Variation is the lifeblood of Minecraft, starting a new world brings a completely different adventure to your previous play-through. The logevity of Minecraft’s success is largely down to the biome generator, as it produces unique maps every single time. Players keep coming back for more and who can blame them? Minecraft is a legendary game! We cover the best biomes in Minecraft, rankings depend on the resources available there, the building options and general uniqueness!
10. Jungle
The Jungle biome contains a large amount of resources that cannot be obtained anywhere else. These resources are the likes of Jungle wood, Cocoa, Melons (although you can find Melon seeds in Mineshaft chests) and Ocelots. There’s also an abundance of vines that you can take for aesthetic purposes. You can also find Jungle Temples here which have some great loot. However, it is quite easy to get lost and at night, you can get overwhelmed by the obscure layout when mobs are attacking you.
9. Mesa
This biome contains mostly colored sand and clay which are great resources to have for building. Unfortunately, the Mesa biome is quite rare so it’s unlikely you’ll come across one. If you do find one then congratulations because you’ve hit a gold mine! Gold Ores spawn at much higher levels in the Mesa biome, making it the ideal place to collect Gold. Mineshafts also have a tendency to spawn at above-ground level, I’m sure you know the usefulness of Mineshafts.
8. Ice Plains Spikes
Another rare biome, Ice Plains Spikes are rarely encountered but you’ll marvel at the amazement when you find one for the first time. It’s a great source of Packed Ice which is a slightly darker form Ice, except it doesn’t melt. It’s not the best biome to live in, there isn’t much grass so animals are scarce and trees are rare. The Ice Plains Spikes biome is on the list for the shear wonderment of such a beautiful location. You can find Igloos here which contain a ready-made house with some villagers in the basement, but such a find is very uncommon.
7. Desert
Although sand is course, rough, irritating and gets everywhere, the Desert biome is worth a mention. It can contain Desert Temples and villages, allowing for good loot or just a nice slaughter if you feel like murdering innocent villagers. It also features a unique Zombie variant, the Husk. There are no trees and animal mobs do not spawn here (exception being Rabbits) but Sugar Cane, Cactus and Sand/Sandstone is in big supply.
6. Flower Forest
The regular Forest Biome is in itself a great biome but the Flower Forests edges it onto this list. With trees everywhere, wood is easy to obtain and there are plenty of places to make a base. You have everything you need, water to grow crops, easily accessible caves and animal mobs spawn here regularly. In Flower Forests, you can obtain a large amount of the different varieties of flowers, which can actually be difficult to do without this biome.
5. Swamp
By far the easiest place to farm Slimes, the Swamp biome is unique and great for resources. Sporting a cool water and grass color, the bleak outlook that the Swamp biome provides is cool aesthetically. Mushrooms are also commonly found here, as are vines and lilypads. It’s definitely worth finding a Swamp biome on your world, there’s just too much it offers.
4. Roofed Forest
Wood, so much wood. Roofed Forests contain Dark Oak trees which have massive trunks, allowing for easy collection of log stacks. You can find giant mushrooms here too, which will provide you with enough to make at least a few mushroom stews. The treetops are a great place to build a base as you access surrounding areas easily, using the leaves as paths. If you’re lucky, you might even uncover a Woodland Mansion but, as it’s only recently been released, I won’t go into what it contains or provides 😉
3. Mushroom
By far the most rare and unique biomes in the game, the Mushroom island is well worth a visit, if you ever find one. As expected, you can get stacks upon stacks of mushrooms here with plenty of giant Mushrooms littering the biome. The best find you can make in this biome is the Mooshroom, right clicking a Mooshroom with a bowl will fill it up with Mushroom Stew. Or you can shear it to turn it into a normal cow. This biome doesn’t have the most resources but it’s so rare and interesting that it had to make the list.
2. Plains
Arguably the best place to settle down a base, the Plains biome is awesome. With a multitude of water sources, passive mobs (including horses!), cave entrances and flat ground, it’s easy to see why Plains is number 2 on the list. Trees don’t naturally appear here unfortunately so it’s best to build close to the biome border so you have access to the trees in the next biome. Overall it has a lot of things you need in a survival playthrough, but provides great land for building as well.
1. Extreme Hills
This biome is extremely interesting while providing almost every type of resource that isn’t specific to a single biome. The hill formations produce some amazing spectacles, you’ll constantly find mountains you want to build upon. A single Extreme Hills biome can provide a player with hundreds of hours of gameplay as there’s just so much to do!