Minecraft has shared the first features of its third game drop of 2026 at TwitchCon, and while we still have a lot to learn, we do know it’ll feature an entirely new forest biome: the dappled forest. After the Chaos Cubed update focused on bringing a new and exciting biome to the underground, I for one am excited to have somewhere new to explore in the overworld, especially given the autumnal aesthetic the biome will take on.
As shown in the reveal during Minecraft Live at TwitchCon, the dappled forest will consist of poplar trees with orange, yellow, and red leaves, as well as dirt blocks covered with leaf litter, new red shrubs, and brown mushrooms. You know, all those classic, cosy, fall features. The addition of poplar trees also brings a new wood set, which is a warm grey colour when broken down into planks and slabs.
However, between the trees you’ll also find abandoned camps, which are an exciting new structure. It looks like these camps will consist of a tent-like building made from wool stairs, another entirely new block Minecraft is adding, as well a few chests or barrels to loot. If anything though, they might just be a nice place to rest your head if you’re out at night and don’t want to dig a 3×2 hole in the ground to hide in while you wait for sunrise.
It’s just nice to have a brand new forest biome which doesn’t contain a threatening mob to explore. I did love the addition of the pale garden and the Creaking in 2024, but sometimes you just want a cosier adventure in Minecraft, and it looks like dappled forest aims to add just that. You never know though, a horrid monster could be added before the drop is officially released and make me eat my words, but at least for now it feels a little more laid back.
The bad news is that the dappled forest is still in very early stages of development, so it’s not available to test just yet. With that said, this biome will come to testing “in summer”, which hopefully means we’ll get some more information on the other features sooner than we think too. If you need any ideas though, Minecraft, a raccoon would be a really cool and suitable addition for this biome. Just saying.
