Overworld

The Overworld is the primary dimension in which all players begin their Minecraft world. It is the dimension with the most biomes, blocks, and mobs, and is where most players spend the majority of their time.

Creation

The Overworld is the only dimension created when the player creates a new world. The other dimensions (The Nether and The End) aren't created until a player enters the corresponding dimension for the first time.

Seeds

A new world in Minecraft is generated through the use of a randomly generated seed, which is an integer used as a starting point for the world generation formula. The player can specify a seed or allow the game to generate one randomly. If given a non-integer input (such as the word "Glacier"), the game converts it into a corresponding integer (such as 1772835215).

A given seed generates almost exactly the same world every time, provided the same edition, game version, and world type are used. Although the exact spawn point varies, the coordinates of all terrain features are the same. All seeds within the 32-bit integer limit in Java and Bedrock editions may also generate worlds with the same terrain shape and biome map, but the placement of terrain features, structures, and carver caves may differ.

Environment

The Overworld is an incredibly complex environment with a wide variety of features.

Biomes

The Overworld is divided into 54 biomes of various types. A biome's type determines the basic characteristics of the terrain within it, such as the blocks composing the surface or the plants that thrive in it. The biome type also determines which mobs can spawn within it and affects how environmental behaviors such as weather are expressed within it.

Natural structures

The Overworld is composed of 17 terrain patterns, called generated structures, whose arrangement varies widely from one seed to another. The exact structures are unique to each world, while the types of structures that can be generated at a given place are determined by the biome type. Structures are meant to represent real-world equivalents such as mountains, caves, and lakes. "Impossible" (in the real world) formations, such as floating islands, can also be found throughout the Overworld.

Along with terrain features, natural structures include naturally-generated buildings, such as villages, monster rooms, mineshafts, and ruined portals.

Daylight cycle

The Overworld is the only dimension with a daylight cycle and the only one where the environment reflects the passage of time. In contrast to time zones in the real world, Overworld time is universal; it is always the same time for every player in the dimension regardless of how far apart they might be, even in an "infinite" world.

During the daytime, the sun acts as a powerful light source, with a light level of 15, the maximum. Sunlight is strong enough to grow plants and affect the way mobs spawn, among other interesting effects. During the nighttime, the moon is the only natural light source. However, moonlight is comparatively dim; the light level falls to a minimum of 4, allowing hostile mobs to spawn. Other than during thunderstorms, nighttime is the only time players may sleep in a bed.

The daylight cycle can effectively be measured using a clock, which allows players to determine the approximate Minecraft time anywhere in the Overworld. Time can also be changed or stopped with the use of the /time command.

The sun rises in the east and sets in the west, just as it does in the real world, though the sun will always be directly overhead at noon. Observing its motion is a simple method of telling direction without a compass.

Mobs

The Overworld is home to 62 mobs. Mobs vary greatly in behavior and the level of danger they present to the player. Different mobs spawn at different times and places depending on the light level and the biome, among other factors. On occasion, a mob can move between the Overworld and another dimension, such as The Nether, by using a portal, but this is uncommon. Boss mobs like the ender dragon and the wither cannot enter portals.

Passive mobs

Neutral mobs

Hostile mobs

Generation

As with all other dimensions in the game, the Overworld can generate infinitely. However, there are some limitations, as detailed below. Like the other dimensions, it is divided into 16×384×16 block sections called chunks.

The Overworld encompasses a three-dimensional volume that extends vertically from the Void up to the build limit (y=-64 to 320), and horizontally for a virtually infinite distance in each direction. This volume is filled (virtually speaking) with air, terrain, and structures. Technically, the terrain is formed by generating multiple noise maps to produce differing elevations, general land shapes, and complex mountain and cave systems.

Limitations

While the world is virtually infinite, the number of blocks a player may physically reach is limited with where the limits are depending on the edition of the game and the world type being played.

In Java Edition, the map contains a world border located by default at X/Z coordinates ±29,999,984. The world border is an animated wall of blue stripes. Standing near the border results in a red vignette appearing around the screen. Most entities are unable to pass the border, except by teleporting. Players who breach the border receive constant damage unless they are in Creative or Spectator mode. The player can teleport past the world border and continue as far as X/Z ±29,999,999, where there is an invisible wall. However, the player can travel a few chunks further by riding horses, pigs, minecarts and boats through it.

In Bedrock Edition, Infinite-type worlds have no fixed horizontal limits, but either generation stops or normal game behavior begins to break down at extreme distances; the exact details depend on the platform. However, experiments suggest that players can generally reach at least X/Z ±30,000,000 before many such problems occur.

Terrain features

The Overworld contains numerous terrain features, at a wide variety of scales.

Blocks

Naturally generated

"Naturally generated" includes blocks that are created through the world seed.

Naturally created

"Naturally created" means a combination of events that cause a new block to be placed by natural causes, not the player. Some of these blocks may also be created as part of world generation.

Structures

These blocks are created only with the "Generate Structures" option enabled.

Technical information

ID

Name	Identifier	Numeric ID
Overworld	overworld	0

Folder

In Java Edition, information on the Overworld is stored in the region folder of the .minecraft/saves/worldname directory, with "worldname" being the name of the player's world.

Deleting the region folder resets the Overworld so that all player-made changes and buildings in that dimension are undone.

Achievements

Some achievements and advancements are obtained only in the Overworld, as their conditions cannot be replicated in the Nether or the End at all.

