Our Long Beach Post Minecraft server started with plain white placeholder building blocks in a to-scale map of Downtown Long Beach. But over the last two months, you have transformed those blocks into the beautiful and intricate architecture for which our city is known.

We started virtual Office Hours as a way to connect with you, our readers, and build something together while we’re all stuck inside because of the coronavirus pandemic. Since then, we’ve seen amazing, realistic and whimsical builds by Long Beach residents.

The Lion’s Lighthouse was our first project together. Well, sort of. You all finished it before we even started our first stream!

There’s a secret waterslide in an Ocean Boulevard high-rise building, a rollercoaster inside the Aquarium of the Pacific, a Statue of Liberty in the bay, a parkour course next to Shoreline Village and so many more creative builds.

We’re also seeing real-life mirrored in our virtual world, like a restaurant with virtually boarded up windows following the May 31 unrest and a Black Lives Matter mural on the street outside the virtual police station.

We love seeing the creativity and expression in our server and we want more of it!

Here’s how you can join in:

If you have the Bedrock edition of Minecraft (or the phone app), sign up in the Google Form below for the server information. You’ll also get our weekly newsletter with the newest and coolest builds and a round-up of the week’s news.

Then tune in each Wednesday at 4:30 p.m. to watch me and either another reporter or special guest, livestream as we check out the newest builds and talk about the latest news. You can talk to us live through the chats on Minecraft, Facebook, Twitch and YouTube. Ask us questions about our jobs, the news, coronavirus, or anything else you want and we’ll do our best to answer live.

If you build something cool and want to make sure we see it, email me the coordinates at [email protected]. Have any suggestions on how to make the stream or server better? Want to suggest a guest or topic? Email me and let me know!

We can’t wait to see you on Wednesday, but in the meantime, check out these builds!

 

Landmark Square is a site in real life and that doesn’t change in virtual Long Beach. We love the “Fells Wargo” touch too! Built by Oreo and Samulatorr.
The new Billie Jean King Library was built by library staffers and includes so many details, including 3-D printers in its Maker Space.
It was hard to get all these cool creations in one shot, but from this angle, you can see the top of the aquarium, Long Beach’s new Statue of Liberty, a whale and trident in the bay, the start of a ship and a chicken statue and way more.

When you get on the server, try to find this waterslide hidden in an Ocean Boulevard high-rise!
Several faithful Minecrafters, led by ZivaDavid700, have transformed the Aquarium of the Pacific into a rollercoaster AND a walkthrough. Behind the glass are fish and water and, at the end, they’ve even included an atrium with tropical birds.
This Convention Center masterpiece is being built by LcyInTheSky99 and includes details like working elevators and an art gallery inside. We can’t wait until it’s complete!
The Queen Mary is ALMOST done but it appears its builders need some help. Maybe we can get some more builders!

 

Valerie Osier is the Social Media & Newsletter Manager for the Long Beach Post. Reach her at [email protected] or on Twitter @ValerieOsier