The cultural impact of Minecraft cannot be underplayed. It is already one of the bestselling video games of all time but it has been two years since Mojang Studios last revealed how many copies of Minecraft have been purchased since the game's debut in May 2009. It’s a staggering 300 million copies.

During this year's Minecraft Live event, Mojang Studios revealed the impressive figure as the developer prepares to celebrate Minecraft's 15-year anniversary, which is in May next year.

“As we approach the 15th anniversary, Minecraft remains one of the best-selling games of all time, with over 300 million copies sold, a milestone no one could have dreamed of when we were all placing our first blocks,” said Helen Chiang, head of Mojang Studios.

The milestone was announced during Minecraft Live 2023. And it means the game is now well over 100m sales ahead of its nearest rival, GTA 5.

Several other important announcements were made during the event, like the revealing of Minecraft's Star Wars: Path of the Jedi DLC, which comes to the in-game Marketplace on November 7. Players can rise through the ranks from padawan to Jedi Knight, involving lightsaber combat.

More Minecraft DLC is on the way via a tie-in with the BBC's upcoming Planet Earth 3, promising to "immerse players in the wonders of the natural world". It'll be available via Minecraft Education and the Minecraft Marketplace when it arrives in 2024.

Coming in mid-2014 is a major new Minecraft Vanilla update, known as 1.21. Features will include the Crafter, marking the debut of automated crafting in-game, and Trial Chambers. These procedurally generated underground structures offer a “unique challenge...for players to overcome”, and include a new mob known as The Breeze; they move by jumping and shooting wind energy projectiles that explode.

Minecraft Legends principal design director Craig Leigh has shared some updates, like the new Lost Legends like Creeper Clash in time for Halloween and Snow vs Snout in December.