Bedrock Edition 1.2.0

For a guide about all content in this release and the other releases of the Better Together Update, see Bedrock Edition guides/Better Together Update.

**1.2.0**, the first release of the **Better Together Update**, is a major update to Pocket Edition that renamed it to simply *Minecraft*, added support for the Xbox One, introduced cross-platform gameplay, and leaped the game much closer to feature parity with *Java Edition*, adding features such as new world options, armor stands, parrots, firework rockets, and more. It was released on September 20, 2017, although the full rollout took a few days due to a large number of distribution channels and target devices involved. Support for the Nintendo Switch was also added to the game, however it was not deployed to that platform initially due to problems with cross-device connectivity and upgrading of old worlds. The target date for Switch deployment was postponed until June 21, 2018.

This update represented an important advance in the history of computer gaming in that it extended *crossplay* (short for *cross-platform gameplay*, the ability of players on different platforms to play interactively in the same world) to virtually all of the newest-generation gaming platforms. Previously, the *Pocket Edition* had supported cross-play between mobile, Windows 10, and VR platforms. This update added support for the Xbox One and Nintendo Switch, drastically increasing the number of devices that could participate.

The updated game was also designed to work with the Sony PlayStation 4, but Sony had previously declined to participate. Mojang said that it was in ongoing talks with Sony about a possible future agreement. Mojang also stated that it will consider porting this update to Macintosh, Linux, or any other platform with sufficiently strong demand, further expanding the crossplay concept. It wasn't until Bedrock Edition 1.14.0 that the PlayStation 4 got support for Bedrock Edition.

With the unification of so many different platforms under one version of the game, the nickname *Pocket Edition* became increasingly outdated. From 1.2.0 onwards, Mojang referred to this version as the *Bedrock Engine* or *Bedrock Edition* when distinguishing it from either the game as a whole or other versions of Minecraft. The name "Bedrock" came from the internal name for its source code database. To emphasize the broad range of supported devices, *Minecraft: Bedrock Edition* became known simply as *Minecraft.* The original Java version of Minecraft, which had formerly held that designation, was officially renamed *Minecraft: Java Edition* to avoid confusion.

## Additions

### Blocks

Banners
* Crafted like signs, but with one color of wool instead of planks.
	+ The color of wool represents the base color.
* Can be stacked to 16.
* Most patterns are created by arranging dyes in certain ways around a banner on a crafting table (see the page on banners for a full list).
	+ Other patterns are achieved with specific items.
		- Item – pattern: "creeper head – creeper face", "wither skeleton skull – skull and crossbones", "brick block – brick texture background", "oxeye daisy – flower icon", "vines – curly border" and "enchanted golden apple – Mojang logo.
		- Making these patterns without dyes results in a black color by default
* Banners can have up to six layers (in survival).
	+ Over a quadrillion possible combinations, counting rotations and visually identical patterns due to occlusion.
	+ The layers show in the order they were created.
	+ Custom banners with more than six layers are possible using commands.
* Top-most layer can be removed using cauldrons.
	+ This removes a third of the water of a full cauldron.
	+ All layers can be removed.
* Can be placed on walls or on the ground.
* They are visually like an entity that is one block wide and two blocks tall, but in reality they are a block occupying the lower portion, but having a bigger model.
	+ The hitbox is smaller than a full block, and it lacks any collision properties.
		- This allows for a solid block to occupy the upper portion of the banner.
	+ They are vulnerable to be destroyed by either water or lava flows.
	+ On the ground they have 16 different possible rotations (like an armor stand).
	+ Has an animation when placed on the ground, that simulates swaying with the wind.
* Can be worn as head gear, but only using the `/replaceitem` command.
* Can be cloned by crafting them together, with a blank banner of the corresponding base color.
* Can be used as fuel in furnaces.

Jukeboxes
* Plays music disc inside them

Coarse dirt
* Grass or mycelium cannot grow on it.
* Obtainable only through commands.
* Does not spread.

Structure Blocks
* Placeable only via `/setblock`, but unusable.
* It has 4 different modes: save, load, corner and data.
* It has an "S" on the texture in save mode, "L" in load mode, "C" in corner mode and "D" in data mode.
* Version exclusive: Only usable in Windows 10 and have a 3D Export mode that can't be changed.

