Way back in 2017, Mojang announced a Super Duper Graphics Pack for Minecraft as part of an E3 teaser. It was set to introduce new lighting, water, and shadow effects, to give the classic block-builder a more modern look, but the initial release window of ‘fall 2017’ came and went. Now, it seems the pack is never coming out at all.
“Unfortunately,” Mojang says in the official announcement, “we aren’t happy with how the pack performed across devices. For this reason, we’re stopping development on the pack, and looking into other ways for you to experience Minecraft with a new look.”
The announcement doesn’t get much more specific than that, so we don’t know exactly which platforms were holding the DLC back. Back in the original reveal of the Super Duper Graphics Pack, it was focused primarily on “high-end PCs” and Microsoft’s then-unreleased Xbox One X console – but Minecraft is available on the widest array of devices since Doom, and it’s not like Minecraft players have historically been picky about graphics.
You’ve still got plenty of options to add fancy lighting to Minecraft on PC, including the ray tracing-style effects of the Sonic Ether shader.
You can see what the official Super Duper Graphics Pack would’ve looked like in the trailer above.
Check out our list of best Minecraft mods if you’re looking for more ways to customize your experience. Even after all these years, the little block-builder is going strong.