Early Classic represents a series of 15 releases of Java Edition Classic, spanning May 17 to May 28, 2009. This phase followed the Private Alpha and preceded the Multiplayer Test stage.
During this period, Notch officially released Minecraft to the public via Minecraft.net. The game remained creative singleplayer only, and players had access to a limited selection of blocks.
Additions & Features
Block and Item Introductions
- Bedrock – Unbreakable and unobtainable by players.
- Sand & Gravel – Naturally generate in one-block-thick beaches, usually near water or mid-land areas. Unlike later versions, sand does not fall, but instantly appears at its lowest possible point when placed above air.
- Gold Ore – Spawns at higher elevations, often exposed in surface-level clusters.
- Iron Ore – Appears in large blobs, sometimes extending across multiple caverns, with clusters up to 167 blocks.
- Coal Ore – Commonly found in underground formations.
- Oak Logs & Leaves – Form trees scattered throughout the world.
- Water & Lava – Early water was opaque, but the addition of lava introduced transparent liquids. Lava was later switched to opaque.
World Generation
- Surrounded by an infinite ocean.
- “Huge” map size supported extensive exploration.
Trivia
- In version 0.0.14a, Notch experimented with vertex offsets for blocks, but the feature was discarded. A graphical bug caused block previews and highlights to appear as solid cubes, which influenced this decision.
References
- YouTube: Java Edition Early Classic overview