Minecraft Legends will feature the franchise's first PvP mode

A Minecraft Legends player on a toucan raises a flag

(Image credit: Mojang)

Mojang has unveiled a bevy of new information about Minecraft Legends at Xbox’s Developer Direct, focusing mainly on the upcoming strategy game’s PvP offering. The main takeaway, however, was announced at the end. The Minecraft Legends release date is April 18.

If you don’t fancy tackling the story-driven campaign’s co-op mode online, you can team up with and against friends in a mode where one side must destroy the other’s base. There are two teams of up to four players in each match, with crossplay allowing you to play with pals on different platforms.

Army and resources will be shared among the team, so you’ll want to decide among yourself who goes item collecting and who stays behind to build. Much like Minecraft, each map is procedurally generated, so you won’t be memorising any farming routes here.

It’s also worth mentioning that a horde of Piglin will also be present in each match, meaning that you’ll need to decide if it’s worth attacking them for resources and opening yourself up for an attack from the enemy team.

While Minecraft has always offered co-op shenanigans, proper PvP action has typically been left to the players – if you fancy checking a few modes out, take a peep at our Minecraft servers guide. In Minecraft Legends, however, you’re getting something built around the idea of letting you knock your mate’s block off from the word go.

Minecraft Legends was initially unveiled last year, with Mojang teaming up with Homeworld studio Blackbird Interactive to put it all together. You play the part of a hero tasked with rallying the troops and pushing back an invasion of Piglins from the Nether. Minecraft Legends releases in three months, so you won’t have to wait too long to play it.