Minecraft Bedrock Preview 1.21.80.25 was an April 3, 2025 test build that let players try the new Dried Ghast-to-Ghastling-to-Happy Ghast progression, ride a harnessed Happy Ghast with up to three companions, and enable the first test version of Vibrant Visuals. It was not the later full release. The preview required the “Drop 2 2025” experiment for ghast features, and Vibrant Visuals had strict device, multiplayer, world, and rendering limitations. Mojang later moved the Happy Ghast and Vibrant Visuals into the Bedrock 1.21.90 Chase the Skies release, while changing at least one recipe.
What was Minecraft Bedrock Preview 1.21.80.25?
Preview 1.21.80.25 was a historical Bedrock Preview/Beta build published by Mojang Studios on April 3, 2025. Its headline purpose was to let testers try announced Game Drop 2 2025 content before that content reached a later release. The official preview notes describe both the new ghast family and the first testing version of Vibrant Visuals: Mojang’s April 3, 2025 preview notes.
This distinction matters if you are following an old guide or trying to reproduce the build. The version was a test milestone, not a promise that 1.21.80.25 would remain downloadable or that its recipes and settings would stay unchanged. Bedrock 1.21.90 later documented these features in the Chase the Skies release, so instructions below identify which details belong specifically to the preview.
What new features did the preview add?
The build concentrated on two groups of changes: a complete flying-mount progression built around ghasts, and an experimental graphics mode. It also added a multiplayer-oriented HUD rule.
- Dried Ghast: A placeable block found in Nether Fossil structures or crafted with the preview recipe.
- Ghastling: The juvenile form produced when a continuously waterlogged Dried Ghast finishes its transformation.
- Happy Ghast: The mature, rideable form that accepts a harness.
- Harness: A colorable item that lets players ride a Happy Ghast and carry up to four players in total.
- Vibrant Visuals: A first, unfinished test of enhanced lighting and visual effects.
- Locator Bar rule: A world rule that can enable or disable the HUD feature showing the direction of other players; the full Bedrock 1.21.80 notes explain its behavior at the official 1.21.80 changelog.
How do I turn a Dried Ghast into a Ghastling?
In Preview 1.21.80.25, you could obtain a Dried Ghast from a Nether Fossil structure or craft one with one bone block and eight Ghast Tears. That recipe is tied to this preview; do not use it as a current Bedrock recipe without checking the release you are playing.
- Obtain a Dried Ghast. Find one in a Nether Fossil structure or use the preview recipe of one bone block surrounded by eight Ghast Tears.
- Place it where you can keep it wet. The block had to remain continuously waterlogged for roughly 20 minutes.
- Do not interrupt the waterlogging. Removing the water caused the block to move back toward its dry state instead of continuing the transformation.
- Wait for the conversion. After about 20 minutes of uninterrupted waterlogging, the Dried Ghast produced a Ghastling.
The timing is an in-game mechanic reported in Mojang’s 2025 preview notes, not a performance benchmark. Because the feature was experimental, behavior in later versions should be checked against the changelog for that version rather than assumed from this build.
Why does the preview recipe matter?
The later Bedrock 1.21.90 changelog lists a different recipe: one Soul Sand Block and eight Ghast Tears. In other words, “how to craft a Dried Ghast” has two valid answers only when the game version is specified. The preview used a bone block; the later release notes use a Soul Sand Block. See the official Bedrock 1.21.90 changelog before applying either recipe to a current world.
What does a Ghastling do, and how fast does it grow?
A Ghastling is the young form of a Happy Ghast. In the preview it could follow nearby players or certain nearby mobs, and snowballs served both as a temptation item and as food. Left alone, a Ghastling took about 20 minutes to mature; feeding it snowballs reduced that waiting time.
The progression therefore had three distinct stages rather than a single spawn event: a Dried Ghast had to be hydrated, the resulting Ghastling had to mature, and only then could the creature become the mountable Happy Ghast. Keeping snowballs available was the practical way to shorten the juvenile stage in this test build.
How does the Happy Ghast harness work?
Once the Ghastling matured, the Happy Ghast could be equipped with a harness. The preview harness recipe used three leather, two glass blocks, and one wool block. The wool determined the harness color, allowing the item to be visually distinguished without changing the mount’s underlying behavior.
A harnessed Happy Ghast could carry up to four players. That is a total rider capacity, not four additional passengers on top of a driver. The preview also allowed shears to remove the harness when nobody was mounted, which gives you a way to take it off without dismounting an occupied creature.
These details describe the test implementation. The later 1.21.90 notes also describe a Happy Ghast carrying up to four players with a harness, but recipes and other mechanics should always be matched to the release installed on your device.
How do I enable Vibrant Visuals in Bedrock Preview?
Vibrant Visuals was not enabled globally by installing the preview. You had to turn it on for a world and then choose its rendering mode in video settings.
- Start Minecraft Bedrock Preview and choose Create New World or open Edit World for an existing world.
- Open the world’s Experiments tab and enable the Vibrant Visuals toggle.
