Minecraft's next drop might be the thing that finally convinces me to explore underwater

Mounts of Mayhem update in Minecraft — (Image credit: Mojang)

I'm a pretty avid explorer in Minecraft, and that's been the case since I started playing in early 2012. But, if there's one place I actively avoid visiting, it's the vast expanse of ocean you always come across in the world.

No matter how hard I try, it gets to a certain point where I just cannot go on anymore and turn back to my base. I can blame my depleting oxygen and inability to ever craft water breathing potions, but it's actually because it just feels long and unrewarding. Even when I know there's a shipwreck or temple, I will simply not go on the expedition.

Not only are they a decent escape option for any encounters with Drowned or Guardians thanks to their fast movement speed, they also completely bypass the fear of losing all your oxygen with the new "Breath of the Nautilus" effect. According to the official blog post announcement, this will need to be recharged by heading to the surface every now and then, but the Nautilus can keep you underwater for a far longer time compared to your own lung capacity.

There is one major downside to the mob I can't ignore though. It can't leave the water, so unless you've set up a dock to tether it to each time you're ready to head home, there's a high chance it won't be in the same place when you come back. I don't doubt players will create some sort of mad redstone contraptions that create an underwater stable when you swim into them, but again, that's out of my wheelhouse. I'll be hoping and praying I'll be able to find the same Nautilus when I return, or at least stuffing enough pufferfish into my pockets to tame another one.

It could be a few months before I do that, though. We don't have a release date for the Mounts of Mayhem update, but going off the previous drop schedule it wouldn't be unusual for it to roll out around December. I can already tell my friends will go out of their way to tame a Nautilus to get me into the water as soon as they can, and who knows? I might love it once all the necessary preparation is practically stripped away. We'll see.

Kara is an evergreen writer. Having spent four years as a games journalist guiding, reviewing, or generally waffling about the weird and wonderful, she’s more than happy to tell you all about which obscure indie games she’s managed to sink hours into this week. When she’s not raising a dodo army in Ark: Survival Evolved or taking huge losses in Tekken, you’ll find her helplessly trawling the internet for the next best birdwatching game because who wants to step outside and experience the real thing when you can so easily do it from the comfort of your living room. Right?

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