### Items

Book and quill
* Right-click to write on and edit up to 50 pages or read.
* Click 'Done' to save the book, 'Sign' to choose a title and finalize the book.
* Crafting recipe: 1 ink sac, 1 feather and 1 book in any possible shape.
* Version exclusive: Can hold two pages at the same screen
* Version exclusive: Edit button to change the words per page

Firework star
* Used to create firework rockets.
* Combine gunpowder with dyes to get a firework star with those colors used for the sparkles.
* Add  Glowstone Dust, a  fire charge, a  diamond, a  gold nugget,  feather, or a  mob head to make the firework twinkling, big, trailing, star-shaped, bursting, or creeper-shaped, respectively.
* Craft a firework star with dye to change the color that the sparkles fade to.

Firework rocket
* Non-destructive, rise up in the air, and create colorful patterns when shot by dispensers or placed by players.
* Combine  paper with  gunpowder to craft a firework rocket.
* Add a firework star to add effects, or gunpowder to increase the flight duration.
* Version exclusive: Can be launched in any direction depending on the direction a dispenser is facing

Music discs
* 9 new music discs added.
	+ 11
		- It can't be dropped from creeper which get killed by skeletons
	+ Blocks
	+ Chirp
	+ Far
	+ Mall
	+ Mellohi
	+ Stal
	+ Strad
	+ Ward

Spawn eggs
* Parrot
* Zombie villager

### Mobs

Parrots
* Fly around, but sit when "tired".
* Tamed with seeds.
* If fed cookies, the parrot dies.
	+ Poison particle effects are emitted, but they are not actually killed by poison.
	+ If a player has tamed a parrot and then fed it cookies, it will display the message "*Parrot was slain by <player>*".
* Follow and crowd around nearby mobs.
* Imitates sounds of hostile mobs.
* Parrots dance if playing music on a nearby jukebox.
* Right-click action available:
	+ Right-click on a tamed parrot tells it to sit down.
* Walking over/through/near a tamed parrot while crouching will cause it to sit on the player's shoulders.
	+ Will let go if the player jumps.
	+ Can fly with players during elytra flight.
* Have 6 health.
* Come in red, blue, green, cyan and gray.

### Non-mob entities

Armor stands
* Crafted using a stone slab and 6 sticks.
* Stacks up to 16.
* Can ride on minecarts.
* Can be used to decoratively display armor (including pumpkins, mob heads and player heads).
	+ Armor can be right-clicked to equip the armor stand.
	+ Armor can be equipped by dispensers aimed at any part of the stand.
		- In survival it is allowed to hold only one piece of each different kind of armor at a time.
		- It isn't restricted by the material or any tags of the armor.
	+ Armor can be removed by right-clicking while pointing on the piece of armor the player wants to remove.
	+ Can render enchanted and dyed armor as if it were a mob/player.
* While in creative:
	+ Using pick-block on any tangible armor stand gives the player a default stand.
	+ NBT tags can be used to summon armor stands which are small (`Small`), invisible (`Invisible`), have arms (`ShowArms`), have disabled slots (`DisabledSlots`), have no base plate (`NoBasePlate`), have no gravity (`NoGravity`) and are in pre-configured positions (`Pose`) – This can be done only through commands.
		- Armor stands with arms can be equipped with items to hold, so they display the same way as players/mobs.
* Version exclusive: Can pose without commands
* Version exclusive: Can hold tools such as swords without the need of commands
* Version exclusive: Have a limited amount of poses that can be switched between by sneaking and interacting with them (right-clicking by default).
* Version exclusive: Redstone power can also change the pose

### Gameplay

Dual wielding
* You can now put a map in the off hand

Crafting
* The crafting system now incorporates both the recipe book and the classic crafting grid.

