Minecraft’s newest update added two in-game items that tie in toA Minecraft Movie. The first is a Lava Chicken Disc that drops after players defeat a Baby Zombie riding a Chicken, which is a reference to the viral Chicken Jockey meme from the movie. Themusic discplays a reworked instrumental version of Steve’s Lava Chicken song from the movie, this time featuring vocals from a singing villager. The second item is a painting of Dennis, Steve’s loyal pet wolf from the movie. Dennis quickly became a fan favorite, and now players can hang a tribute to him in their world.
Both the disc and the painting are fun little nods to the movie’s most viral moments, but that’s about as far as it goes.AMinecraftMovieintroduced new characters, items, and recipes that fans instantly loved. Since then, the community has stepped up with fan-made mods and YouTube tutorials that recreate movie elements using makeshift in-game tools. But none of that has been officially added to the game. Rather than building on the movie’s momentum, Mojang chose to play it safe with a couple of cosmetic items that don’t affect gameplay at all, so hopefully it goes a bit further with some additional updates.
Why Minecraft’s Items Are Nice, But Not Enough
Players have already started voicing their disappointment with how shallow the movie tie-ins feel. OnReddit, one user said that they’re not going to play theLava Chicken Discexcept to annoy their friends. AnotherReddituser commented that the Lava Chicken Disc doesn’t really fit in with all the other music discs. And they’re not wrong - the new music feels particularly disconnected fromMinecraft’s carefully built in-game lore and vibe. Given how successful the movie was and how much it expanded theMinecraftuniverse, fans expected something more meaningful than cosmetic fluff that feels out of place.
The same goes for the Dennis painting. It’s a static image with no interactivity, no context, and no in-game explanation for its existence. Wolves have long been part of the game, so Mojang had a perfect opportunity to introduce Dennis as a rare,unique tameable companion inMinecraftwith a special look or personality traits pulled from the movie. He could’ve even triggered mini-quests or random jungle or Nether encounters based on scenes from the film.
Mojang Can Take a Page Out of Epic Games’ Book
Epic Games has shown how deep IP crossovers can be. When it collaborated with Marvel, Epic didn’t just add superhero skins toFortnite; it created a whole game mode with a playable Thanos, Infinity Stones, and powers tied to the characters. In the recentStar Warscrossover, the game dedicated a whole season to the IP.Fortnite’sdefault Battle Royale modehad X-Wing and TIE fighters, Mythic Lightsabers, and the default loot pool was completely swapped out forStar Warsitems. Ultimately, other games having such deep crossovers is what makesMinecraft’s approach feel so disappointing. UnlikeFortnite, Mojang didn’t even need to deal with licensing issues because it co-owns theMinecraftmovie. Yet instead of using that freedom to create something expansive, the game has settled for two small cosmetic items thus far.
What Mojang Could Have Added (And Could Still Add)
One of the coolest additions inA Minecraft Moviewas theSuper Iron Golem, which was an Iron Golem wearing Boots of Swiftness. Mojang could have introduced it in the game as a new golem type, maybe as part of a special quest. The mechanics were already established in the film: dashing attacks, bigger jumps, and an area knockback effect. The movie also introduced a new villain, Malgosha. She was a corrupted sorceress who turned normal mobs into glitchy, twisted versions and infected entire biomes. Mojang could’ve brought her into the game through a special Corruption Event, where certain biomes glitch visually and mobs act in weird, unpredictable ways.
The movie also introduced fun new items, like Henry’s tater tot launcher, which he built using batteries, paperclips, and tots.Minecraftmay not have those exact materials, but Mojang could easily add similar items to create a custom recipe. The launcher could push backMinecraft’s mobsin a wide area or cover the ground in a grease effect that makes enemies slip. These additions would stay faithful to the movie’s tone while providing actual gameplay impact. Hopefully, the movie-inspired content continues beyond these meme-worthy additions, as they should only be a start of the game’s movie content.
