Java Edition Early Classic

  refers to 14 versions of Classic released from May 16 to May 28, 2009.

General

 * GUI
 * In-game version number at the top left of the screen.
 * Includes FPS (frames per second) and chunk updates.
 * Options
 * unhooks the mouse and pauses the game.
 * Pressing now opens the pause menu.
 * Render distance
 * Pressing cycles between four levels of render distance.
 * Clouds
 * Added.
 * Other
 * Controller support.
 * Scroll-wheel block picking support.
 * Mobs saved in level data.

Blocks

 * Bedrock
 * Unobtainable to the player.
 * Sand and Gravel
 * Only appear naturally in one block-thick beaches (usually by water or in the middle of a landscape). These beaches were always at and below ocean level.
 * Rather than falling by turning into a falling block entity, sand instantly appears at the lowest point it could go when placed above an air block, without any sort of falling animation.
 * A glitch occurring at this time allowed players to raise the height of a fluid block by placing sand over it. The sand would stay suspended in mid-air until it was broken. When broken, a fluid block corresponding to the type below the sand would appear where the block was. The suspended fluid block would remain immobile until a block was placed next to it, causing a flood.
 * Gold Ore
 * Found in higher elevations, gold ore was often found in exposed surface-level veins.
 * Breaking gold ore gave the player 1–3 blocks of gold when mined.
 * Iron Ore
 * Spawns in huge veins, sometimes big enough to protrude into 3 caverns, and can have as many as 167 ores.
 * Breaking iron ore gave the player 1–3 blocks of iron when mined.
 * Coal Ore
 * Drops itself when mined.
 * Wood
 * Known as "logs".
 * Spawn as trees.
 * Leaves
 * Spawn on trees.

World generation

 * Ocean
 * An infinite ocean now surrounds the map.
 * Level sizes
 * "Huge" level size.
 * Trees
 * Spawn with wood and leaves.

General

 * Toggles
 * Right click now switches between placing and removing blocks.

Blocks

 * Saplings
 * Texture changed.
 * Water
 * Now flows to fill any available space below or next to it.
 * With just one water source you can flood the entire world.
 * Cobblestone
 * New texture.
 * Wooden Planks
 * New texture.