Despite officially existing for well over a decade, the massively successful sandbox title Minecraft is still offering swathes of brand-new content for fans. Given the level of freedom that the title affords to players and the near-infinite randomness of the game's procedural generation, there is a seemingly endless catalog of ideas that can be implemented in any number of future updates, including the Sniffer that'll arrive in the 1.20 update.
Most recently, Minecraft held its much anticipated Mob Vote for 2022, with a new mob type known as the Sniffer coming out on top. Set to come to the game in January's 1.20 update for Minecraft, the Sniffer has the potential to provide massive benefits to the title's agricultural gameplay.
Minecraft's 2022 Mob Vote
Minecraft's Mob Vote for 2022 was recently held in October, and the results were revealed at the Minecraft Live event on October 15. Mob Votes have become somewhat of a staple for the Minecraft update formula, sine they're a fantastic way to engage the title's community by giving players a direct and tangible impact on what new content is added to the game.
There are usually three new mob concepts that are involved in any given Mob Vote, with all three possessing uniquely different functions and characteristics that concern different areas of Minecraft's wide breadth of gameplay. The first Mob Vote was held in 2017, with mobs such as the Phantom and the more recent Allay coming from Mob Votes.
This year's Mob Vote saw the Sniffer, Rascal, and Tuff Golem go head-to-head within the community, with these mobs concerning farming, mining, and decoration respectively. The Sniffer mob was the clear winner of the Mob Vote, and will be added to the game some time next year.
The Function of the Sniffer Mob
While no in-game footage of the Sniffer exists yet, Mojang's official description of the mob's function says that, to encounter a Sniffer, players will first have to loot Underwater Temple structures in Minecraft for a chance to find Sniffer eggs. Upon hatching, the main functions of Sniffers, as the name suggests, will be to sniff out a brand-new set of items in the game known as Ancient Seeds. These seeds will reportedly grow types of plants and fruits that have never been seen before in Minecraft, opening up a huge slew of new possibilities for the title.
As of right now, the agricultural aspect of Minecraft is still rewarding, but does not have the same lore-filled charm as many other aspects of the mega sandbox title. The Sniffer mob will seemingly rectify this, allowing for weird and wonderful new flora to be grown that could then have massive benefits. While these new plants and fruit have not been explained by Mojang yet, players are already rejoicing at the idea that soon they might have fruit that could potentially tame Endermen or locate Ancient Debris. Ancient plants could also open the door to new potions, help players raise farm animals more efficiently, or introduce rare wood types to cultivate. All in all, Minecraft farming could become much more robust.
The agricultural side of Minecraft's gameplay is usually an overlooked one, with the more high-octane nature of exploration and combat often taking precedence within the discourse of the title. While the exact details are still quite foggy, it seems that the Sniffer mob is aiming to provide a much-needed revamp to this side of Minecraft, and fans are excited to see what it brings to the table.
Minecraft is available on Mobile, PC, PS4, Switch, and Xbox One.
