minecraft
This article is about the Legacy Console Edition mini games. For the Bedrock Edition third-party servers, see Featured servers.
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This feature is exclusive to Legacy Console Edition. 
Mini games menu as seen on the .

Mini games menu as seen on the Nintendo Switch Edition.

Mini games are a variety of modes exclusive to the Legacy Console Edition of Minecraft. Mini games can be played solo, splitscreen on the same console, online, or with another console locally via an ad-hoc connection‌[Legacy Console Edition only]. The three mini games currently available on all versions of Legacy Console Edition are Battle, Tumble, and Glide.

Prior to each round, all players can freely explore a lobby and interact with various items, such as bows, fishing rods, armor, heads, elytra, and music discs. Any player who wears one of the six heads in the lobby retains that head into the next round.

Lobby

Upon creating or joining a server, the player spawns in the lobby. It is a small "town" in the middle of a superflat world. All players are in adventure mode and are immune to damage (just like in Creative mode). When playing with other players, the next game starts within one minute, although the player can create an invite-only game to gain the freedom to explore the lobby.

Exploration

The mini-game lobby is complex. There are many redstone puzzles scattered around. The main collectables and secrets of the lobby are getting the music discs, getting all of the armor sets, the hidden old lobby, and the mob head hunts to get the the dragon's head.

Escaping the lobby

Escaping the lobby is currently possible in one way. On most editions, when you flick the lever in the left tower to open up the entrance to the "mini-nether", blocks will be noclippable across the door and you can fall through them. If you equip an Elytra, you can use this to go into the 1-block gap and escape the lobby. Even though you escaped, there are invisible barriers preventing you from escaping near the lobby to the flatworld. Once you do another match, the noclippable blocks will not be present.

Battle

Battle mini game logo.

Battle mini game logo.

Gameplay of Battle mini game.

Gameplay of Battle mini game.

Initially codenamed/known as Arena (as seen in Wii U Edition's unused files), Battle is a mini game most similar to the popular "Hunger Games" mode on Java Edition servers, where players compete in a "last man standing" or "deathmatch" style game. Battle was added to the Legacy Console Edition on June 21, 2016. The gameplay of Battle differs from the standard "Hunger Games" mode in a variety of ways, such as:

Up to 16 players can join a single game on Xbox One Edition and PlayStation 4 Edition, 8 players on Xbox 360 Edition, PlayStation 3 Edition, Wii U Edition, and Nintendo Switch Edition, and 4 players on PlayStation Vita Edition. A "Casual" or "Competitive" option can be chosen when creating a lobby, which can either allow or restrict the use of smaller-sized skins and can change the appearance of spectators. Spectators cannot pass through blocks, but can fly through one block tall spaces. As of TU60 and equivalent updates, the totem of undying can be found in a map's center chests, commonly in the High Power mode, occasionally in the Food Central mode, and never in the Decayed mode.

Custom Battle is an option that allows a player to change various aspects of Battle, such as:

Loot

All loot in the Battle mini game is obtained from chests or other players. Center chests at the beginning of a round may contain high concentrations of valuable loot, such as armor, weapons, food, and potions. Different regions of the maps have different types of loot. Some special, hard-to-reach chests can have valuable loot also. After intervals of time, loot is restocked in chests, with a smaller number of items than they had originally. On small and large maps there are two chests with valuable loot, and on large+ there are four. On high power these chests usually have exclusive loot. The valuable loot, as well as some exclusive loot, can also be found in the chests in the center after a refill, alongside the loot that can be found in regular chests, alot the loot that is found within the center chests at the start of the round, will not appear again after a refill.

Following loot will appear in any of the regular chests around the map:

Following loot will appear within the 2 special chests (4 on Large+) in any map:

3

Following loot is exclusive to the center chests at the start of a round, and will not appear after a refill:

10

Following loot can appear in the center chests after a refill:

3

The following appear more often in the High Power custom mode:

5

A chest in the Halloween map always contains the following items, regardless of the mode being used:

4

Maps

As of TU49 and equivalent updates, there are a total of 21 maps in Battle mini game (excluding the Nintendo Switch Edition). The first three maps - Cavern, Cove, and Crucible - can be used by anyone, however the remaining 18 maps must be purchased through the respective Battle Map Pack or the Season Pass (excluding the Nintendo Switch Edition). Each map is based on a theme, occasionally with unique music and a texture pack. Because of this, the texture pack cannot be changed during Battle mini game.

