Java Edition Beta

Beta is the current development phase in Minecraft. It was announced on Notch's blog on December 11, 2010 and released nine days later, on December 20, 2010. As well as some minor updates, the transition from Alpha saw a 50% price increase (therefore making the cost 25% off the full price), a change in the disclaimer (Notch removed the line that said "all future updates will be provided free of charge") and minor updates to the main website.

Highlights include:


 * Tameable wolves
 * Cookies and Cake
 * Sleeping in a bed now resets your spawn position
 * Wool Dyes including a new ore, Lapis Lazuli
 * Note Blocks
 * Redstone Repeaters
 * Sandstone
 * Bones
 * New Minecraft logo and launcher
 * Spiders can climb walls and will no longer trample crops
 * Power rails and detector rails
 * Achievements and Statistics
 * Weather in different biomes

For full changes, see Beta version history.