Minecraft: Java Edition's latest snapshot (22w45a) has been released, bringing plenty of changes and quality-of-life improvements to the popular sandbox game.

Minecraft 1.21.1 debuted for Java Edition on August 8, 2024, as a hotfix update to fix a few critical exploits that were being used to intentionally crash multiplayer servers.

Visit the Minecraft page in the Microsoft Store. With membership, you can download 'Minecraft Java and Bedrock versions for PC', which includes the free launcher.

If you own a Chromebook, "Minecraft: Java Edition" is available to you via Linux. Here's how to download and install the popular game on a Chromebook.

Minecraft players struggle to play Java Edition with the new Launcher causing log-in difficulties and long download times.

Importantly, Minecraft Java mods tend to be free, while Bedrock add-ons can be either free or paid downloads in the Minecraft Marketplace.

Mojang is rolling out a unified launcher for both Minecraft Dungeons and Minecraft: Java Edition. As of January 18th, players will be able to log in and launch either game with a Microsoft or ...

Somewhat confusingly, there was an old launcher called 'Minecraft Unified Launcher', which was specifically for Windows 7 and 8 and only launched Java Edition and Minecraft Dungeons.