Minecraft 1.26.60 is the Bedrock Edition update Mojang released on 27 October 2026. Mojang's changelog calls it Bedrock Edition 26.60, because Bedrock versions are now numbered by year; 1.26.60 is the same release. The headline content is experimental: an Ice Cave biome, Icicles, Ice Crystals, a Freezing effect and a new zombie variant called the Frostbite.
This post summarizes what is in the update, based on Mojang's official changelog, and how to switch the new content on. It also covers what the update changes, and what it doesn't, if you play on worlds made from real places with CartoVoxel.
Key takeaways:
- 1.26.60 (26.60) is a full Bedrock release from 27 October 2026, not a Preview build. The 26.62 hotfix followed on 5 November 2026.
- Ice Caves, Icicles, Ice Crystals, Freezing, Frostbites and Ice Balls are behind the Drop 4 of 2026 experiment. Without that toggle the game plays as before.
- Java Edition has the same features only in 26.4 snapshots, starting with Snapshot 3 on 6 October 2026. No Java release includes them yet.
- CartoVoxel Bedrock worlds need Bedrock 1.21.120 or newer, and 26.60 and 26.62 both meet that. We did not change the generator for this update.
- Ice Caves will not appear inside a CartoVoxel world on their own. You can still use the new blocks and the Frostbite in a copy of your world.
What Is Minecraft 1.26.60?
The same update shows up under several names, depending on where you look:
| Name you might see | What it refers to |
|---|---|
| 26.60 | Mojang's name for the release in the official changelog |
| 1.26.60 | The same release in the older 1.x form, which add-on format versions still use |
| 1.26.60.4 | The build number for Android, iOS, iPadOS, ChromeOS and Fire OS, according to the Minecraft Wiki |
| 26.62 | The hotfix from 5 November 2026: Xbox stability, a Nintendo Switch 2 crash, interacting with entities inside blocks, and Realms |
Before release, the update was tested in Preview and Beta builds 26.60.21 to 26.60.30 during September and early October. Those builds are now replaced by the full release, and Preview has moved on to 26.70.
What's New in Minecraft 1.26.60
Experimental: Drop 4 of 2026
Everything in this table needs the Drop 4 of 2026 experiment. The descriptions follow Mojang's changelog.
| Feature | What it does |
|---|---|
| Ice Cave (biome) | A cave biome under the colder Overworld biomes, made mostly of Packed Ice and Calcite, with icicles, large packed-ice spikes, snow patches and ice crystals. Strays and Frostbites can spawn there. Dirt, Granite and Glow Lichen do not generate. |
| Ice Crystal (block) | Similar to an Amethyst Cluster. It gives off light, can face any direction and breaks if its support block is removed. It is the only light source in Ice Caves. Mojang lists "smaller than intended" as a known issue. |
| Icicle (block) | Grows down from packed ice, up to 5 blocks long, only where there is no nearby light and outside the Nether. It can fall when light levels are high enough and damages what it lands on; falling onto one hurts extra. It breaks near light sources. |
| Freezing (effect) | Makes players shake, lowers jump height and eventually deals damage, as if standing in Powder Snow. Leather armor stops the freezing but does not remove the effect. Ice Balls brew Potions of Freezing, and dipped arrows become Arrows of Freezing. |
| Frostbite (mob) | A zombie variant from cold and icy biomes. Up close its hits cause Freezing; at range it throws Ice Balls. It walks on Powder Snow, never freezes, drops Rotten Flesh and Ice Balls, and turns into a Zombie if it stays underwater long enough. |
| Ice Ball (projectile) | The Frostbite's thrown weapon: 4 damage, less at lower speed, plus knockback. |
One more rule ties these together: Zombies and Husks that stand in Powder Snow now turn into Frostbites.
Everything else in the release
- More than 600 bug fixes, 89 of them reported by players.
- Minecraft is now available on Nintendo Switch 2, with support for Vibrant Visuals.
- Realms world upload and download are faster and more reliable.
- For creators: version 2
.mcstructurefiles can use zlib compression, structures exported from the game now use it, and some entity components are parsed more strictly from format version 1.26.60.
How to Turn On Ice Caves and the Frostbite
Mojang's help center describes the same steps for new and existing Bedrock worlds:
- Open the world's Edit screen (or Create New World).
- Under Game, scroll down to Experiments and switch on Drop 4 of 2026.
- Confirm Activate Experiments. For an existing world, the game first makes a copy named "Copy of…" so the original stays as it was.
