What’s happening

True Build Battle replays and fairer judging

Build Battle now keeps rematches in the right game, makes judging fairer and puts more creative tools one click away across Java and Bedrock.

• The replay button now queues another Build Battle instead of falling back to global Quick Play.
• Judging is now anonymous until the results, helping every creation get a fairer vote.
• A Creative Palette shortcut now appears in the hotbar during building.
• The palette includes paintings, safe redstone, lava and a wider selection of passive mobs across Java and Bedrock.
• All existing safety limits for entities, fluids and redstone remain in place.

New guides for every Cookie Build game

Dedicated guides now explain how to join and play Build Battle, MicroBattles, Pitchout, SkyWars and Turf Wars on Bedrock and Java.

• Every live Cookie Build mode now has a dedicated guide with its objective, core rules and connection details.
• A new games directory makes Build Battle, MicroBattles, Pitchout, SkyWars and Turf Wars easier to discover.
• Bedrock players can find the server address and port directly on every game page, alongside Java cross-play information.
• The guides use the current in-game timings, team sizes, maps and win conditions.

Minecraft 26.2 and refreshed Bedrock compatibility

Cookie Build now runs on Paper 26.2 with refreshed Geyser and Floodgate components for current Java and Bedrock clients.

• The server engine has been upgraded to the latest stable Paper 26.2 build.
• Geyser and Floodgate have been refreshed together to improve current Bedrock client compatibility and authentication reliability.
• Existing worlds, player progress, games and gameplay rules are preserved.
• Java cross-version support remains available through the current stable ViaVersion stack.

More reliable SkyWars kit menus

SkyWars progression now initializes safely when several server tasks load a player's kit data at the same time.

• Opening the SkyWars kit menu no longer fails when progression data is being created concurrently.
• The fix applies to both Java and Bedrock players without changing existing kits, coins, XP or selections.
• Existing progression remains untouched; only first-time initialization is serialized.

Clearer player activity in the lobby

Compact game labels and a live activity counter now make it obvious when other players are already in matches.

• Game NPC labels are split across two shorter lines, with clearer JOIN, STARTING and IN GAME states.
• A display above the lobby spawn shows both the total number of players online and how many are currently in game queues or matches.
• Counts refresh every second and deduplicate players across active game rosters.

TurfWars returns

The classic red-versus-blue archery game returns with its recovered arena and a safer cross-platform match lifecycle.

- The original arena has been converted block-for-block to the current Minecraft format. - Teams alternate between a protected 25-second build phase and 90 seconds of ranged combat. - Arrow hits advance your turf by two columns; reach the far edge or lead when time expires to win. - Balanced teams, reconnect recovery, progression, stats, Parties, Quick Play, and Java/Bedrock controls are built in.

Lobby and game quality improvements

Clearer first-join guidance and focused SkyWars and BuildBattles fixes make it easier to choose a game and start playing.

• The lobby now gives all five games a distinctive selector, a short description and direct access from the Cookie Build menu.
• New-player guidance highlights Quick Play, direct game selection and the main community links without repeating on every connection.
• SkyWars now opens the correct kit selector on Java without changing the working Bedrock flow.
• BuildBattles recovers its spare arenas more reliably and supports a wider safe decoration palette.

SkyWars and BuildBattles are back

Two classic Cookie Build modes return with recovered maps, modern progression, and safer match lifecycles.

• SkyWars launches across four recovered arenas with randomized island and middle loot.
• Four balanced SkyWars kits can be unlocked through play, with coins, XP, wins, kills, and stats recorded.
• BuildBattles restores its eight-plot arena, three-choice theme voting, a five-minute build phase, and peer judging from one to five.
• Builders get a floor tool, replay support, rewards and stats, plus a 60-second reconnect grace period.

Reliability and monitoring

The network now detects failures earlier and gives the team enough context to fix them quickly.

• Health probes continuously cover the Minecraft server, website, PostgreSQL, and RabbitMQ.
• Prometheus, Grafana, Loki, and Alertmanager track usage, performance, logs, and fatal conditions.
• Critical failures notify the Cookie Build team through Discord without interrupting gameplay services.
• Session cleanup and match accounting now guard against stale or duplicated player state.

Cookie Build Mobile 2.0

The companion app is back on iOS and Android with live server information and structured social features.

• See live Java and Bedrock status, connection instructions, gamemodes, events, news, and player leaderboards.
• Securely link your in-game identity with /app link.
• Manage structured Friends and Parties without adding open chat or custom messages.
• Opt in to a player call when someone starts a game or an underfilled queue needs teammates.
• Choose notification categories and manage privacy, account export, and deletion controls directly.

The 2026 update

One year after the Java and Bedrock relaunch, Cookie Build receives new games, progression, social tools, and reliability improvements.

• Java and Bedrock players continue to share the network introduced with the 2025 relaunch.
• Quick Play sends you to the match closest to starting, while persistent Parties keep friends together.
• MicroBattles has been expanded with eight arenas, balanced tiered kits, a weekly free-kit rotation, map voting, assists, and clearer Bedrock menus.
• Pitchout has been upgraded with map voting, instant replay, a live scoreboard, personal match summaries, and progression rewards.
• Weekly goals, achievements, coins, solo practice, feedback, mute, block, and report tools are now available.
• NPC reconciliation and Bedrock interaction fixes make the lobby more reliable.