Mojang Studios has released the first pre-release for Minecraft 1.21.6, marking the beginning of the final development phase for the second major update of the year. This pre-release introduces important changes to Dried Ghast Block mechanics, overhauls the dialog system, and implements a new Quick Actions keybind, alongside numerous bug fixes.
Dialog System Overhaul Takes Center Stage
The most significant change in this pre-release is the complete redesign of Minecraft's dialog system. Players now have access to a new "Quick Actions" keybind (default: G) that provides fast access to content-configured dialogs. The system now allows dialogs to be configured to pause the game and determine what happens after an action is taken.
Every dialog type can now include inputs and submit information, with the dedicated input dialog types removed as they've become redundant. The order of elements has been standardized as body, inputs, and then actions, creating a more consistent user experience.
Dried Ghast and Happy Ghast Improvements
Several tweaks have been made to the Dried Ghast Block and Happy Ghast mechanics:
- Dried Ghast Blocks now emit a vibration frequency of 11 when their block state changes
- Shearing Saddles, Horse Armor, and Carpets emit vibration frequency 6, with an Unequip frequency of 4
- Ambient Dried Ghast sounds are now adjusted under the Blocks sound option rather than Ambient/Environment
- Players riding Happy Ghasts can no longer completely fly through Happy Ghasts ridden by other players
What's New for Resource Pack Creators?
For resource pack creators, version 63 introduces important changes to item models. The new "oversized_in_gui" field determines whether item models can extend beyond their inventory slots. Additionally, a new "player_head" special model type has been added to handle player profile texture loading and rendering.
These changes provide better control over item rendering while addressing issues with items clipping outside their intended boundaries. Notably, the "minecraft:head" special model type no longer supports profile loading from the minecraft:profile component.
Technical Updates and Version Changes
The pre-release updates the Data Pack version to 79 and Resource Pack version to 63, bringing significant technical improvements:
- The minecraft:custom click event has been expanded to carry full NBT tags
- Dialog body types now properly handle hover and click events on text components
- New dialog action types including minecraft:dynamic/run_command and minecraft:dynamic/custom
- Improved handling of player head textures and rendering
Bug Fixes Galore
The pre-release fixes 25 bugs across various aspects of the game, including issues with equipment slots, entity rendering, command behavior, and UI elements. Notable fixes include:
- Players can no longer fall through Happy Ghasts
- Fixed FPS drops related to cloud rendering
- Corrected issues with the keepInventory gamerule not working with armor.body and saddle slots
- Resolved problems with player heads not showing the correct skin in inventory
- Fixed naturally spawned zombie villagers being professionless
Mojang notes that from this point forward, development will focus primarily on bug fixes, with potentially multiple pre-releases per week as they approach the final release of 1.21.6.
Players interested in testing the pre-release can access it through the Minecraft Launcher by enabling snapshots in the "Installations" tab. As always, Mojang recommends backing up worlds before testing pre-release versions to prevent potential corruption.