Minecraft is a game that has been strongly shaped by its community since its earliest versions—from the name of the game to the implementation of mods and player suggestions. That’s why, between 2017 and 2023, Mojang held recurring votes letting players decide which updates should come next. Along the way, many features were left behind and never made it into the game. Today, we look back at the votes and see which ideas might still find their way into Minecraft in the future. It’s definitely not off the table, as the upcoming Copper Update shows.
Minecraft Mob Vote: What are Community Votes?
During the Community Votes—later mostly known as the Mob Vote—players could vote for new features via various social media channels. These were presented in humorous animations featuring developers Jens and Agnes. Whatever received the most votes was added to Minecraft in the following months or years. As we’ll see, that didn’t mean all other ideas vanished—some reappeared later in adjusted form.
Over time the Mob Vote grew huge and became controversial, as large creators could sway the outcome. In 2024, Mojang ended the format and changed how it plans updates. Even so, it’s exciting to see what was possible—and what might still be.
Minecraft Community Votes 2017–2023: Overview and upcoming features
Minecraft 2017 Mob Vote: Phantom, Wildfire, Barnacle, and Great Hunger
The first Mob Vote was surprisingly small and straightforward, considering how big Minecraft already was. In total, around 10,000 votes were cast across all rounds to decide on a new creature.
- Mob A “Barnacle”: An underwater creature with a big mouth and tentacles.
- Mob B “Phantom”: A flying monster that haunts sleepless players.
- Mob C “Great Hunger”: A lizard hungry for enchanted items.
- Mob D “Wildfire”: A stronger Blaze variant with shields and better defense.
The Phantom won and now attacks you if you haven’t slept for a long time. It’s one of the few sources of phantom membrane, which lets you repair your Elytra. The Wildfire was also used—but only in Minecraft Dungeons.
Minecraft 2018 Biome Chooser: Taiga, Desert, and Savanna
In the second vote you chose not between mobs but biomes. Here, a full 55,000 people took part—far more than the first time.
- Taiga: With sweet berries, foxes, and campfires.
- Desert: With oases, palm trees, and meerkats.
- Savanna: With baobab trees, ostriches, and termites.
The Taiga won. Many of the presented features still define the biome today—an update that really paid off. So far, none of the other biomes’ features have made it into the game.
Minecraft 2019 Biome Vote: Mountains, Swamp, and Mesa
The next year’s biome vote became one of the most important in Minecraft’s history. Across two rounds, about 500,000 people voted.
- Mountains: With goats, powder snow, and new mountain biomes.
- Swamp: With frogs, boats with chests, and mangrove trees.
- Mesa: With tumbleweeds, new cacti (prickly pear), and vultures.
The Mountains won—leading to the Caves & Cliffs Update, which completely changed world generation: new mountain biomes, taller and deeper worlds, and entirely new cave systems. Later, the Wild Update delivered the promised swamp content. Perhaps elements of the Badlands (Mesa) will follow one day.
Minecraft 2020 Mob Vote: Moobloom, Iceologer, and Glow Squid
From 2020 on, the choices were once again all mobs. Many designs came from other Minecraft titles. Over 1.5 million players took part.
- Moobloom: A yellow cow from Minecraft Earth with flowers on its back.
- Iceologer: Another illager lurking in icy mountains.
- Glow Squid: A bioluminescent squid.
The Glow Squid won. With its glow ink sacs, you can, among other things, make sign text stand out and add atmosphere underground.
Minecraft 2021 Mob Vote: Allay, Glare, and Copper Golem
With over 2 million votes, this was the biggest vote to date. And again, Mojang didn’t discard every idea.
- Glare: A leafy spirit that warns about dark cave sections.
- Allay: A blue helper that gathers dropped items.
- Copper Golem: A small golem made of copper that would have interacted with Redstone.
First, the Allay was added with the Wild Update. Players can also look forward to the Copper Golem—it’s coming too, albeit with slightly changed functionality, as the upcoming Copper Update shows.
Minecraft 2022 Mob Vote: Sniffer, Rascal, and Tuff Golem
For the penultimate Mob Vote, more than 2 million players joined again.
- Sniffer: Searches the ground and finds rare flower seeds.
- Rascal: Appears underground, offers hints, and gives useful items.
- Tuff Golem: A decorative statue that holds items.
The Sniffer won, with more than twice as many votes as runner-up Rascal. It was added with the Trails & Tails Update. Learn more in our guide (Minecraft Sniffer Farm: Automatic Methods for Rare Crops)
Minecraft 2023 Mob Vote: Armadillo, Penguin, and Crab
The last Mob Vote (2023) focused on cute animals. So far, none beyond the winner has been added.
- Crab: A mangrove-swamp creature that interacts with seaweed.
- Penguin: Lives on stony shores and swims in the water.
- Armadillo: Found in warm biomes; occasionally sheds its scute.
The Armadillo won. Its scutes are used to craft wolf armor—find details here (Wolves and Armadillos in Minecraft: Tips for Horn Shield Farming)
Conclusion: Winners, runners-up, and future Minecraft updates
The Minecraft Community Votes were a powerful way to involve players in development. Best of all: not only the winners made it in. The mangrove swamps (from the swamp vote) and the upcoming Copper Golem show that Mojang likes to revisit runner-up ideas later.
If you want to experience firsthand which features made it into the game thanks to these votes, rent your own Minecraft server
And who knows—maybe the votes will make a comeback one day.
