Epic Workshop: Major Updates for 2026

Over the last couple of months we've shipped a lot of improvements to the Epic Workshop experience. This update highlights the biggest learner-facing changes since v6.45.0, grouped by theme rather than release order.

Tutorial-first onboarding

A new tutorial workshop (epicshop-tutorial) is now the default first run. epicshop init clones it automatically and starts the tutorial, replacing the old onboarding video with a hands-on walkthrough.
The onboarding flow now supports optional authentication, clearer prompts, and a multi-select workshop picker so you can grab multiple workshops at once.
Onboarding indicators and guide content now point out key features (like Files and Playground) the first time you encounter them, with a first-time "Set Playground" dialog that prevents accidental overwrites.

Learning flow and practice

Interleaved practice mode adds a "practice a past lesson" button that jumps to a random completed step to reinforce retention.
Finished pages now surface retrieval practice components so you can reflect on what you just completed before moving on.
Extras navigation now flows directly from the final exercise into the extra apps list, with consistent previous/next controls inside the extras section.
Exercise step headers and layouts were refined to avoid horizontal scrolling and improve usability on narrow screens.
Keyboard shortcuts are now easier to discover with a dedicated navigation button and clearer shortcuts dialog messaging.

Video learning experience (online and offline)

Offline video downloads are now available with per-video controls and bulk download management from Preferences.
Download quality can be chosen (best/high/medium/low), and real-time progress indicators show download status.
Video metadata is now fetched dynamically so duration and download sizes are more accurate, and download URLs are more reliable.
Transcript parsing and duration estimates improve how the video player represents timing, especially across long lessons.
Mermaid diagrams now render correctly in dark mode, improving readability for embedded visuals.

Playgrounds and extras

Extras are now easier to discover with dedicated list and detail pages for standalone extra apps.
Extras now have their own navigation sub-list and a "Set to Playground" button, making it easy to explore and switch your playground target.
Saved playgrounds can be restored from a dedicated dialog, keeping your previous experiments accessible without cluttering the main app chooser.
Playground UX also gains clearer first-time guidance and better indicators when the current playground does not match the step you're on.

CLI and setup improvements

The CLI is now epicshop, with clearer, flatter command structure and interactive selection for diff and playground when you do not pass args.
epicshop add supports repo#ref so you can clone a specific workshop version, plus custom destination directories when you want to control where the repo is checked out.
Setup flows now auto-detect your package manager and support configuration for more predictable installs across npm, pnpm, yarn, and bun.
Update flows and dependency checks are smarter, with clearer prompts when a workshop or dependency is out of date.
Windows-specific fixes make editor detection, command resolution, and clone workflows more reliable.

Examples:


# Run the guided first-time setup and start the tutorial workshop.
npx epicshop init
# Add a workshop with an interactive list
# including "download all the ones I have purchased"
npx epicshop add
# Add the tutorial workshop later if you skipped it.
npx epicshop add epicshop-tutorial
# Clone a workshop at an exact branch, tag, or commit
npx epicshop add mcp-fundamentals#cohort-001
# Clone a workshop into a custom directory.
npx epicshop add web-forms ./my-web-forms
# See what workshops are available locally.
npx epicshop list
# Start the workshop app in the current workshop folder.
npx epicshop start
# Open the current workshop in your editor.
npx epicshop open
# Set the playground to a specific step with an interactive picker.
npx epicshop playground set
# Pick two apps to compare with an interactive diff picker.
npx epicshop diff
# Check for updates and apply them.
npx epicshop update

MCP server and AI assistant support

Your AI assistant can use the CLI pretty well, but you can get even more out of the MCP server which had a couple really nice improvements as well!

The MCP server now ships with clearer tool descriptions and responses, so AI assistants can use it more efficiently and reliably.
New MCP tools can list and restore saved playgrounds, helping assistants keep your learning state in sync.

Reliability and polish

Error boundaries and server-down states are more resilient, making the app recover gracefully when something goes wrong.
Sidecar status indicators and admin controls make background tooling more visible and manageable.
The Preferences page loads faster, and the account screen gives clearer cues for editing your avatar.

Thanks for learning with Epic Workshop, and keep the feedback coming!