Bedrock Edition

Minecraft: Bedrock Edition (officially just Minecraft) refers to the multi-platform versions of Minecraft developed by Mojang Studios, Xbox Game Studios, and SkyBox Labs and based on the Bedrock codebase.

Bedrock codebase
The term "Bedrock Edition" comes from the Bedrock codebase, which was created in the programming language to run on platforms that cannot support. Code was added to accommodate differences in the target platforms for such facilities as networking and storage access, though around 90% of the code is used on every platform. This common core of functionality is called the "Bedrock Engine".

The codebase resides within a software system that manages the pieces of code and tracks their evolution. This allows the codebase to host not only the current version but all past versions, the standalone Bedrock Dedicated Server (BDS) versions, and several Beta versions simultaneously with no conflicts.

Target platform builds are created individually, then transmitted to the platform's app store. Most stores have their own compliance requirements and subject the incoming edition to a series of certification tests before making it available for download. Xbox Game Studios attempts to synchronize availability across stores, but the certification process is not under their control and can delay an edition's availability on a certain platform, especially if it fails certification and has to go back to the developers for a fix.

Bedrock code is used for, , , and , as well as the discontinued , , and.

Nomenclature
Up until June 7, 2022, the name "Bedrock Edition" was not the official name of any edition of the game. Starting with the Better Together Update, all Bedrock editions of Minecraft have been named simply Minecraft. Before then, they each had a subtitle identifying the target platform, including (for all mobile platforms),, , and. The earliest of these was, also known as "MCPE" or "PE", and these names were (and still are) sometimes used to refer to all the Bedrock editions, possibly even including those that were introduced after the renaming occurred.

The renaming of the Bedrock editions to Minecraft with no "Edition" subtitles created confusion in the community for several reasons:
 * This name had until then referred to the version now known as, which is not Bedrock Edition. The Java version was renamed to Minecraft: Java Edition at the same time the Bedrock editions were renamed to Minecraft, so for a while any use of the name was hopelessly ambiguous.
 * Although officially named just Minecraft, the Bedrock editions for consoles are marketed as Minecraft for Xbox, Minecraft for Nintendo Switch, and Minecraft for PlayStation 4. These names are similar to the s on the same platforms, styled as Minecraft: Xbox One Edition, Minecraft: Nintendo Switch Edition, and Minecraft: PlayStation 4 Edition, leaving many confused about the differences between the two versions.
 * The term "Minecraft" was (and still is) also commonly used to refer to the game in general.

Together, these complications made the official name Minecraft useless for referring to the Bedrock editions collectively. The editors of this wiki, however, needed such a term in order to describe the functioning of the Bedrock Engine across all editions, so despite there not being a real Bedrock Edition, the wiki chose to use this as a. Subsequently, the community adopted it as well and it is now the de facto standard term for referring to all the Bedrock editions collectively. Mojang Studios employees have also used Bedrock Edition to refer to said edition in news articles, until June 7, 2022 where both Java Edition for PC and Bedrock Edition for Windows are sold under one bundle, titled Minecraft: Java & Bedrock Edition for PC, marking the first official use of "Bedrock Edition" as a subtitle in any Bedrock editions.

Gameplay
The objective of the game remains the same as its and  counterparts, where players can build virtual realities in a sandbox-like environment. Like them, Bedrock Edition has survival elements such as hunger and brewing, and the Nether and the End dimensions. The multiplayer mode is cross-platform compatible between all supported devices.

Bedrock Edition differs from Java Edition and Legacy Console Edition in a variety of ways, such as more saturated graphics, different terrain generation, some exclusive items, and an official add-on system. The HUD and other elements vary for each relevant device. Players can interact with the game via keyboard and mouse, touchscreen or controller.

Differences from Java Edition include:


 * Some mobs, blocks and items behave and look differently from their Java Edition counterparts.
 * Multiplayer allows for 4 ways of player connection:
 * LAN, allowing for 8 or more players to be on a single world
 * Realms
 * a user-created external server
 * A Microsoft account. However, since December 1, 2020, also uses Microsoft accounts.
 * A list of "featured" (Mojang Studios partner) servers, offering predefined multiplayer mini-games in a Minecraft setting, is also provided.
 * A system to modify the game created and maintained by Mojang Studios

Some features of Bedrock Edition are available only on certain platforms.
 * Virtual reality is available only on Windows and PlayStation 4.
 * Importing or exporting worlds is supported only on Windows.
 * Joining servers through IP isn't supported by Xbox One, Nintendo Switch, or PlayStation 4.
 * Windows, Android, iOS, iPadOS, and Fire devices supports multiple different control types. Keyboard & Mouse, Controller, and Touch.
 * The scripting engine is available only on Windows.

Compatible devices
Some devices below these specifications have been known to work fine either with or without custom ROM images, kernels, and of the CPU. The CPU is not supported due to its lack of the floating-point unit. The "Tegra 2" processor is also not supported because it lacks support for Neon.

Development

 * Planned versions
 * Mentioned features
 * Unused features
 * Removed features
 * Development versions
 * Exclusive Features

Release
A video of an early prototype was released on Twitter, showing the game on the Xperia PLAY. The Alpha version was later released, and was released for different platforms on October 7, 2011. The non-exclusive version was going to be released on September 29 for Android but there were several severe bugs that needed to be fixed; the release was delayed until October 7.

