In Minecraft Java Edition, players can either jump into a world on their own and explore it, or they can join their friends in a multiplayer world and play together.

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When enjoying a Minecraft world in singleplayer, it's possible to invite friends to make it multiplayer. However, the Java and Bedrock editions of the game differ in the way this is accomplished.

"Minecraft" offers cross-platform play for both versions of the game — Bedrock and Java — but you can only play with users who own the same version.

Minecraft Java Edition players can only cross-play with people on the same version, which is relegated to PC, Mac, and Linux.

The Java Edition is only for PC, and it will only allow you to play with other Java players, which is a lot more limiting.