- Enter the world, open Settings, and go to Video.
- Under Graphics Mode, select Vibrant Visuals.
- Choose either Favor Visuals or Favor Performance. Additional controls were available under Vibrant Visuals Options.
The preview described this as the first testing version, with lighting, effects, and assets still in development. Enabling the toggle therefore changed the way that test world rendered; it did not turn every world or every device into a supported Vibrant Visuals environment.
Which devices supported Vibrant Visuals in this preview?
Mojang’s list was a then-current support list for Preview 1.21.80.25, not a permanent compatibility guarantee. The notes also said additional devices were still being tested.
| Platform | Preview support information |
|---|---|
| Xbox | Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One |
| PlayStation | PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5 |
| Android | Adreno 640, Mali-G68, Mali-G77, or Xclipse 530 and higher |
| iPhone and iPad | Apple A12 or M1 and higher |
| PC | Minecraft running on DirectX 12 |
A device meeting a listed chip or platform description could still encounter preview bugs. Conversely, a device absent from this table was not automatically a permanent “no”; the official wording left room for support testing after the build.
What were Vibrant Visuals’ compatibility limits?
The graphics mode had several restrictions that affected how you could play and which content you could combine with it.
- Split-screen was unsupported. Local split-screen play did not remain in Vibrant Visuals.
- Local multiplayer changed the renderer. When local multiplayer was used, the game switched to Fancy or Simple rendering.
- Marketplace Add-Ons, Skins, and Persona items worked.
- Worlds and Texture Packs were incompatible with Vibrant Visuals at that point.
The preview notes also listed visual defects rather than hiding them behind a general “experimental” warning. Android devices, especially those using Mali GPUs, could show corrupted visuals. Underwater areas deeper than eight blocks could become unusually dark; cave lighting could show leaks or shadows that popped into view; textures could turn pink after suspending the game, opening Settings, or leaving a world; metallic surfaces could render incorrectly; and emissive surfaces could fail to glow or appear white.
Those are known issues disclosed for this preview, not a claim that every later Bedrock build retained them. If you are troubleshooting a current installation, first check the changelog for that version instead of assuming a 1.21.80.25 bug is still present.
How does Preview 1.21.80.25 relate to Bedrock 1.21.90?
Preview 1.21.80.25 was the test stage; Bedrock 1.21.90 was the later release context called Chase the Skies. The relationship is easiest to see by separating what was tested from what was later shipped.
| Feature | Preview 1.21.80.25 | Later Bedrock 1.21.90 notes |
|---|---|---|
| Happy Ghast | Experimental testing, with harness and four-player capacity | Documented as part of Chase the Skies, with a harness and up to four players |
| Vibrant Visuals | First testing version, with device and compatibility caveats | Released as part of Chase the Skies |
| Dried Ghast recipe | One bone block plus eight Ghast Tears | One Soul Sand Block plus eight Ghast Tears |
| Feature status | Preview/Beta experiment | Later Bedrock release documentation |
The changed recipe is the most important practical warning. A guide that copies the preview recipe without naming the version can send players looking for the wrong block. Likewise, seeing Vibrant Visuals in this preview does not mean that this exact preview build was the final way to access it.
Is Preview 1.21.80.25 still the version I should install?
No. It is best understood as a dated testing snapshot that records when Mojang first exposed these mechanics to Bedrock testers. The Happy Ghast and Vibrant Visuals subsequently appeared in the 1.21.90 Chase the Skies release, so players seeking the shipped features should use the current Bedrock release available for their platform and consult its notes.
Do not assume that buying or installing a current copy grants access to this historical preview build. Preview and release availability are version- and platform-dependent, and the official notes cited here document what the build did at the time rather than promising continued distribution.
Where can creators verify the 1.21.80 behavior?
Creators working on add-ons or technical documentation can compare the player-facing changelog with Microsoft’s creator-focused notes. The 1.21.80 Update Notes for Creators provide the relevant version context, while the player changelogs explain the user-facing toggles and mechanics. Keeping those references version-labeled prevents preview behavior from being mistaken for a stable API or current recipe.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Vibrant Visuals a gameplay mod or a graphics feature?
It is a graphics feature rather than a gameplay modification. The later Bedrock 1.21.90 documentation describes Vibrant Visuals as a cosmetic enhancement, so it changes presentation without changing game rules, creature progression, or item recipes.
What exactly does the Locator Bar show?
The Locator Bar is a HUD element that indicates the direction of other players. Its availability is controlled by a game rule, allowing a world administrator to enable or disable the player-location display.
Why might a device on the support list still show visual glitches?
The listed hardware was supported for an unfinished preview test, not certified for flawless rendering. Mojang specifically warned about corruption on some Android Mali devices and several lighting, texture, metallic, and emissive-surface problems.
Where should add-on developers look for version-specific details?
Use Microsoft’s 1.21.80 Update Notes for Creators alongside Mojang’s player changelogs. Reading both helps distinguish creator-facing implementation notes from the experimental settings and recipes players saw in this preview.