Minecraft Wiki:Projects/Wiki videos/Missing Java Edition versions

Throughout its existence, the original Java Edition of Minecraft has been in a state of near-constant development. Ever since late 2011, game versions have been saved to Mojang's cloud servers and have remained freely downloadable to the current date. However, before this point, when the game was updated, the jar file for the game was replaced on-the-fly, outright deleting the older game version. Due to this handling, many old versions have become lost to time, with no way of playing them and with very limited knowledge of their behavior and significance.

A common misconception within the community is that the launcher allows any version of Java Edition whatsoever to be played. Unfortunately however, this is simply not true, as while close to all versions from after the official release and a reasonable amount of versions from prior to the official release are accessible from it by default, a large number of versions are also completely absent from it - notably, absolutely no versions from the Indev development phase can be found within the launcher's list of versions by default. Many versions like these have been archived by dedicated teams and are available for download on the wiki like other versions, however there are further versions that yet still elude the community to this day.

This video will list all of the versions which we have screenshot or video proof for. A more comprehensive list of missing versions, including those whose existence is inferred by blog posts and IRC archives, can be found in the wiki article linked in the video description below. link to main can be found above

If you believe you are currently in possession of a copy of one of these versions, we recommend that you visit the wiki page of the version in question, and then visit its Talk page which can be accessed by the tab at the top of the page, and start a discussion regarding your findings.

Any versions listed in this video which are subsequently found will yet again be listed in a dedicated section of this video's description, so be sure to check that for any updates in archival efforts.

one more thing for the description: link to any videos sampled for footage, and any screenshots if possible (check the file page for credits, or ping me in discord if you want me to ask for image credits if you want to use one)

Classic
Screenshots provided can be cycled through during commentary/interpolated with video clips

Firstly we have a classic version, entitled 0.0.9a. A perhaps tragic starting point, as this version is confirmed to be the subject of the very first Minecraft video uploaded to YouTube which wasn't by Notch himself, but rather by beta tester EvilVille. Unfortunately this video has been lost to time, and while the video page can still be accessed via the internet archive, the video itself cannot. Despite this, there are still four individual screenshots of this version, solidifying its existence.

As an honorable mention, Classic 0.29_01 is a version we have archived. However, it had some edited files within, and as such technically isn't pure, as replacing these files with the expected files would result in a different checksum and modify dates within the jar which shouldn't be there. So while the gameplay you're seeing on screen is exactly the same as you'd get from a legitimate 0.29_01 jar, the jar not being fully original as is still stands, and a truly unmodified jar remains elusive.

Indev
From this point until the beginning of Alpha, details are going to get a whole lot more hazy. The Indev and Infdev development phases didn't have a proper versioning system, so the top left of the screen can't be relied on like before. All we have to go off of is upload dates, paying close attention to mechanics, and comparing what footage and photography we have with change logs and the like.

Firstly, we have a video of Indev from December 31, 2009. This is implied to be the first of two builds from that date, given that the second version changed the default hotbar contents to a different pool of items.

https://youtu.be/Iv1eVCc7bH8

The second version from this date has a video to its name, showcasing a so-called "particle glitch" allowing for infinite wood. This version also reintroduced item entities, with their physics being demonstrated in this screenshot of an effective shelf.

https://youtu.be/RRUoo_Nqc-g

Infdev
From this point onwards, the vast majority of Minecraft versions have been archived. Almost all significant versions of Infdev have been safely document, but with a few odd exceptions. The build currently being shown is one of two builds released on the 27th of February 2010, and is in fact the first version of Infdev ever released to the public. The thing that makes this version stand out is that the brick pyramids that generate in this version can actually generate higher than the world nether limit, which results in the pyramids getting cut off and having this big flat spot on top, making it more like a brick square frustum than anything. A build from later that day is archived, which has the trademark brick pyramids, obsidian walls and deep blue sky this era is known for, but the brick pyramid bug is fixed such that they'll never get cut off. So as it currently stands, the Brick Frustum Infdev Build is one of very few missing builds from the Infdev era of Minecraft's development, and one we as the Minecraft community would very much like to have.

https://youtu.be/bFigFw17hXg

Alpha
Thankfully, the release of Alpha brought back actual version numbering, making defining lost versions a far easier task than it previously was. There's a reasonable number of these to go through before ending off this video, so we'll start off strong with Alpha v1.0.1, bringing with it the legendary debut of redstone technology. This one, being the third member of the Seecret Friday updates, is reasonably well documented, with a dedicated blog post alongside a small handful of screenshots, as well as a video by YouTube user LouisWasTaken allowing us to clearly see the new introductions from this version.

Post on reddit

Conclusion
Remember that this video has only mentioned versions with third-party screenshots or videos, and doesn't count the very many versions mentioned in official blog posts, IRC logs, and various other places. We highly recommend that you visit our Missing Java Edition versions page to get the full picture and see the full list of lost versions. We'd also recommend that you share this video in order to spread the word on missing versions and make sure that as much of this game's history as possible can once more become freely accessible. With these versions getting older and older by the second, sitting on ancient hard drives threatening to crash, we want to make sure that these versions can once again stay secured in the grip of the Minecraft community.