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Minecraft 26.4 Snapshot 3 is a Java Edition test build released October 6, 2026. Its main addition is the Ice Caves biome, with Ice Crystals, Icicles, Frostbite mobs, the Freezing effect, and Ice Balls. It also refreshes the Friends and multiplayer-player menus. To try it, enable snapshots under Minecraft Launcher → Installations; use a backed-up world or a separate test folder because test versions can corrupt saves.
What’s new in Minecraft 26.4 Snapshot 3?
The Java Team’s Minecraft 26.4 Snapshot 3 release notes introduce a cold-cave biome and related blocks, combat mechanics, and interface updates. This is a snapshot for Minecraft: Java Edition, not a final release.
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Ice Caves bring a new Overworld biome
Ice Caves can generate beneath colder Overworld biomes. Packed Ice and Calcite make up much of the cave; snow may cover the floor, ores appear in Stone and Deepslate pockets, and Ice Crystals generate occasionally. Icicles hang from ceilings, while larger Packed Ice icicles can appear on ceilings or the ground. Strays and Frostbites can spawn alongside ordinary cave mobs. Glow Lichen does not generate in Ice Caves.
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Ice Crystals and Icicles affect building and exploration
Ice Crystals are light-emitting blocks resembling Amethyst Clusters. They break if their supporting block is removed and can be placed in any direction. Icicles behave like speleothems: naturally growing, downward-pointing ones can reach five blocks, but growth requires the absence of nearby light and does not happen in the Nether. Pointed blocks break when exposed to nearby light or placed in the Nether. Falling icicles damage entities, and entities that land on them take extra damage.
#1 Best Overall
- Minecraft is a game about placing blocks and going on adventures
- Explore randomly generated worlds and build amazing things from the simplest of homes to the grandest of castles
- Play in creative mode with unlimited resources or mine deep into the world in survival mode, crafting weapons and armor to fend off the dangerous mobs
- Play on the go in handheld or tabletop modes
- Includes Super Mario Mash-Up, Natural Texture Pack, Biome Settlers Skin Pack, Battle & Beasts Skin Pack, Campfire Tales Skin Pack; Compatible with Nintendo Switch only
How Frostbite, Freezing, and Ice Balls work
Frostbites switch between melee and ranged attacks
Frostbite is a zombie variant found in cold or icy biomes. It uses melee attacks at close range and throws Ice Balls at a distance when it has them. A melee hit applies Freezing. Frostbites can stand on Powder Snow and are immune to freezing and its slowing effects. If submerged long enough, they turn into ordinary Zombies; Zombies and Husks caught in Powder Snow turn into Frostbites. Frostbites drop Rotten Flesh and Ice Balls.
Freezing damages affected creatures over time
The Freezing effect makes players shake and gradually freeze, eventually causing damage, similar to Powder Snow. Leather Armor protects against freezing as it does in Powder Snow, but it does not prevent the effect from being applied or remove it. Mobs take extra damage while affected; mobs vulnerable to freezing take five times the damage.
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- Explore randomly-generated worlds and build amazing things from the simplest of homes to the grandest of castles
- Play in Creative Mode with unlimited resources or mine deep into the world in survival mode, crafting weapons and armour to fend off the dangerous mobs
Ice Balls can be used to brew a Potion of Freezing, Splash Potion of Freezing, or Lingering Potion of Freezing. To craft Arrows of Freezing, place a Lingering Potion of Freezing in the center of a crafting table and surround it with eight arrows.
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Ice Balls are damaging projectiles
Ice Balls break on impact with a block or entity, apply knockback, and deal four damage to entities on impact. Their damage scales down with projectile velocity, so the listed impact damage is not a guaranteed amount in every hit.
Rank #3
What changed in Friends and multiplayer menus?
The Friends list has a refreshed design, search, and sorting by online status or alphabetically. The profile-name field in the Friends tab also searches. The Requests tab shows a search box when there are at least 15 requests. Selecting a player icon opens Player Options, grouping social actions such as friend requests, muting, and reporting. Muting hides that player’s chat messages until the next time the game starts.
The Social Interactions screen has been replaced by Other Players, and its keybind has been renamed to match. Other Players shows current players and some recently active players in multiplayer-open worlds, including LAN worlds, dedicated servers, and Realms. Open it from the pause-menu icon or press P by default. Blocking players is managed there.
Rank #4
- CREATE YOUR WORLD — Build whatever you imagine in an infinite world that is unique in every playthrough.
- EXPLORE AND CRAFT — Discover biomes, resources, and mobs, then craft your way through a sandbox world full of surprises.
- SURVIVAL ADVENTURES — Face mysterious foes, travel across varied landscapes, and venture into perilous dimensions.
- PLAY TOGETHER — Play solo or join friends in local split-screen and cross-platform play across console, mobile, and PC. Online multiplayer supports up to 8 players.
- COMMUNITY PLAY — Connect with players on community servers, or subscribe to Realms Plus (sold separately) to play with up to 10 friends on a private server.
Two smaller gameplay changes are also noted: snow can be placed on Packed Ice, and snowballs now knock players back.
Technical changes and selected fixes
The snapshot sets the Data Pack version to 123.0 and the Resource Pack version to 100.0. These are technical version identifiers, not performance measurements.
Best Value
- DELUXE COLLECTION — Includes Minecraft: Java & Bedrock Edition, three Bedrock add-ons, three exclusive Character Creator items, and 700 Minecoins.
- CREATE YOUR WORLD — Build whatever you imagine in an infinite world that’s unique in every playthrough.
- EXPLORE AND CRAFT — Discover biomes, resources, and mobs, then craft your way through a sandbox world filled with surprises.
- SURVIVE THE ADVENTURE — Face mysterious foes, travel across exciting landscapes, and venture into perilous dimensions.
- PLAY TOGETHER — Play cross-platform with friends in Bedrock Edition on console, mobile, and PC, or join community servers in Java Edition on PC, Mac, and Linux. Online console multiplayer requires a platform-specific subscription (sold separately).
The release notes list fixes for a Vulkan rendering issue that limited some systems to 20 fps, pets teleporting to incorrect Nether portal coordinates, Friends-menu visual problems, and a crash involving custom Superflat presets containing air. The notes also include additional UI, control, mushroom-generation, and reporting-related fixes; see the official notes for the complete bug-ID list.
How to install and play Snapshot 3
- Open the Minecraft Launcher.
- Go to Installations and enable snapshots.
- Select the Snapshot 3 installation and launch it.
- Use a backed-up world or a separate test folder rather than opening a valuable main-world save.
Mojang warns: “Testing versions can corrupt your world, so please backup and/or run them in a different folder from your main worlds.” The snapshot notes also link a cross-platform server jar, issue tracker, and feedback site for server operators and testers.
Quick Recap
Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.
