cave Archives

AppWizard

March 13, 2026

I’m celebrating Spring by helping a little frog wake up from hibernation in the cosy puzzle game Walk the Frog

Walk the Frog is a puzzle game where players guide a frog named Froggo, who awakens from hibernation, through various challenges to reach his pond in time for the Froggapalooza spring festival. Players help Froggo navigate by solving puzzles and assisting other characters, such as a lost rat and a father stork searching for his storklings. The game features vibrant colors, cheerful melodies, and charming interactions. A demo is available, and the full release is anticipated later this year.

AppWizard

March 11, 2026

Overhauling Minecraft’s world generation was like ‘trying to build a skyscraper with hand tools’ which basically scared Mojang off of continuing massive yearly updates

Ryan Cooper, the general manager of Minecraft, discussed Mojang's shift from large annual updates to a more agile update strategy that began with the Caves & Cliffs update in 2021. Player feedback has become central to development, influencing significant changes in world generation. The Caves & Cliffs update faced challenges due to simultaneous updates of the game and its technology. Mojang is now focusing on smaller, more frequent content drops, with the first announced for 2026, called the "Tiny Takeover update." More details will be revealed at the Minecraft Live 2026 event.

AppWizard

March 3, 2026

Icarus Is The Perfect Survival Sim No One’s Talking About

The search for the ideal survival game began with the early beta of Minecraft in 2009, leading to the exploration of various titles over nearly two decades. A recent discovery, Icarus, released in December 2021 by Dean Hall, has garnered 29,000 positive reviews on Steam and maintains a vibrant player base. Icarus allows players to experience a sense of safety at night while encouraging exploration during the day, set on a planet with terraforming issues. The game features a realistic approach to sustenance, manageable food and water consumption, and introduces an oxygen meter that adds complexity to gameplay. It offers three modes: Open World, Missions, and Outposts, with Missions providing structured quests. Icarus is set to launch on PS5 and Xbox on March 26.

AppWizard

February 25, 2026

Minecraft enjoyers, this spectacular-looking voxel game from a solo dev should probably be on your radar

Lay of the Land is set to be released on April 8 on Steam. The game features vibrant visuals created through procedural techniques, a Creative Mode for unrestricted building, and a survival mode that requires resource gathering. Players can manipulate terrain with various tools and engage in combat using magical abilities. The game is developed by a single developer known as 'Tooley1998' or Southern Cross Interactive. Pricing details have not been announced, but players can wishlist the game for updates.

AppWizard

February 18, 2026

Minecraft 26.1 Snapshot 8

Players can expect the introduction of the final baby mobs, including visual updates for pandas, hoglins, zoglins, striders, and snifflets. The Stonecutter now allows crafting of Deepslate and stone into various cobbled variants. Adult horses have updated black dot markings, and sound assets for adult variants have been enhanced. A bug related to cat variant sounds has been fixed. Hitboxes for several mobs have been adjusted to fit into smaller spaces. Operators can use Ctrl + Pick input on players and mannequins in Creative Mode. Input Method Editors will now appear above the text field in supported platforms. A new debug screen entry for memory usage has been added, and the initial heap size has been decreased to 2GB to reduce crashes. The Data Pack version is updated to 99.2, and the Resource Pack version is at 81.1. New UI sprites and entity textures for various baby mobs have been introduced. Several bugs have been fixed in the snapshot.

AppWizard

February 16, 2026

“The hardest game in the world to make” – How Darkhaven hopes to rebottle Diablo 2’s lightning by channelling Minecraft

The "Necropolis" event in Darkhaven introduces a wave of undead that obstructs player waypoints and populates the environment with skeletal minions. Players can transfer characters to new worlds, facing challenges like volcanic eruptions, rising floodwaters, or ice ages. The game features modular gameplay events that can be procedurally integrated into the world. Players can interact with each other's worlds and utilize terrain deformation and building systems for strategic gameplay. Darkhaven aims to rejuvenate the action-RPG genre by focusing on organic experiences and player agency, moving away from rigid progression systems. The game emphasizes diverse loot systems and player impact on the environment, creating a living world that reflects players' actions. The development team includes veterans from the original Diablo, and they are preparing for a Kickstarter campaign.