A version for iOS devices was confirmed to be released before 2012 in an interview with Mojang Studios and was subsequently released on November 17, 2011.

Alpha
After the initial releases for Android and iOS, updates were released in parallel, with the same features being added for both platforms. During the Alpha stage, various aspects of gameplay were introduced into the Bedrock codebase including: crafting, smelting, more blocks, items, mobs and more game modes to bring it closer to the Java Edition. As the Pocket Edition development team works closely, often blocks released on the Java Edition are released around the same time for Pocket Edition. Certain features were also tested on Pocket Edition before their Java releases, such as beetroots and their related items, and also block models.

During the Alpha phase, the Bedrock codebase was ported to more platforms: first, Pocket Edition was released for Fire on September 13, 2012, and for Windows Phone on December 10, 2014. The Beta was released on July 29, 2015, at a higher price than Pocket Edition. was released April 27, 2016 for the same price as Pocket Edition.

Two other versions of Minecraft that are based on the Bedrock codebase, but separate from Bedrock Edition, were also released during this period. is a free and discontinued version of Minecraft for the Raspberry Pi, which was based on an old alpha version of Bedrock. was released for Windows and macOS on November 1, 2016.

Full release
On November 11, 2016, the full release of the game, version 1.0.0 (dubbed the Ender Update), was announced. It was released on December 19, 2016, along with the and. Pocket Edition began to receive updates again for Windows 10 Mobile on February 22, 2017.

From version 1.2.0, the Better Together Update, the Bedrock editions no longer have the "Edition" subtitle and are renamed to simply Minecraft. A port of Bedrock Edition for Xbox One was released along with the update, and one for the Nintendo Switch was released digitally and physically on June 21, 2018. PlayStation 4 users received the Bedrock Edition with the 1.14.0 update on December 10, 2019. Owners of the original for these consoles are able to download the new version for free. In October 2020, the Gear VR and Windows 10 Mobile editions of the game were discontinued. In June 2021, the Fire TV edition of the game was discontinued.

Beta and Preview test versions
Starting on November 22, 2013, Mojang Studios began to publicly release testing versions of full updates to Android users who opt into the beta program, in order to get major feedback, especially for bug reporting. This enabled the official updates to be considerably more stable.

Versions from 0.8.0 to 0.12.1 required opting into a Google+ group to receive development builds. Players would then see development updates appear as normal updates in the Play Store. On July 17, 2015, the Google+ group was removed due to the amount of spam and advertisements that the group attracted. On November 3, 2015, the PE Beta team published a dedicated blog that was subsequently used for users to opt into the 0.13.0 beta program and to display changelogs for these development builds.

The Xbox Insider Hub app is used to opt into the beta program on Windows since July 31, 2017, and on Xbox One since August 24. Before the release of the Better Together Update, the Xbox One beta was available only to owners of the digital version of the original, and not owners of the disc version.

Starting on January 31, 2022, the beta program was expanded to other platforms, starting with iOS and iPadOS, with Minecraft Preview. The previous beta program through Xbox Insider Hub has been phased out and replaced by Minecraft Preview.

Players can also test unfinished or work-in-progress features using Experimental Gameplay, a toggle that can be turned on through world settings, but once on, it cannot be turned off again in that world.

Price
Although all Bedrock editions are nearly identical, the price varies depending on the platform. The Android version costs 7.49 (5.41), while the iOS/iPadOS and Fire versions cost US$6.99 (GB£5.05). The PlayStation 4 and Xbox One versions cost US$19.99 (GB£14.45). The Windows and Nintendo Switch versions are the most expensive, both costing US$29.99 (GB£21.68), though the Windows version includes Java Edition and the Nintendo Switch version includes some DLC. DLC purchased from the Marketplace on one platform is usable on all other platforms, but the game itself is sold separately on each platform. Xbox achievements are not shared between platforms and buying the game on one of these platforms does not get the game on the others. The Xbox One and Windows versions are also playable to Xbox Game Pass for Console and PC Game Pass subscribers respectively, with both versions playable to Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and Xbox Game Pass Friends & Family subscribers. The Xbox One and PlayStation 4 versions are playable on the and  respectively via backward compatibility. As with all other versions of Minecraft, updates are free of charge. On Windows, the game can be launched via the Minecraft Launcher.

Sales
As of December 2013, Pocket Edition (the only Bedrock Codebase edition at the time) had sold 16.5 million copies, while at the same time, the had sold 13 million. These calculations came out after the 0.8.0 update. This was considered a huge success, with Pocket Edition outselling both Java Edition and Legacy Console Edition, despite being considered to be the least-developed at the time.

On December 2, 2016, Marsh Davies announced that Pocket Edition had sold over 40 million copies (at the time, Java Edition had sold over 24 million). This statistic included and.

Minecraft is also usually in the top 10 and regularly #1 in the Apple App Store's and Google Play's Paid Apps Section in the Top Charts.

Platform differences

 * Further information: Compare platform & features

There are several features in Bedrock Edition that are exclusive to certain platforms due to capability restrictions on different platforms. Here is a table of the features that are available only on certain platforms.