information we uncovered about the DLC.

Update, June 06, 2020: We've been hard at work here at Windows Central, and we were able to discover a ton of new information about the Jungle Awakens DLC, including the names of several mobs, levels, and possible additions that could be added to Minecraft Dungeons at time of launch. More information below, or you can check out the original post here. We also got a sneak peek at a level from the Jungle Awakens DLC here.

Update, May 29, 2020: We now know the names of at least three brand-new mobs coming to Minecraft Dungeons with the Jungle Awakens DLC. These include leapers, whisperers, and poison quills. While we don't know for sure what the different mobs look like, or how they'll act in the game, we do know they're unique hostile mobs.

The Jungle Awakens DLC joins the Creeping Winter DLC as one of two expansions planned for release later on. Both expansions should feature a decent amount of new content, but the Jungle Awakens DLC revolves around a humid, living landscape, rather than the barren, frozen one of its brother. There's going to be new areas, mobs and gear.

However, we know that Jungle Awakens is the first DLC for Minecraft Dungeons, and it's be included with the Hero Edition. While the Creeping Winter DLC has not been similarly confirmed by Microsoft, it's safe to say it has a good chance of being the second DLC, planned for release Fall of 2020.

New levels

We now know that the Jungle Awakens DLC includes at least three levels, with possibly more sub-levels hidden away in a similar vein to areas like Creepy Crypt and Soggy Cave in the main game. We also know the names for two of these levels.

Overgrown Temple. This level looks to take place in the ruins of an ancient jungle structure, with pitfalls, crumbling precipices, and a lot of verticalities. It also seems to be very heavy on the undead mobs.
Dingy Jungle. This level takes things to, well, the jungle, and seems to feature a lot more plant-like mobs. We know at least one of the new mobs will be here, and some plant variants of existing mobs, like the mossy skeleton.

On top of that, we know that there is one other dungeon that is a part of Jungle Awakens, but will actually be coming in a free update, and won't rely on players owning the full DLC. The dungeon is called "Lower Temple." We don't know anything about it, but we won't have to wait long to find out.

New mobs

There could be any number of new mobs added in Jungle Awakens, but we know of at least seven. Most of these mobs appear to be hostile mobs, with a few being variants of mobs we're all very familiar with. We don't have a ton of information on individual mobs yet.

Jungle zombie.
Mossy skeleton.
Leaper / leapleaf.
Whisperer.
Poison quill.
Ocelot.
Parrot.
Panda.

At least in the case of the parrot, we're confident that this is a cosmetic pet, meaning it won't aid you in battle. The ocelot could be another companion, like the wolf, which would be awesome. The others should all be hostile mobs, with the jungle zombie and the mossy skeleton being variants.

Finally, we know that Jungle Awakens has a final boss named the Jungle Abomination, who should put up a pretty good fight to all but the hardiest of players. We're excited to see what it looks like when the DLC drops on July 1, 2020.

New gear

We have found evidence of a ton of new gear, including artifacts, weapons, and armor. Still, it's tough to decipher which will make their appearance in Jungle Awakens and which will be reserved for Creeping Winter, so bear in mind that not everything here may make it in the first DLC for Minecraft Dungeons.

As for weapons, we've found a whip class of melee weapons that could be very interesting, which is almost certainly for Jungle Awakens due to the vine-like design of the Unique variant. We've also seen an Ocelot Armor, with multiple prints in leopard and grey.

Artifacts might include things like the Totem of Soul Protection, which sounds like a defense-focused artifact for souls players, and Corrupted Seeds, which might summon poisonous plant minions or cause area-of-effect damage. Finally, there's an artifact called Caller's Bane, but we don't know what it looks like, so we can't make too many guesses about what it might be.

New mechanics / consumables

This is another one that has us a little stumped at the moment. Consumables that are already in the game have inventory icons in the game files, leading us to believe that there's either a plan to implement a new mechanic involving potions (possibly swapping out the health potion for something else?), like brewing potions, for example or something that was being planned but was dropped. Either way, there are indicators for two potions we've never seen before: the Oakwood Brew and the Sweet Brew. The Oakwood Brew looks like it could bolster defense similar to the Iron Hide amulet, but we don't have any ideas on the other.

