Minecraft forgotten structures: The history of removed structures

One of the most beneficial aspects of Minecraft are its structures. Villages provide players with access to top-notch items through trading with villagers, while other structures, like dungeons and ocean monuments, eventually serve as valuable sources for useful items and resources.

Nevertheless, certain structures have been lost to both the game and the community as they were removed from world generation at some point. Below, you can find a list of these removed structures, each holding a piece of the game’s history.

Minecraft’s Discontinued Structures

1) Brick towers

Despite being declared a bug, some think that brick pyramids were intentional to add a source of brick. (Image via Mojang)

During their time in infdev, brick pyramids were the sole source of bricks as they were experimental structures made entirely out of them. These pyramids had an average size of 127 blocks wide, 127 blocks deep, and 64 blocks tall, although the terrain could alter the layers. However, they were eventually removed.

These structures are distinct from other similar ones, like the desert temples that enhance the appeal of Minecraft’s best desert seeds or the jungle temples that have a similar effect on jungles, as they lack any interiors.

2) Initial Property

Starter houses would make surviving the first night much easier. (Image via Mojang)

The starting house, featured in Indev, was a simple wooden and stone structure with two torches. It is considered one of the earliest buildings in Minecraft and was originally constructed with mossy cobblestone, a block that was not easily obtainable. Furthermore, the house contained chests filled with every item in the game, serving as a makeshift creative mode menu to aid builders.

The current game has preserved the legacy of the starting house through the inclusion of a starting chest. This chest contains essential items that greatly facilitate the first day gameplay.

3) Stone fortifications

These obsidian walls would be a nuisance in the modern game. (Image via Mojang)

An intriguing structure that was solely used for debugging purposes was the obsidian walls. These walls extended infinitely in every cardinal direction, starting at 0, 0. Prior to the addition of Minecraft’s convenient f3 menu for reading coordinates, this was the method used for tracking location.

4) Monolithic Architecture

These structures can be forced to generate in more modern versions but function slightly differently. (Image via Mojang)

The presence of monoliths in terrain generation remained consistent from Infdev to Alpha. In these regions, the terrain is inverted, with land appearing in the sky and the ground being hollow.

Due to the exposed ores, these areas prove to be valuable for obtaining materials. However, this also often leads to the creation of peculiar underground lakes, as the game automatically fills open-air underground spaces with water instead of caves.

5) Placeholder plants

Examples of some of the game's placeholder trees. (Images via Mojang) — Examples of some of the game’s placeholder trees. (Images via Mojang)

Placeholder trees are a fascinating occurrence in some of Minecraft’s most stunning biomes. These trees cannot be grown from saplings and can only be found in the game. Examples include acacia trees made of jungle logs and oak leaves, as well as dark oak trees made of spruce wood and oak leaves.

Although they may be aesthetically pleasing, it is beneficial to have them removed from the game as they are often replaced with new types of wood that can be used for building.

6) Historic Villages

The old blacksmith building was particularly iconic. (Image via Mojang)

The earliest iteration of the arguably most impressive structures in Minecraft could be found in a variety of biomes such as plains, savanna, taiga, ice plains, and desert. These structures remained unchanged until version 1.14, which brought significant changes to villagers, villages, and all associated mechanics, including villager trading.

The village also used to contain other structures that are no longer in existence. The road used to consist of gravel roads, but these were replaced by pathway blocks. Furthermore, specific variants of savanna and desert villages were also present in the past.

7) Modern architectural feature: Glass pillars

Glass pillars used to be required to find strongholds. (Images via Mojang)

The use of glass pillars in the game was a temporary solution. These structures were made of glass and served as markers for the stronghold portal rooms necessary to reach Minecraft’s ender dragon boss fight. This was because the eyes of ender were not yet functional. However, once the eye of ender feature was implemented, the glass pillars were no longer needed. It was unfortunate that they were removed, as locating the portal room can still be challenging at times.

8) The End Dimension

Nether reactors would be an interesting feature to see readded. (Image via Mojang)

The Nether reactors were a unique structure, as they were not naturally occurring but rather built by players. This made them resemble the game’s golems more than a typical structure. They consisted of a three-by-three space composed of cobblestone, gold blocks, and a Nether reactor core. Upon activation, a towering spire of netherrack would appear, along with numerous rare items that were otherwise inaccessible.

This unique feature was unfortunately removed when the Nether was added to Bedrock.