Minecraft Java Edition 26.3 Pre-Release 3: Bug Fixes Galore
What Changed
Minecraft Java Edition 26.3 Pre-Release 3 arrived on 8 September 2026, keeping the march toward a stable 26.3 release firmly on track. This pre-release is almost entirely focused on squashing bugs, over twenty of them, along with a small but important technical tweak to how the game handles data packs.
Technical Tweaks
- Data Pack version bumped to 121.0, pack makers will need to note this version number for compatibility checks.
minecraft:modfloat provider now uses standard modulus instead of floor modulus, bringing it in line with its integer counterpart.minecraft:powfloat provider will now throw an error if you raise 0 to the power of 0, again matching the integer variant and preventing silent, unpredictable computation results.
Notable Bug Fixes
- Free villager trades (two separate exploits patched): Players could complete trades without handing over items if a villager's reputation dropped to zero mid-trade, or if the villager restocked while the trading screen was still open. Both loopholes are now closed.
- Falling block visual glitches: Falling blocks no longer vanish for a split second on landing, and stacked falling blocks no longer cause the top block to briefly disappear and show unlit particles.
- Snow layer camera clip: The camera no longer lets players see through solid blocks when standing inside snow layers.
- Fullscreen mode fixes (Windows & macOS): A string of rendering issues, wrong resolutions, borderless windows not filling the screen, Windows+↓ incorrectly restoring the window, and the FPS-limiter not activating on minimise, have all been resolved.
- Shovel durability: Shovels now correctly lose durability when used to put out campfires.
- Block-breaking sounds and particles in multiplayer: Pausing the game or stepping through a portal no longer leaves block-breaking effects playing in mid-air.
- Missing block-hit sound: Blocks that break almost instantly now properly play their hit sound again.
- Wayland focus handoff: Clicking links on Linux/Wayland now correctly passes focus to the browser.
Why It Matters
Pre-releases sit right at the edge of becoming a full public release, so the fixes landing here are the ones the team felt were important enough to delay shipping. The two villager trading exploits in particular are meaningful for any server, they let players essentially duplicate emerald value out of thin air. Closing them keeps the in-game economy fair and honest. The fullscreen rendering fixes are also a quality-of-life win for players on Windows and macOS who rely on those display modes for the best performance.
Java and Bedrock
This release is Java Edition only. Bedrock Edition follows its own separate release schedule and is not affected by any of the changes listed here. If your household mixes Java and Bedrock players, nothing on the Bedrock side changes today.
For Server Owners
The villager trade exploits are the headline item for server operators. If your server is already running 26.3 snapshots, applying Pre-Release 3 closes two economy-breaking loopholes that determined players could abuse. The data pack version bump to 121.0 means any custom loot tables or number-provider logic using mod or pow float types should be reviewed, the modulus and zero-power behaviours have changed to match integer behaviour, which could shift outcomes in existing packs. Test before deploying.
For Parents
Nothing alarming here, this update is a polish pass before the full 26.3 release. The trading fixes mean your child's villager-based shops on a shared server will work fairly, without a clever loophole letting one player get items for free at another's expense. The visual fixes (snow camera, falling blocks, fullscreen rendering) simply mean the game looks and feels cleaner. As always, pre-releases are testing versions and should not be used on worlds you care about keeping safe.
For Players
Great news if you've noticed any of these annoyances! Falling sand and gravel will no longer do that weird flicker when they land. You won't clip your eyes through walls when crouching in snow anymore. Your shovel will properly wear down when you smother a campfire (sorry, no more free fire-fighting!). And block-breaking sounds should feel snappier and more satisfying again. If you play in fullscreen on Windows or Mac, things should look a lot more correct too.
Do SNT Kingdoms Need an Update?
No action needed, and none is possible yet. SNT Gaming kingdoms run Paper 1.21.11 backends behind a Velocity proxy, with ViaVersion/ViaBackwards/ViaRewind handling client compatibility for versions 1.13 through 1.21.11. Mojang's new year-based versioning (26.x) is not yet supported by PaperMC, Velocity, or the Via ecosystem, so 26.3 Pre-Release 3 clients cannot connect to SNT kingdoms at this time.
Your kingdom is fully up to date for every supported client version, all six worlds (Survival, SharedLife, RandomLoot, Chaos, Spleef, and Rivals) are running smoothly, and Bedrock players continue to join seamlessly via Geyser+Floodgate. We're keeping a close eye on the Paper and Velocity roadmaps and will let you know the moment 26.x support becomes available. Until then, sit tight, we've got everything covered.