The patch notes for Minecraft’s latest snapshot update contain a simple line that, at first glance, might not seem all that exciting. Some new slabs and stairs are being added to the massive sandbox crafting game loved by millions of people around the world. Okay? Big deal. Well, it is a big deal, as fans have been asking Mojang to add these types of craftable blocks to Minecraft for nearly a decade.
On August 4, Minecraft announced update 26.3 Snapshot 7 for Minecraft Java on PC. These snapshot updates are used to test out features and fixes before updating the other versions of the brick builder found on console, phones, tablets, and PC. And this new snapshot update finally adds two concrete options players have been asking about since 2017: concrete stairs and slabs. Players can craft these new options at any crafting table in the new snapshot update, just like other stairs and slabs already found in the game.
So why did the announcement of some concrete stairs lead to a post on Reddit receiving over 5,000 upvotes? Why did these stairs being added lead to the official Minecraft TikTok account’s video about them racking up over 500,000 views in just a few hours, becoming one of the fastest-growing videos on the profile?
Well, back in 2017, Mojang added concrete to Minecraft. This quickly became popular with players as it came in various colors, wasn’t super hard to create, and was useful for creating art and cool-looking bases. But for some reason, players weren’t able to make concrete slabs or stairs, despite being able to do so with stone, wood, and other materials in the game.
At the time, players assumed they’d get stairs eventually. I doubt they expected they’d be waiting for nine years. Heck, there are plenty of Minecraft players enjoying the game today who weren’t even alive when concrete was added.
So yeah, for many players it’s just nice to finally, after nearly a decade, have concrete slabs and stairs in the game. When these new options arrive in all versions of the game in the near future, will it dramatically change Minecraft? Probably not. But it will finally fill a gap that players have been annoyed about for years.