Options
* World starting preferences
	+ Starting Map
	+ Bonus Chest
	+ Trust Players
* Gamerule preferences
	+ TNT Explodes
	+ Natural Regeneration
* Gamerules can be toggled in the options menu
* Player permissions
* In-game server host options
* Worlds can now be set to Invite Only, Friends Only, or Friends of Friends
* Render Clouds and Fancy Leaves can now be toggled in Video Settings

### General

* Splitscreen functionality
* In-game help guide
* How to play/tutorial screen
* New loading screens with tips
* Common profane words (in many languages, including Japanese and Chinese) are now censored by the game.
* Google Play license verification (Android only)
* Remix 3D export functionality (Windows 10 only)
* Underwater particles

### Command format

Version exclusive
`/tickingarea`
* Replaces the functionality of spawn chunks in *Java Edition* and allows the creation of areas that update even if no player is around
* Many ticking areas can be created as long as the chunk limit is not exceeded
* Ticking areas work inter-dimensional
* Enables features such as crop growth, command blocks, redstone and mob activity when the player is not around
* Command variations:
	+ `/tickingarea add <from: x y z> <to: x y z> [name: string]` (adds a ticking area for a set string in a defined area)
	+ `/tickingarea add circle <center: x y z> <radius: int> [name: string]` (adds a ticking area for a set string in a defined circular area)
	+ `/tickingarea remove <position: x y z>` (removes a ticking area from a position)
	+ `/tickingarea remove <name: string>` (removes a ticking area from a set string)
	+ `/tickingarea remove_all` (removes all ticking areas)
	+ `/tickingarea list [all-dimensions]` (lists all ticking areas)

Version exclusive
`tick_world`
* Prevents entities from despawning and makes an entity load the world
* Optional despawn distance available for entities which should despawn when players are far away (e.g. Ender Dragon)

Target Selectors
* Added @s selector
	+ Used to target the entity executing the command

## Changes

### Blocks

Beacon
* Light beams change color when going through stained glass and stained glass panes
* Version exclusive: The light only takes the color of the highest stained glass and the colors can't be mixed

Ice
* Is now transparent

Stained glass and stained glass panes
* Now have their own textures, and are obtainable without the use of inventory editors.
* Version exclusive: Changed the inventory icons for glass panes, stained glass panes and iron bars

Banners
* Now spawn on end cities

Observer
* Have updated textures and will now blink red when outputting a redstone pulse
* Can now detect many more block changes
* Increased the strength of the redstone pulse outputted by observer blocks and they no longer pulse twice when observing a retracting piston

Brick blocks, nether brick blocks, and clay blocks
* Renamed to better differentiate from other items

Single glass panes, stained glass panes, and iron bars
* Are now rod-shaped

Beds
* A message will now display when a bed is too far away when attempting to sleep
* Colored beds can no longer be dyed using the same color of dye

Trapdoors
* Will now open when placed to adjacent, active power sources

Sandstone Slab
* The underside of them now have the cracked texture

Mycelium
* No longer turns into dirt when there's a giant mushroom above it

Shulker boxes
* Are initially crafted as an undyed variant rather than purple, as a result, there are now 17 shulker box colors

Piston s
* Now push arrows

Diorite, Andesite, and Granite
* can no longer be used as a replacement for stone in crafting recipes

Monster spawners
* Can now only able to spawn up to 4 mobs at a time

Paintings
* Can now occupy same space as snow and carpet

Emerald Ore
* Can no longer be mined with a stone pickaxe

Signs
* No longer catch fire

All Blocks
* Can now be placed on top of fences that have Lead knots attached

### Items

Maps
* Version exclusive: Player heads now appear on maps
* Locator maps now track the owner's position, regardless of dimension
* Empty maps can now be combined with a compass on an anvil to create a locator map
* Incrementally zooming out a map and renaming it on an anvil now costs only experience level
* Maps, including exploration maps, can now be obtained using the `/give` command

Lead
* Leash knots can now be untied using right-click
* Leash knots now play a sound when placed

Arrows
* Now shake upon impact with blocks

All Items
* Items can now travel upwards through solid blocks, allowing for 3x3 item elevators

### Mobs

Mooshroom
* Now only spawns on mycelium blocks

Witches
* Will now drink a Potion of Fire Resistance when standing on magma blocks

Skeletons, strays, and zombie pigmen
* Now have a chance of spawning with enchanted gear and weapons

Skeleton horses
* Can now be saddled

Snow Golem
* Face can now only be seen once it's sheared.

