Minecraft's Next Update Brings Ice Caves, Frozen Zombies, and Freezing Mechanics

Minecraft's next quarterly update will introduce ice caves as a rare underground biome extension of the game's existing cold regions. Announced at Minecraft Live on September 26, the update is scheduled to release around late December 2026.

Ice caves will contain ice crystals that players can collect for decoration. These crystals can be placed vertically or horizontally and emit light, providing another option for illuminating underground builds.

The update introduces the Frozen Zombie, a new hostile mob that spawns when regular Zombies are exposed to powdered snow. Frozen Zombies use melee attacks that apply a stacking freezing effect. Taking enough hits causes players to freeze entirely, making encounters with multiple Frozen Zombies particularly dangerous. The mobs also throw ice balls that deal damage, knock players back, and apply the Frozen effect.

Ice balls serve multiple purposes beyond combat. When Frozen Zombies are killed, they drop ice balls, which can also be crafted or used as weapons with knockback properties. Players can brew ice balls into potions that apply freezing effects for strategic combat options.

Mojang has not yet announced an official name for the update. The company also revealed that the first new Minecraft dimension in 15 years will launch in 2027, following the ice caves update.