AppWizard

February 12, 2026

Microsoft Briefly Torpedoes Game’s Steam Page Over Screenshot

Minecraft has inspired numerous clones and voxel-based crafting simulations over the past 15 years. Recently, the upcoming game Allumeria was temporarily removed from Valve’s Steam platform due to a DMCA copyright notice from Microsoft, which claimed that Allumeria used "Minecraft content, including but not limited to gameplay and assets." The takedown was triggered by a screenshot from the game’s Steam page that depicted a world similar to Minecraft. Unomelon, the developer, stated that Allumeria does not reuse any of Minecraft's assets. The DMCA claim was generated through Tracer.AI, an AI platform used by Microsoft and Mojang to identify copyright violations. Jens Bergensten, Chief Creative Officer at Mojang, acknowledged the situation and stated he would investigate further. Approximately 12 hours later, Microsoft withdrew their DMCA claim, and Allumeria's Steam page was reinstated.

AppWizard

February 12, 2026

LEGO Minecraft The Lush Cave Fight Polybag Set 30705 Review

The LEGO Minecraft The Lush Cave Fight set, numbered 30705, was released in 2025 and contains 40 pieces, designed for ages five and above. It features Alex, who battles a skeleton in a lush cave environment, marking the first appearance of the lush biome in a Minecraft-themed set. The Alex minifigure has reddish-brown legs, a sand-green shirt, and orange hair, wielding a medium azure pixelated sword. The skeleton minifigure uses standard parts and comes with a reddish-brown pixelated bow. The lush cave model includes various Minecraft plants on a 4x6 dark blue base, with elements like glow berries and a large folding dripleaf that allows for parkour movements. The set offers a simple building experience and includes two minifigures.

AppWizard

February 11, 2026

Poking around Hytale’s unfinished sandbox is the first time I’ve felt hope for a voxel RPG since Cube World broke my heart (twice)

Cube World is a voxel-based, procedurally generated RPG released in 2019 that failed to meet player expectations due to a lack of engaging content, minimal NPC interaction, and monotonous exploration. The game was criticized for its hollow adventure and mindless combat. In contrast, other titles like Dragon Quest Builders and V Rising successfully combine survival, crafting, and narrative depth. Hytale, developed by Hypixel Studios, aims to learn from Cube World's shortcomings, offering a voxel world with dynamic combat and a promising adventure mode. Hytale features engaging combat mechanics and has a strong focus on modding, with nearly 4,000 user-generated mods available. The game has rekindled interest in the open-world survival crafting genre, standing out as a promising contender.

AppWizard

January 15, 2026

7 Things in Hytale’s Early Game that Surprised Me as a Minecraft Veteran

Hytale has entered early access, offering players a vibrant world to explore. Early-game guides are being developed to assist newcomers with topics like smelting and server setups. The game is inspired by Minecraft but features unique elements. Key observations from the early game include: 1. Players can fell an entire tree with a single punch, resulting in an explosion of wood, sticks, and sap. 2. Overworld mobs, such as squirrels and rabbits, have more health than expected, requiring multiple hits to defeat. 3. Ores glimmer faintly in underground caves, making them easier to spot with torches. 4. The crafting system requires various materials for gear progression, making it more intricate compared to Minecraft. 5. There are enhanced decorative options, allowing for slanted roof blocks, half-block walls, and shelves with candles and books. 6. Exploration reveals unique locations like the "Forgotten Temple Gateway," which features distinctive mobs and NPCs. 7. Farming mechanics are more complex, with players able to construct animal care buildings and use farming aids, and new seeds requiring “Essence of Life.”