
Exclusive: Minecraft: Open World—The Ender Trials | News

Today we have an exclusive announcement and cover reveal of the second volume in Dark Horse’s latest middle-grade Minecraft series. Minecraft: Open Worlds—The Ender Trials, by Rachelle Reyes and Abe Taraky, is the followup to Minecraft: Open World—Into the Nether and adds two new players to the cast. Here’s the publisher’s description:
Best buddies Sarah and Hector have been playing Minecraft together for a long, long time. But after countless adventures, there is only so much two players can accomplish. So, Sarah and Hector decide to join forces with the new kids on the server: Ziah and Olivia.
The four players are fast friends. And then they get a server-wide message: a mysterious Quest Master offers an enchanted elytra, which grants the power of flight, to the first players who can gather four legendary relics. It’s an epic prize, but a gauntlet of challenges and an army of mobs stand between the kids and victory. If they want to win, Sarah, Hector, Ziah, and Olivia must work together to game like never before!
“At its heart, this is a story about friendship,” Reyes said in a statement accompanying the announcement. “Forming a new team is tricky, but it’s the only way to overcome the incredible challenges that The Ender Trials has in store.”
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“Working with Rachelle, we wanted to capture that magic moment when a group of players clicks,” added Taraky. “That shared goal of the elytra pushes them to become a true squad, and that’s where the real adventure begins.”
Minecraft: Open World—The Ender Trials will be released on March 17, 2026, in bookstores and March 18 in comic shops; the 88-page, 6″ x 9” is rated for ages 8-12 and has suggested retail price of $10.99.
Filed under: Graphic Novels, Middle Grade, News
About Brigid Alverson
Brigid Alverson, the editor of the Good Comics for Kids blog, has been reading comics since she was 4. She has an MFA in printmaking and has worked as a book editor, a newspaper reporter, and assistant to the mayor of a small city. In addition to editing GC4K, she is a regular columnist for SLJ, a contributing editor at ICv2, an editor at Smash Pages, and a writer for Publishers Weekly. Brigid is married to a physicist and has two daughters. She was a judge for the 2012 Eisner Awards.
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