The Season Pass and nearly all DLC Battle maps are absent on the Nintendo Switch Edition, even though all other versions, including the Wii U Edition, have these maps as purchasable DLC. When asked about this during the Official Minecraft Livestream, it was stated that excluding Nintendo Switch Edition players from Battle Map DLC is "kind of intentional."[1] This is currently still the case, where Valley is the only DLC Battle map that is available on the Nintendo Switch Edition through the purchase of the Chinese Mythology Mash-Up Pack.

As of PlayStation 4 Edition 1.90, maps with the default textures were replaced with the newer "Minecraft Classic" pack.

The current available battle maps are as follows, with the Nintendo Switch Edition having access only to Cavern, Cove, Crucible, and Valley:

DLC packs

The current available Battle Map DLC Packs are as follows, with the Nintendo Switch Edition having access only to the Chinese Mythology Mash-Up:

Trailer

Tumble

Tumble mini game logo.

Tumble mini game logo.

Gameplay of Tumble mini game.

Gameplay of Tumble mini game.

Tumble is a mini game most similar to the popular "Spleef" mode on Java Edition servers, where players aim to cause others to fall off of an arena by using snowballs, shovels, or other items to mine the ground below them. Tumble was added to the Legacy Console Edition on August 30 and August 31, 2016.

Similar to Battle, a Tumble game is divided into three rounds. The object of the game is to remove blocks from under other players, causing them to fall in a last-man-standing scenario. The default Tumble mode encompasses a single, large platform where players use shovels to remove blocks. Other modes include competing on three smaller platforms, throwing snowballs, using firework rockets, or throwing splash potions with the Levitation effect. All blocks are broken immediately by a shovel, snowball, or potion. The sole exception is TNT, which act as both a pitfall and an explosive that can be used to destroy lower platforms, if enabled.

Up to 8 players can join a single game on most platforms, with PlayStation Vita Edition allowing a maximum of 4.

Gamemodes

As of TU58 and equivalent updates, the "Custom" game type allows the host to change these settings:

After a certain amount of time, Showdown mode begins, like in Battle mode. Player names are shown during this period. When shovels are enabled, they are replaced with snowballs.

Events

Various special events can occur in the Tumble mini game:

Trailer

Glide

Glide mini game logo.

Glide mini game logo.

Gameplay of Glide mini game.

Gameplay of Glide mini game.

Glide is a mini game where players maneuver through a track while wearing an elytra, aiming to finish in the fastest time or score the most points by flying through colored rings. Glide was added to the Legacy Console Edition on March 29, 2017. Glide currently features two different game modes:

A Glide match is divided into three rounds, where a player with the fastest time or highest score from any round is the victor. Each map has checkpoints with two beacon beams. The player has 3 hearts of health. When losing all 3 hearts of health you die. Hitting a wall causes you to lose one heart of health and landing on the ground causes you to die immediately. Upon death the player respawns at the last checkpoint after a few seconds and can continue playing. Up to 16 players can join a single game on Xbox One Edition and PlayStation 4 Edition, 8 players on Xbox 360 Edition, PlayStation 3 Edition, Wii U Edition, and Nintendo Switch Edition, and 4 players on PlayStation Vita Edition.

Solo

Both Time Attack and Score Attack can also be played in solo mode. When enabled, only one player is required to start the match. Online play is unavailable but multi-player play is possible using a split screen. A match is also divided into one round instead of three. A solo player can press a button to restart the entire game and you can press a different button to teleport back to the last checkpoint. The player's best run in Glide is also recorded (as long as it is under 5 minutes) and a ghost flies alongside to help the player improve.

Maps

Similar to Battle, every DLC Glide track is absent from the Nintendo Switch Edition, even though all other versions, including the Wii U Edition, have these tracks as purchasable DLC. This is currently still the case, where Cavern, Temple, and Canyon are the only playable tracks on the Nintendo Switch Edition.

As of PlayStation 4 Edition 1.90, maps with the default textures were replaced with the newer "Minecraft Classic" pack.