There's also a melon consumable in the game files, which makes perfect sense given that melons can only be found in jungles in vanilla Minecraft.

Something that was curiously missing from the base game was the ability to power up items that you wanted to keep. The way that things are now, even the rarest, most powerful Unique weapons quickly become obsolete as you progress, leaving you to either change playstyles or grind to find that specific piece of loot again. With enchantments further muddling the waters, it can become frustrating.

It seems something was planned, being a mason that would exist next to the blacksmith in camp. We were disappointed to find that only two vendors exist right now, which doesn't give you a ton of ways to spend your emeralds. That may change with Jungle Awakens, with diamond dust again showing up in the game files, which was supposed to accompany the mason.

Basically, you'll be able to purchase diamond dust with emeralds, and then use the diamond dust to level up existing gear, instead of needing to replace it with better versions. We're not sure what the costs would look like on this, but it's desperately needed in the game, especially as more players progress into the endgame.

New challenges

Minecraft Dungeons is a ton of fun, especially with friends, but it leaves a little to be desired when it comes to the variety of gameplay and the endgame loop that is usually the strongpoint for ARPG's like Diablo. While we've long speculated something similar to Diablo's Rifts, but with the Nether Portal you can find in camp, we also need the motivation to continue playing the game long after we've seen all the levels.

We're not sure what it'll look like or if it's going to happen, but Mojang Studios could be planning a daily and weekly challenge system, possibly accompanying seasonal events, to encourage players to accomplish specific tasks in exchange for rewards. This could be very interesting, depending on how it's done, but we don't know what the challenges could be or how players would be rewarded for completing them.

When is the Jungle Awakens DLC for Minecraft Dungeons release date?

Update, August 14, 2020: The Jungle Awakens DLC for Minecraft Dungeons has been out for a while now, since July 1, 2020, and we are now preparing for the release of the next DLC, Creeping Winter, which is coming on September 8, 2020.

Update, June 26, 2020: In typical fashion, Mojang Studios decided to announce the official release date for Jungle Awakens mere days before. July 1, 2020, Jungle Awakens will go out to all Minecraft Dungeons platforms and will be included for free with any Hero Edition or Hero Pass owners. Those who bought the base game or played through Game Pass will need to buy the DLC or purchase the Hero Pass. We also learned a few more tidbits about Jungle Awakens, so the information above has been updated. Check out our original article here for more info.

Update, May 29, 2020: We've now received official confirmation from Microsoft that reaffirms our previous assumptions: Jungle Awakens is the first full DLC for Minecraft Dungeons, and it's coming in July 2020! This means that Creeping Winter will follow, and judging by previous leaks, we're expecting a September 2020 release date. We also know more about new mobs being added. You can read more about the announcement here.

Update, May 28, 2020: Due to a Nintendo eShop page, we may now know when the Creeping Winter and Jungle Awakens DLC packs are planned to release. We don't know which order they'll come in, but the planned release dates might be July or September 2020. Find out more here.

Thanks to an official announcement straight from Microsoft and Mojang Studios, we now know that prior leaks for the game were accurate: one of the two DLC packs being included in Minecraft Dungeons: Hero Edition is none other than Jungle Awakens, which comes to Minecraft Dungeons in July 2020. Exact dates and pricing details are still unknown, but those who bought the upgraded version of the game will get the DLC at no additional cost.

Using this information, we can now surmise with reasonable confidence that Creeping Winter, the other DLC be believe is planned for Minecraft Dungeons, is coming in September 2020. We'll keep our eyes peeled for any new info, and keep you posted whenever we find out something new!

Not your average Minecraft

Minecraft Dungeons

$30 at Microsoft (Xbox One Hero Edition) $20 at Microsoft (Xbox One) $30 at Microsoft (Windows 10 Hero Edition) $20 at Microsoft (Windows 10)

Minecraft explores the dungeons.

System Admin Stuff

Monday, 17 August 2020