Microsoft has begun testing Minecraft’s ray tracing support on Xbox Series X and S consoles. Xbox Insiders now have access to a new version of the Minecraft Preview game that has limited ray tracing support. The most recent test build is also designated as Xbox Series X/S optimized, indicating that a next-gen patch will be released soon.
I’ve been testing the most recent version of Minecraft Preview, and I was able to turn on some ray tracing support. It’s not a simple switch, though. The Xbox version of the game currently lacks an easy way to download and install the additional resource packs required to enable ray tracing in Minecraft. There’s a workaround, though. Ray tracing will be available if an Xbox player joins a Minecraft session that is being hosted on a Windows PC with the packs enabled.
From the settings menu, you can then turn on or off support for ray tracing. Although there is a setting for upscaling support, it currently only appears to be available on the PC side with Nvidia’s DLSS. Hopefully that will eventually extend to AMD’s FSR 2. 0 support on Xbox, or other upscaling techniques.
Xbox users who play Minecraft have been waiting a while to learn more about ray tracing on Xbox Series X/S. Minecraft ray tracing on Xbox Series X was first teased by Microsoft two years ago, and the inclusion of the support in the most recent preview build suggests it may be coming soon.
In December 2020, the Windows 10 version of Minecraft’s ray tracing launch, included an update to the game’s blocky design. The most striking examples of ray tracing in Minecraft are water reflections and shadows, as well as the increased detail in texture packs. Most Popular.
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What you need to know
- For many months, players have been anticipating an upgrade to Minecraft for the Xbox Series X|S.
- Monday saw the emergence of reports from some players that the most recent build of Minecraft Preview was Xbox Series X|S optimized.
- Some of these players were subsequently able to use ray tracing on the Xbox Series X|S, either by joining an existing PC ray tracing world or by making a brand-new one.
- It’s possible that Mojang Studios is getting ready to start working with Minecraft Preview players to test Xbox Series X|S ray tracing.
Due to the fact that Mojang Studios is a part of the expanding Xbox Game Studios family, Minecraft is a first-party Microsoft game. Despite this, Minecraft has not yet been properly updated for Microsoft’s powerful Xbox Series X|S consoles, which has disappointed or irritated many players. Several players have reported that Mojang Studios may finally be getting ready to fully test ray tracing for Minecraft on Monday, bringing it into the realm of Xbox Series X|S Optimized games.
Xbox Series X|S Optimized has been reported by a small number of players who have access to Minecraft Preview, the upcoming successor to Mojang Studios’ long-running Minecraft: Bedrock Edition beta program. This observation is made despite the fact that Mojang Studios has not provided any additional information or communication, and the most recent Minecraft Preview build makes no mention of ray tracing or current-gen upgrades.
Even fewer of these players have succeeded in turning on ray tracing on Microsoft’s newest consoles, strongly suggesting Mojang Studios is indeed about to start testing a proper update for Minecraft on Xbox Series X and Xbox Series S. On the Xbox Series X|S, players can access ray tracing either by joining a multiplayer game with a PC that has the required ray tracing packs installed and the feature turned on, or by creating a new world and navigating to the “Ray tracing” toggle in Settings.
Even though we were playing Minecraft Preview on an Xbox Series X, we at Windows Central were unable to confirm the reports. My Xbox Series X appeared to have downloaded the necessary ray tracing packs, and I was able to join a ray traced world that I had started on my PC, but to no avail. The “Ray tracing” toggle in the settings is still grayed out (as it has been since the game’s release on PC) and Minecraft Preview does not display the Xbox Series X|S Optimized tag.
However, there are enough reports from Minecraft users to strongly imply that the game is soon to be Xbox Series X|S optimized with ray tracing support, or at the very least, that Mojang Studios is prepared to solicit community feedback on the feature. To learn how to download Minecraft Preview, use our guide if you want to try your luck at getting early access.
Since Microsoft first demonstrated ray tracing in Minecraft prior to the release of the cutting-edge gaming consoles, Minecraft on Xbox Series X|S has been the subject of frequent discussion within the community. Since then, Mojang Studios has kept quiet about the feature. Now, it appears that good news for one of the top Xbox games available is on the horizon. As new Minecraft: Bedrock Edition beta and Minecraft Preview builds are soon to be released, we’ll continue to keep an eye on this situation for any official statement from Mojang Studios.
Mojang Studios has finally issued a statement in response to the few players who were able to use ray tracing on Xbox Series X|S consoles through the Minecraft Preview. The company claims that what the players found was prototype code that had accidentally been added to a Minecraft Preview build and has since been removed in the most recent Minecraft: Bedrock Edition beta.
The accidental release, Mojang Studios continued, does not suggest any immediate plans to release ray tracing support for Minecraft on Xbox Series X|S, which is already disappointing the Minecraft community. Ray tracing support is being worked on for an eventual release, but players shouldn’t anticipate it to appear on Xbox Series X|S any time soon.
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Zachary Boddy (They / Them) is a Staff Writer for Windows Central, primarily focused on covering the latest news in tech and gaming, the best Xbox and PC games, and the most interesting Windows and Xbox hardware. They have been gaming and writing for most of their life starting with the original Xbox, and started out as a freelancer for Windows Central and its sister sites in 2019. Now a full-fledged Staff Writer, Zachary has expanded from only writing about all things Minecraft to covering practically everything on which Windows Central is an expert, especially when it comes to Microsoft. You can find Zachary on Twitter @BoddyZachary.
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