Ender Dragon
* Particles will now appear when the uses its dragon's breath attack while perched

Sheep
* Will no longer drop wool to die when they sheared

Polar Bear
* Adult variants now panic when on fire

Villager
* Farmer villagers now trade 5-7 apples for one emerald

Horse
* Riding a horse while eating or drinking will no longer slow it down

All Mobs
* Mobs will now avoid cacti, fire, and lava

### Non-mob entities

Boats
* No longer continue to move when the player leaves the boat and a mob is still in it

Lingering water bottles
* Will now deal damage to blazes, endermen, and snow golems

Fireball
* Can now set obsidian on fire and open Nether portals

Minecart
* Shooting bows and eating can now be done while riding in them

### World generation

Woodland mansions
* Will now spawn with birch wood floors instead of oak

### Gameplay

Brewing
* Now requires blaze powder

Fishing
* Now uses the proper loot tables to acquire enchanted items and books

* Items picked up are now animated on the hotbar
* Temperature decreases with height
* Block placement speed now matches the player's movement speed
* Adjusted the color that flashes when mobs are attacked
* Text chat can now be opened with controllers and touch screens when sleeping in a bed
* Players can now go to bed if there are monsters nearby on Peaceful difficulty
* Directional audio will continue to match the player's point of view while standing still
* Increased the pace and smoothness of moving up stairs while riding a mob
* The chat screen can now be closed by pressing Enter when no text is present
* Controller sensitivity is now set to 50 by default
* The pause button now appears on the HUD (Android Only)
* New trade offers from villagers can be observed quicker, after the trades are unlocked
* Only one bucket can be placed in a furnace at a time
* Players can no longer drink milk instantly after milking a cow
* Players can now spawn into areas occupied by partial blocks
* The GUI can now be hidden by pressing F1 while riding in boats
* You now start creative mode worlds with an empty hotbar.

### General

* App name is now "Minecraft"
* Skins can be changed from the pause menu
* Chat messages can now be muted
* Block selections can be shown using a black outline, rather than displaying the block as a lighter color (similar to *Java Edition*)
	+ Old block selection interface can still be used, although the new interface is default on Xbox One and Switch
	+ Hiding UI elements now hides block selections as well
* Redesigned button mapping and added Pick Block for controllers
* Increased the default player limit on worlds from 5 to 8 on higher-end devices
* New loading screen when entering a new world or crossing dimensions
* Removed some splashes:
	+ "Better than Prey!"
	+ "Sexy!"
	+ "Switches and ores!"

### Command format

* Version exclusive: A user interface layer to easily set the teleport, time, and weather commands.
* New command parsing system
	+ Autocomplete works "everywhere", including selector arguments
* `/tp`
	+ Version exclusive: `^` used for coordinates relative to the direction the player is facing.
	+ Version exclusive: `facing mode` to make the target entity face a specified location/entity upon teleportation.
* `falling_block` is selectable in commands now.
* Version exclusive: `fishing_hook` is also selectable in commands now.
* Version exclusive: `/detect` is now its own separate command
* Players with Op status will now receive messages about commands that were entered by another Op

