Minecraft creator Notch released an update for Minecraft today adding health and the ability to die to Multiplayer Survival mode. The update addresses the two main features missing from Survival Mode, and is the last major milestone before Minecraft enters beta.
The update also adds some extra options to servers, including the ability to turn off PvP. Players will also be able to choose whether or not to spawn animals and enemies on their server.
Notch also mentions a few fixes he intends to make in the future, such as "visible armor on players and mobs (sheep!), and some tweaks to reduce laggy moving mobs. And bows and arrows."
Notch has always said that the completion of multiplayer survival mode would signal Minecraft's transition from alpha into beta. All that remains is some tweaks to the inventory system, and the bugfixes he mentioned, after that we can look forward to the next era of Minecraft. For more news on the game's ongoing development, check out Notch's blog .
For more adventures in Minecraft, check out our Minecraft Experiment .
