Minecraft Dungeons II: The Rift, the prequel novel, is out four weeks before the game
Random House Worlds published The Rift on September 1, 2026: a 256-page prequel by Caleb Zane Huett that sets up the rifts and names three of the game's antagonists.
The first piece of Minecraft Dungeons II anyone can actually own shipped on September 1, 2026, and it is not the game. Random House Worlds published Minecraft Dungeons II: The Rift, a 256-page prequel novel written by Caleb Zane Huett with cover art by M. S. Corley, four weeks ahead of the game's September 29 launch. An audiobook narrated by James Aaron Oh and Emily Shaffer released the same day.
The premise sits directly upstream of the game's own. Glowing mobs start appearing outside Harlow's village. His best friend Iliana disappears. Harlow follows the trail underground, through tunnels, into an illager base - and from there into an ancient city, a fight with mind-controlling enemies, and a journey to a peaceful dimension that should not be reachable from the Overworld at all.
That last detail is the one that matters for anyone tracking the game. Dungeons II's whole setup is rifts tearing open across the Overworld and leading to the Sift, the new dimension Mojang revealed in August. The novel is the story of how that starts, which makes it the first published account of the rift phenomenon rather than a side story running alongside it.
It also fills a gap this site has had since the enemy roster went up. The book names the Grand Illusioner, the Prime Enchanter and the Supreme Evoker as antagonists. The Supreme Evoker already had a place on the site - the wiki holds a picture of the Supreme Evoker's Tower - but no narrative context whatsoever. The novel is currently the only source that says who these three are and why they are acting.
Two honest caveats. A licensed tie-in novel is canon in the sense that a publisher and Mojang signed off on it, not in the sense that the game will reference its events - Mojang has said nothing either way. And the book sits in the same middle-grade line as the rest of the Minecraft novels, so treat it as a story written for players rather than a lore bible written for datamining.
Edition details, for the record: ISBN 9780593976678, 256 pages, published in North America on September 1, 2026. Nothing here moves the game. Minecraft Dungeons II still launches September 29, 2026 at 08:00 UTC on PC, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation 5, Nintendo Switch and Nintendo Switch 2, day one on Game Pass.
Frequently asked questions
Is there a Minecraft Dungeons II book?
Yes. Minecraft Dungeons II: The Rift, a 256-page prequel novel by Caleb Zane Huett, was published by Random House Worlds on September 1, 2026, with an audiobook the same day.
Do you need to read The Rift before playing Minecraft Dungeons II?
No. It is a prequel that sets up how the rifts open, not a prerequisite. Mojang has not said the game references its events.
Who are the villains in Minecraft Dungeons II: The Rift?
The novel names the Grand Illusioner, the Prime Enchanter and the Supreme Evoker. Whether all three are bosses in the game has not been confirmed.
Pages updated by this announcement
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- World & campaignWorld structure, missions and campaign length.
- Everything we knowThe full confirmed picture.
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