Two things are worth knowing before you do it. An experimental world cannot be turned back into a normal one, and Mojang warns that experimental worlds may crash, break or stop working with future updates. Also, Minecraft never regenerates land that already exists, so Ice Caves only form in new chunks of a normally generated world. To see one, create a fresh world with the toggle on and dig under a snowy biome.
Do CartoVoxel Maps Work on Minecraft 1.26.60?
Yes, they are inside the supported range, and nothing needs to change on your side:
- Bedrock
.mcworldfiles declare Bedrock 1.21.120 as the oldest version that can open them. 26.60 and 26.62 are newer, so import the file as usual. Our .mcworld guide covers Windows, iPhone, iPad, Android and consoles. If Minecraft says the world needs a newer version, update the app first. - Java
.zipworlds are saved in the Minecraft 1.21.1 format. Open them in 1.21.1 or a newer Java release, which converts the world when it first loads. The 26.4 snapshots that contain the ice content are test versions: Mojang says they can corrupt worlds, so only open a copy there. - Explorer Pack tours and labels are built for Java 1.21.1.
We did not change the generator for this update. New orders are generated by the same engine as before 26.60 came out, and the worlds still ship with no experiments turned on, so the "Experimental" tag only appears if you add one yourself. For step-by-step import help on every device, see how to import Minecraft worlds.
Will Ice Caves Appear in My Real-World Map?
No. CartoVoxel builds the land from real elevation data and OpenStreetMap features such as roads, water and buildings. Caves and cave biomes, Ice Caves included, come from Minecraft's own world generator, and that generator does not run inside the map. Beyond the edge of the selected area the world is empty void, so exploring outward will not produce new terrain either. Turning the experiment on later does not rebuild chunks that already exist.
That is the trade-off of a real-world map: every hill and street sits where it does in reality, and nothing underground is invented.
How to Use the New Ice Content in a Real-World Map
The new blocks and the Frostbite still work in a CartoVoxel world once the experiment is on. A few ideas:
- Build an ice grotto into a real hill or under a frozen lake. Packed Ice and Calcite are ordinary blocks, so you can shape the cave without any experiment. After switching on Drop 4 of 2026, add Ice Crystals for light and hang Icicles from the ceiling.
- Keep icicles out of bright light. According to Mojang, icicles break near light sources and can fall when the light level is high enough. Keep torches and lanterns well away from them, and leave a gap between icicles and crystals until you have checked how they behave.
- Place Frostbites by hand. CartoVoxel Bedrock worlds ship with mob spawning switched off and cheats on, so a Frostbite will not wander in by itself. Use its spawn egg in Creative mode, or put Zombies in Powder Snow and wait for them to convert.
- Pick a cold place. Mountain towns and northern cities suit the theme. You can download a free real-city world to try it, or generate your own place for Java or Bedrock.
FAQ
Is Minecraft 1.26.60 out on Java Edition?
No. Version 1.26.60 is a Bedrock release. Java Edition has Ice Caves, Icicles, Ice Crystals and the Frostbite only in 26.4 snapshots so far, starting with Snapshot 3 on 6 October 2026. Mojang has not announced a release date.
Is 1.26.60 a beta or a full release?
It is a full release, published on 27 October 2026. Only the ice content inside it is experimental, and you need the Drop 4 of 2026 toggle to see it.
What is Minecraft 1.26.60.4?
It is the build number of the same 26.60 update on Android, iOS, iPadOS, ChromeOS and Fire OS, according to the Minecraft Wiki. Windows and Xbox report a different internal number for the same release.
Do I need to change anything to open my CartoVoxel world on 26.60?
No. Bedrock worlds from CartoVoxel open on 1.21.120 and newer, which includes 26.60 and the 26.62 hotfix. Import the .mcworld file the same way as before.
Can CartoVoxel generate an Ice Cave under my city?
No. Worlds are built from real map data, not from Minecraft's terrain generator, so they never contain generated caves. You can build an ice cave yourself with Packed Ice, Calcite and the new experimental blocks.
Sources
- Mojang: Minecraft: Bedrock Edition 26.60 Changelog
- Mojang: Minecraft: Bedrock Edition 26.62 Hotfix Changelog
- Mojang: Minecraft Java Edition 26.4 Snapshot 3
- Mojang: Experimental Features Toggle in Minecraft Bedrock Edition
- Minecraft Wiki: Bedrock Edition 26.60 (build numbers)
CartoVoxel is an independent tool and is not affiliated with Mojang or Microsoft.