## Fixes

* The moon is now correctly oriented
* Ghasts will no longer shoot fireballs from farther than they can be seen
* 'Great View From Up Here' achievement is now unlockable
* Players will no longer burn when standing near lava in the Nether
* The Lapis Lazuli icon is no longer missing from the Enchantment Table screen
* Wolves tamed by players not present in a session will no longer change their whole body color
* End rods now give off light particles
* Glazed Terracotta now shows proper colors on maps
* Dandelions can now be crafted into yellow dye when Pocket UI is enabled
* Fixed quartz pillars not being craftable using Pocket UI
* Fixed the level up sound not playing for every five levels gained
* Other players should no longer be seen levitating in their sleep
* Sounds now play when witches drink potions
* Fixed a crash that could occur when destroying maps
* Fixed a crash that could occur when the host enters a portal in multiplayer
* Fixed the texture of fences in the inventory and in-hand
* The available enchants on enchantment tables will no longer revert to the originally available enchants upon world reload
* Evokers will no longer attack players on Peaceful difficulty
* Mining speed with Haste II and Efficiency V has been increased to its correct speed
* Signs can no longer be set on fire
* Fixed the hand placement of tools on the inventory screen
* Fixed names above baby animals being too high
* Fixed an item duplication issue that occurred when Pocket UI was enabled
* Fixed the position of several items when held in the off-hand
* Horses can no longer run off when loading a world if they were leashed to a fence
* Fixed graphical issues that sometimes occurred at sunset
* The proper sound now plays when Evokers are transforming blue sheep
* The cellular data warning message will now appear in Settings when using a controller
* Singleplayer worlds no longer appear in the Friends tab
* Anvils will no longer consume the entire input stack when crafting a map
* Fixed some players appearing invisible in-game when they should not be
* Fixed a crash when placing Glazed Terracotta with `/fill` and `/setblock` commands
* Fixed the controller tooltips shown on the inventory screen when placing and taking items
* Fixed icons stretching in the inventory when Pocket UI was enabled
* The crosshair now points at the correct block when sneaking
* Opening and closing the command block screen will no longer activate an observer block
* Fixed seeing through stairs, End portal and hoppers when they are placed next to each other
* Fixed milking a cow with the last bucket in a stack not giving milk
* Explosions near water will now properly deal damage to players and mobs
* The Wither will no longer play overlapping sounds
* Items will now be pushed when a transparent block is placed over them
* Creepers now flash properly when they're about to explode
* Chicken jockeys will no longer sink in the water
* Lingering potions will no longer clip through the player that threw them
* Block highlighting will no longer appear when Hide GUI is enabled
* Different top slab types no longer override each other
* Arrows will no longer infinitely bounce off the top of players in Creative mode
* Fixed a rogue pixel on the nametag texture
* Creepers will now take damage if they fall while following players
* End Stone now has the proper blast resistance
* Evocation fangs can now be summoned using commands
* Mobs will now drop loot and XP orbs when killed with a splash or lingering Potion of Decay
* Evokers no longer run away from invisible players
* Vexes will now attack villagers and iron golems
* Arrows are no longer deflected when shooting at burning mobs
* When fishing, the bobber will now submerge and play the right sound when a fish bites
* Realms that were named with the '§' symbol can now be renamed
* Command block chat messages will no longer appear on the pause menu
* Slimes will no longer clip through blocks
* Fish hooks will now properly stick to mobs
* Adventure mode can now be selected in the world settings for imported template worlds that were set to Adventure by default
* Baby villagers have learned how to hold items the right way
* Open fence gates can no longer push or pull entities
* The Ender Dragon's wings will no longer flicker
* The texture on top of TNT no longer rotates when ignited
* Adult polar bears now drop the correct amount of XP
* Cauldron water will no longer briefly change color when pushed by a piston
* Llamas will no longer creepily turn their heads to stare at the player while riding them
* Various fixes to the Marketplace screens
* Bats can no longer swim underwater
* Redstone repeaters and comparators now have the proper bottom texture
* The `/effect instant_damage` command will now cause damage if [amplifier: int] is 255
* Villagers no longer accept Charcoal as Coal while trading
* Fishing rods are now held properly in-hand
* The base of end crystals have been adjusted
* Nether Brick block side textures have been brightened
* The title now displays properly on the dispenser screen
* Iron Golems can no longer be knocked back with Punch arrows
* Iron Golems will now avoid fire
* Beds can no longer be placed in a way that clips through snow layers
* Various fixes to the Storage screen
* Setting the 'sendcommandfeedback' gamerule to false no longer prevents players from displaying non-op commands such as `/list` and `/help`
* Fixed texture clipping on the inside of Shulker boxes
* Shulker box opening and closing animations are now much faster
* Shulker boxes are now held properly in-hand
* Shulker boxes will now remain open until all players have closed the inventory
* Shulker boxes can now be opened when placed adjacent to Shulkers
* Shulker boxes placed by dispensers will now rotate based on the surrounding blocks
* Shulker boxes are no longer misaligned in item frames
* Shulker boxes now play the proper sound when placed and broken
* Shulker boxes dropped as an item can now be destroyed by explosions
* Shulker boxes now change their collision box when opened
* Shulkers can now be teleported using commands
* Shulkers can no longer be set on fire
* Shulkers have improved their camouflage and have restored their original color
* Shulkers can now be spawned upside-down from spawn eggs
* Shulkers can no longer teleport into a block already occupied by another Shulker
* Shulkers will now teleport out of water
* The hand will no longer wave repeatedly when a player can't build
* Bone meal is now properly consumed on tall grass and ferns
* Minecarts now wobble correctly when passing over activator rails
* Giving a resistance amplifier of 8 or higher no longer causes players to gain absorption health when hurt
* Fixed up the Ender Dragon's death animation so its wings no longer turn white
* Light no longer stays visible after burning a two-block tall plant
* Entities that are teleported while in boats or minecarts will no longer be teleported underground
* Fixed the text height on signs in the Greek Mythology Texture Pack
* Custom skins will now show properly on the skin picker without having to re-launch the game
* The `/fill` command will now return proper results, if failed
* The `/fill` command now gives repeaters the correct delay
* 'Pick block' will no longer behave strangely after dropping items from the inventory
* Blocks that are affected by gravity will no longer break when pushed by a piston facing up
* Repeating command blocks that are copied with 'pick block' and then placed will now activate repeatedly
* The "Open" button will no longer appear when looking at a command block in minecart while playing Survival
* Fixed redstone ore producing too many particles when items are dropped on top of them
* The Wither will now die in the void
* The Wither's heads will now look around more and skulls will now shoot from multiple heads
* Adjusted the look of Buttons that are equipped in-hand
* Large chests will now clone correctly when using the `/clone` command
* Fixed the missing wolf idle sounds
* Fixed some mismatched villager trading sounds
* Cats now purr again
* Beds placed with the `/fill` and `/setblock` commands will no longer be invisible
* Players will no longer fall one block when teleporting with an ender pearl
* Magma Cubes will now take drowning damage
* Villagers will now run away from Vindicators, Evokers, and Vexes
* Can no longer see through blocks when viewed from below and underwater
* Non-dyed leather armor with no longer use up water from a cauldron
* 'Pick Block' now works on llamas to get llama spawn eggs
* Arrows are now destroyed by end crystal explosions
* Arrows are now destroyed when using `/kill @e``[type=arrow]` and `/kill @e`
* Other mob heads no longer appear momentarily when a mob head is placed
* Fixed exploration maps showing as blank until the game is re-launched
* Fixed Add-Ons with dependencies not loading if there was another activated pack with dependencies
* Baby mob heads are now scaled properly with Add-Ons
* When an Ocelot spawns with two baby Ocelots, the baby Ocelots can now be tamed
* Mobs are now properly affected by Splash Potion of Strength
* Seeds will no longer pop off of covered farmland at night
* Farmland will only dry up if there is no nearby water and nothing is planted on it
* Arrows can now be picked up after shooting at Endermen
* Air bubbles will no longer appear on the HUD when suffocating inside blocks
* The `/setworldspawn` command can no longer be executed if the Y coordinate has a negative value
* Zombie Villagers now sit at the proper height in boats and minecarts
* Baby Zombie Jockeys will now properly mount mobs
* Rabbits now hop at the proper speed
* The 'mobgriefing' gamerule now applies to Monster Egg blocks
* Blocks can no longer be seen through when flying close to the ground with Elytra in third-person