Icon		Achievement	In-game description	Actual requirements (if different)	Gamerscore earned	Trophy type (PS)
PS4	Other
		Adventuring Time	Discover 17 biomes.	Visit any 17 biomes. Does not have to be in a single world.	40	Silver
		Ahoy!	Find a shipwreck	—	20	Silver
		Atlantis?	Find an underwater ruin	—	20	Silver
		Echolocation	Feed a dolphin fish to have it lead you to treasure	Feed a dolphin cod or salmon and have it lure you to treasure.	20	Silver
		Let It Go!	Using the Frost Walker boots, walk on at least 1 block on frozen water on a deep ocean	—	20	Bronze
		Me Gold!	Dig up a buried treasure	Open a buried treasure chest.	30	Silver
		Sail the 7 Seas	Visit all ocean biomes	Visit all ocean biomes except the deep warm ocean/legacy frozen ocean (as they are unused).	40	Gold
		Treasure Hunter	Acquire a map from a cartographer villager, then enter the revealed structure	Visit the structure indicated while the purchased map is in your main hand (hotbar).	40	Silver

Advancements

Icon	Advancement	In-game description	Actual requirements (if different)
	Adventuring Time	Discover every biome	Visit all of these 54 biomes: Badlands Bamboo Jungle Beach Birch Forest Cherry Grove Cold Ocean Dark Forest Deep Cold Ocean Deep Dark Deep Frozen Ocean Deep Lukewarm Ocean Deep Ocean Desert Dripstone Caves Eroded Badlands Flower Forest Forest Frozen Ocean Frozen Peaks Frozen River Grove Ice Spikes Jagged Peaks Jungle Lukewarm Ocean Lush Caves Mangrove Swamp Meadow Mushroom Fields Ocean Old Growth Birch Forest Old Growth Pine Taiga Old Growth Spruce Taiga Pale Garden Plains River Savanna Savanna Plateau Snowy Beach Snowy Plains Snowy Slopes Snowy Taiga Sparse Jungle Stony Peaks Stony Shore Sunflower Plains Swamp Taiga Warm Ocean Windswept Forest Windswept Gravelly Hills Windswept Hills Windswept Savanna Wooded Badlands The advancement is only for biomes. Other biomes may also be visited, but are ignored for this advancement.
	Eye Spy	Follow an Eye of Ender	Enter a stronghold.
	Feels Like Home	Take a Strider for a loooong ride on a lava lake in the Overworld	While riding a strider, travel 50 blocks on lava in the . Only horizontal displacement is counted. Traveling in a circle for more than 50 blocks doesn't count.
	Sound of Music	Make the Meadows come alive with the sound of music from a Jukebox	Use a music disc on a jukebox that stands within a meadow biome.
	Star Trader	Trade with a Villager at the build height limit	Stand on any block that is higher than 318 and trade with a villager or wandering trader.
	Subspace Bubble	Use the Nether to travel 7 km in the Overworld	Use the Nether to travel between 2 points in the with a minimum horizontal euclidean distance of 7000 blocks between each other, which is 875 blocks in the Nether.
	Surge Protector	Protect a Villager from an undesired shock without starting a fire	Be within 30 blocks of a lightning strike that doesn't set any blocks on fire, while an unharmed villager is within or up to six blocks above a 30×30×30 volume centered on the lightning strike.
	Sweet Dreams	Sleep in a Bed to change your respawn point	Lie down in a bed. The advancement is granted as soon as the player is in the bed, even if the player does not successfully sleep.
	Uneasy Alliance	Rescue a Ghast from the Nether, bring it safely home to the Overworld... and then kill it	Kill a Ghast while being in the .
	Very Very Frightening	Strike a Villager with lightning	Hit a villager with lightning created by a trident with the Channeling enchantment, turning it into a witch.

History

This article is missing information about: Information about Bedrock Edition and new versions of Java Edition.

 

Please expand the article to include this information. Further details may exist on the talk page.

Issues

Issues relating to "Overworld" are maintained on the bug tracker. Issues should be reported and viewed there.

Gallery

Screenshots

• 
  The classic finite generator used in late 2009.
• 
  The version of the terrain generator used prior to Alpha v1.2.0.
• 
  The world generator used from Alpha v1.2.0 to Beta 1.7.3.
• 
  The world generator used from Java Edition Beta 1.8 to 1.6.4.
• 
  The world generator used from release 1.7 to 1.17.1.
• 
  The world generator used from Java Edition 1.18.
• 
  Another view of post-1.18 world generation.

In other media

• 
  Artwork of an island base.
• 
  Artwork for the 15th anniversary of Minecraft, showing a view of the Overworld with many mobs, including nearly every character.
• 
  The Overworld as it appears in Around the Minecraft World in 80 Biomes.^[2]
• 
  The Overworld as it appears in Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds.
• 
  Official T-shirt "Line Time" depicting the overworld made by JINX.
• 
  Poster of the Overworld.

Trivia

• The maximum number of blocks that can be generated in the Overworld is approximately 921.6 quadrillion (9.216×10¹⁷) blocks, assuming a distance of 30,000,000 blocks in either direction.
  • The total area is about 8 times the surface of the Earth.
  • This means that storing a filled world, with no entities or block entities, would require 3.6864 quintillion (3.6864×10¹⁸) bits (409 petabytes) for the block data alone, based on the fact that each standard block is assigned 4 bits of information.
  • By manually modifying the game, it is possible to generate the world up to 2,147,483,647 blocks (the 32-bit integer limit) in either direction.
• A 1:1 (1 block = 1 meter) scale map of the Earth, built-in Minecraft, would be 510.9 trillion (5.109×10¹⁴) blocks in size.
  • Assuming the map is one block deep and uses 1 byte per block, its size would be approximately 475,800 GB (464.7 TB).
  • A Moon-sized map would be made of 37.95 trillion (3.795×10¹³) blocks. Its data size would be 35,340 GB (34.52 TB).

See also

• Tutorials/Navigation – Tips for navigating at the Overworld
• Survival
• The Nether
• The End

References

Navigation