The long-awaited “Adventure Update” for Minecraft is now available without having to mess around with those .jar files.  The game rewards you for both exploration and combat to a greater degree than previous versions while keeping the goal-free sandbox play we all love and adore. Here’s the full list of what’s been added and changed in the update:

• Added a brand new biome generation code that simplifies life a lot and makes things much more exciting for the future

• Added new mob; Endermen

• Added FOV slider

• Added brightness slider

• Added randomly generated ravines

• Killing a monster makes it drop experience orbs

• The player can level up by gathering experience orbs

• Added randomly generated houses

• Added huge mushrooms

• Using bonemeal on small mushrooms grows the mushroom into a giant mushroom if there’s room

• Rewrote the light rendering to use multitexturing instead of direct colors

• Sky light and block light have different tints, cool colors for sky light, warm for block lights

• Added critical hits that deal

• 50% damage, plus an extra point to make crits with weak weapons worth it

• If the player hits a mob while falling, they always hit a critical hit

• The game now keeps track of damage sources and types

• Some damage type ignore armor now; drowning, being on fire (but not being IN a fire), falling out of the world

• Ice now only spreads next to existing ice or from coast areas

• Made the explosions prettier

• Made level height depend on a single variable (the level height still is 128, but it’s more moddable now)

• Added sprinting

• Added hunger

• Food is now stackable

• Improved the logo

• Added suspended particles to water

• Added a server list so you can remember multiple servers

• The player regenerates slowly while the food bar is high

• Eating food now takes time

• Skeletons hold their bows better now

• Added melons

• Made melons and pumpkins farmable

• Animals that get hurt will flee randomly for a short while

• Pigs have snouts now

• Made a flashier title screen

• Looking towards the sun during sunset/sunrise changes fog color

• Added fence gates

• Added a player list to multiplayer

• Added Silverfish

• Added Cave Spider

• Added huge underground dungeons (stronghold)

• Added underground mine shafts

• Added melon

• Added sprouts for melons and pumpkins

• Added vines

• Added iron bars * Fixed mushrooms spreading infinitely * Fixed caves generating with too many dead ends

That should keep us all busy for a while, then — at least until Notch and the team start teasing us with what’s coming in version 1.9. Update the game simply by logging in and start your grand adventure today!