## References

1. ↑ "All the News From E3!" – Minecraft.net
2. ↑ https://twitter.com/Chupacaubrey/status/910213343528419328
3. ↑ "The Better Together Update is here!" by Marsh Davies. Minecraft.net, September 20, 2017
4. ↑ "Minecraft Bedrock edition hits Nintendo Switch on June 21st! Available both digitally and physically at retail, it includes the Mario mash-up pack AND the Better Together update. Already own Minecraft on Switch? You'll be able to update to the new version for free!" – @Minecraft (Minecraft) on X, May 11, 2018
5. ↑ a b "Better Together (1.2) FAQ" – Minecraft.net
6. ↑ "#BetterTogether #MCPE Day 15: Classic crafting combined with regular recipe book style crafting on a touch screen UI, oh my!" – @argo\_major (Jason Major) on X, July 4, 2017
7. ↑  "It would be super helpful if you guys could list out the gameplay features that are in old console Minecraft that are not in Bedrock Minecraft that you want to see come over, that way we can look into them. Split screen I can tell you is already coming. So are parrots. :)" – u/chupacaubrey on Reddit, June 17, 2017
8. ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/MCPE/comments/6qsk4q/
9. ↑ https://www.reddit.com/r/Minecraft/comments/729dio/is\_there\_a\_way\_to\_turn\_off\_censorship/
10. ↑ "You made Better Together better than ever!" – Minecraft.net, September 15, 2017
11. ↑ "By the way the outline is optional, it will only be default on Xbox and Switch." – @\_tomcc (Tommaso Checchi) on X, July 1, 2017