In 2350, decades of seemingly endless war have worn down the solar system, and peace hangs by a thread. To promote peace and enhance communication among the most powerful factions, every year the Solar Council brings together representatives from each faction to discuss politics behind closed doors. During these talks, heroes, referred to as “champions” in-game, compete in front of roaring crowds to claim honor for their individual ethnic groups at the Steel Circus championships.

The only rule? Get the ball into the opposing team’s goal by any means necessary.

Control one of several heroes and compete in online multiplayer matches with the objective of scoring by shooting the ball into the opposing goal by any means. Each champion has a different skill set with two special skills. Characters range from support roles with buffs and heals to brawling powerhouses. Mastering these abilities is the difference between decent and great players. Since each power is designed around teamplay, strategic cooperation with partners is crucial to claiming the final victory.

Three character types round out the field: Strikers, Enforcers, and Specialists. Strikers, known for their speed and agility are best for offensive play while avoiding engagements wherever possible to line up the perfect shot. Enforcers are the brute force of any well-balanced team, engaging opponents and disabling them temporarily, enabling the rest of the team to score. Specialists are the wildcards of the field: clever and creative, they create chaos on the field, block Strikers from goals and neutralize Enforcers before they can react.

Each character features special moves that can turn the tides towards victory. Lochlan, a Scottish lord from the United States of Europe, buffs his team’s speed while hampering his opponents’ by playing his powered bagpipes. A sneaky robot from the Ceres Worker’s Union known as Cap-x02 can transform into a projectile-launching turret capable of stunning the opposition. Schröder, the mysterious spokesperson of Saturn Enterprises, is capable of altering physical matter in order to evade traps and confuse opponents who swear he sometimes appears of out nowhere.

Steel Circus opens its Closed Alpha Testing (CAT) phase February 15, and sign-ups are available now. 

The CAT will be open to players who have signed up to participate on Steel Circus’ official website. Several waves of closed tests will occur prior to the launch of Steel Circus on Steam Early Access.

“We’ve always loved the speed of sports games, and while creating Steel Circus we felt combining that, with the action and mechanics of hero-based games, we’d have the chance to re-invigorate the sports genre,” says Helmut Hutterer, Game Director, Iron Mountain Interactive. “Our goal with Steel Circus is to change what players think of when they hear about sports games, and want to thank everyone in the Closed Alpha Test for being among the first to test the exciting new types of gameplay we’re creating.”

Steel Circus’ Closed Alpha Test enrollment will remain open during the entire CAT period and players are now invited to participate in the first testing round, scheduled from February 15 (6:00 AM PT, 3:00 PM CET, 5:00 PM MSK) to February 16 ((6:00 AM PT, 3:00 PM CET, 5:00 PM MSK). The servers will be up 24 hours a day. All future Closed Alpha Test rounds as they will be announced.