The current available Glide maps are as follows, with the Nintendo Switch Edition having access only to Cavern, Temple, and Canyon:

DLC packs

The current available Glide Map DLC Packs are as follows. None are available on the Nintendo Switch Edition:

Ring blocks

The Glide mini game features an exclusive block type called the Ring Block,[verify] which comes in green, yellow and blue variants. These are used for the rings that players fly through.

Official images

Trailer

Music

Mini games feature their own unique music tracks. These were released on two separate official soundtracks: Minecraft: Battle & Tumble (Original Soundtrack) and Minecraft: Glide Mini Game (Original Soundtrack).

Achievements

Icon Achievement In-game description Actual requirements (if different) Availability Gamerscore earned (Xbox) Trophy type (PS)
Xbox PS Nintendo
The Student...Win a public Battle mini game. YesYesWii U, Switch25GSilver
...has become the masterWin 3 public Battle games in a row. YesYesWii U, Switch60GGold
'Tis but a scratchTake 100 damage in a round of a public Battle mini game. YesYesWii U, Switch40GSilver
CupidKill 2 players in a round of a public Battle mini game using a bow and arrow. YesYesWii U, Switch20GBronze
Hunger PainWhile starving, kill a player in a Battle mini game. YesYesWii U, Switch20GBronze
Mine!Open every chest in a Battle mini game arena in one round. YesYesWii U, Switch20GBronze
UnderdogWin a Tumble game while on the lowest layer in a Snowball Tumble mini game. YesYesWii U, Switch15GBronze
HotshotHit a player with a snowball while falling into the lava. YesYesWii U, Switch40GSilver
S-no ThrowWin a single round of Snowball Tumble without throwing any Snowballs. YesYesWii U, Switch40GSilver
OverlordStay on the top layer while winning a round in a Snowball Tumble mini game. YesYesWii U, Switch15GBronze
SnowploughPush three players into lava using snowballs in a single public round. YesYesWii U, Switch15GBronze
Snow StormHit a single Player with 25 Snowballs in a single public round. YesYesWii U, Switch40GSilver

History

Legacy Console Edition
TU36CU25 1.28 Patch 71.0.1Added Battle mini game.
TU38CU26 1.30 Patch 9Disabled kicking players during Public Battle rounds. This is enabled for the host in the Lobby.
Disabled the host exiting the game during a Battle round. This is enabled in the lobby.
Grace period increased to 20 seconds.
Changed all poison potions to level 2 instead of level 1. All sticks now have at least Sharpness 1.
Replaced the fire charge item with a potion of fire resistance.
Replaced the diamond chestplate with an iron chestplate.
The Wooden Hoe with Fire Aspect 1 has Sharpness 1 added to it.
Removed the wooden shovel from the center chests.
Added Sharpness 1 to the wooden pickaxe in the outer chests.
Added Sharpness 2 to the wooden shovel in the outer chests.
TU39CU27 1.31 Patch 10Added Battle Map Pack 2 (Atlantis, Ruin and Siege).
1.0.1Disabled "Take Everything" in the lobby.
TU41CU30 1.33 Patch 11Added Tumble mini game.
TU44CU34 1.37 Patch 14Added Halloween Battle Map.
Added Battle Map Pack 4.
TU48CU38 1.41 Patch 17Added new 7 achievements for Tumble.
TU51CU41 1.44 Patch 201.0.3Added Glide mini game. Added a new lobby.
TU52CU42 1.47 Patch 21Added new maps to the glide minigame: Dragon, Kraken and Yeti.
1.0.3Added colored particles when the player crosses the finish line.
TU53CU43 1.49 Patch 23Added "Temple," a free Glide track.
The player's best run in Glide is now recorded (as long as it is under 5 minutes) and a ghost flies alongside them in Solo Mode to help them improve.
TU56CU47 1.55 Patch 261.0.6Added "Canyon," a free Glide track.
Added Terracotta and Glazed Terracotta layers to Tumble.
TU57CU49 1.57 Patch 27Added Glide Myths Track Pack; Drift through the clouds of Icarus, dive into conflict in Excalibur and ride with the Kelpies in Celts.
TU58CU51 1.60 Patch 281.0.8Added the "Custom" game type to the Battle mini game and the Tumble mini game with many new settings.

Trivia

Gallery

References

  1. [1] - The Official Minecraft Livestream
  2. "Super Smash Bros. Ultimate – Mr. Sakurai Presents "Steve & Alex"" – Nintendo on YouTube, October 3, 2020