Minecraft has become a rather strange beast of a game over the years. As the game has gotten infinitely more complex and more features have been introduced, it was inevitable that new features would sometimes require a fair bit of work to bring them to an enjoyable state. One such problem area in the adventure game was the Villagers and their homesteads. These small enclaves of peaceful NPCs would be added at world generation to create a sense of a more living world apart from the typical animals that spawn in the procedurally-generated landscapes of Minecraft.
But since their introduction, Villagers have been a bit lacking in terms of interactivity and depth. Most players in vanilla Minecraft just pass right by villages, raiding the attached farms for easy food sources and moving on. When the mechanics for trading with them and other interactions were introduced, the attitude remained mostly the same. But as Microsoft has tried to change that, things are certainly getting better, but also a bit weirder.
With the launch of the new Village & Pillage Update, the roles that these oft-ignored NPCs play are becoming much more important. Villagers will have much more agency, able to claim more property for example. And Villagers will also take on more jobs, and do those jobs more intelligently. This is meant to breathe a bit of life into the otherwise dull NPC AI, but some players have noticed some strange effects.
NPCs have begun moving into player areas and claiming property which players are using, leading to a scenario akin to having a terrible roommate. For some, this is a welcome change to make the game more engaging, for others, the villagers have become a nuisance. Whatever your take, the Village and Pillage update will certainly make the game just a little more complex.
And since the game has sold more than 30 million units over the years, there are bound to be tons of players eager to explore all of the new mechanics. So why not dive right in alongside them?
