Six years after the original, Minecraft Dungeons II launches today, September 29, on PC, Xbox Series X|S, PS5, Nintendo Switch, and Switch 2. Developed by Mojang Studios with Double Eleven, the sequel keeps the blocky, top-down dungeon-crawling formula but reworks it enough that longtime players will need to relearn a few habits.
The game is playable solo or in couch/online co-op for up to four players, with full crossplay between every supported platform. That means a PC player, a Switch 2 owner, and two friends on PS5 and Xbox can raid the same dungeon together without a second thought about which storefront anyone bought the game on.
No more classes: gear decides your build
The biggest structural change is the removal of the fixed class system that defined the 2020 original. Instead of picking a predetermined archetype at the start, players now shape their playstyle entirely through the gear they find and equip, a build-your-own-loadout approach closer to what genre veterans expect from Diablo-likes.
The other major shift is world structure. Where the first Minecraft Dungeons split its campaign into a series of separate, selectable levels, Minecraft Dungeons II unfolds across a single, fully connected open world. That world now extends past the familiar Overworld into a new dimension called the Sift, giving the sequel a fresh biome and enemy set to explore beyond what the original ever offered.
Together, those two changes mark the clearest departure from the first game's design, even if the core loop, fight through mobs, loot gear, get stronger, repeat, remains intact.
Day one on Game Pass, plus pricing
Availability and pricing at launch:
- Standard Edition: $29.99
- Deluxe Edition: $49.99, bundling both planned DLC expansions and an expanded cosmetic pack
- Xbox Game Pass Ultimate and PC Game Pass: included day one
- Xbox Play Anywhere: a single purchase unlocks both the Xbox and Windows PC versions
The Game Pass inclusion mirrors how Mojang and Microsoft have treated most first-party and Xbox-published releases in recent years, and it's likely to be the entry point for a large share of the game's early player base rather than a direct purchase.
What critics are saying
Early reviews, published as the embargo lifted this week, agree on one point: a genuine improvement over the original without a reinvention of the genre. Game Informer awarded the game a 7.3 out of 10, describing it as a "well-tuned sequel" that builds on everything the 2020 release got right.
Outlets including TheSixthAxis, GamingTrend, and Windows Central echo that assessment in their own coverage, pointing to sharper combat, smoother traversal, and more build variety from the gear-based system replacing fixed classes. These reviews don't call Minecraft Dungeons II a reinvention of the action-RPG dungeon crawler. They call it a fix for its predecessor's rough edges, executed with more polish.
Reviewers agree Mojang played it safe on the creative front rather than chasing a genre-defining release. The fundamentals, moment-to-moment combat, loot pacing, and the new connected world, are built better this time around.
For players who bounced off the original Minecraft Dungeons because of its rigid classes or level-select structure, today's launch is the clearest reason yet to give the series a second look. Whether the Sift and its new content can sustain interest past the opening hours will depend on the post-launch DLC roadmap already teased through the Deluxe Edition.
