Blaseball Has Always Existed, And It’s Coming Back With Short Circuits

Fans who have missed mixing simulated betting and cosmic horror can rejoice; Blaseball: Short Circuits will be ready to play ball November 1 at 8 AM PT. If you didn’t witness the realty-tearing chaos of The Grand Unslam or defy the Blaseball gods in the Snackrifice, don’t worry. Blaseball’s creator, The Game Band, characterizes Short Circuits as a kind of clean slate, making it great for newcomers.

Blaseball’s summer beta launch was over, but The Game Band has promised that it will be returning along with 24 of its familiar teams. While it’s not the full relaunch, Short Circuits will offer both new and returning players the opportunity to influence Blaseball’s next form by giving feedback on fresh betting and election mechanics. The upcoming series’ name reflects its brief nature, as each Short Circuit is only two weeks long. Blaseball 1.0 will feature completely different rules for each bi-weekly event. Each one will be different in terms of its structure and rules. This event is a feature testing event that will allow Blaseball to release its full version.

For anyone that may have heard whispers of a game featuring random incineration and a giant, peanut-eating squid, but isn’t sure what Blaseball is all about, here’s the rundown. Blaseball is essentially a baseball simulation that runs in a web browser. As you watch, multiple fictional teams compete for the same spot over the course of one week. The outcome is determined by a stat-based algorithm. If this doesn’t sound like the inexplicable Blaseball you’ve heard of, that’s because what really makes this game so wild is how fans can influence it.

By accumulating wealth – which was initially limited to betting on games’ outcomes with in-game currency – fans could earn funds to purchase snacks, help out their team in various ways, and, very importantly, buy votes. These votes could be cast at elections which would affect the real world game after each week. For instance, in the first season’s election, fans voted to “Open the Forbidden Book,” which not only gave them a glimpse of the rulebook but also unleashed Solar Eclipses, which incinerated many fan-favorite players. Blaseball, however, isn’t the only game from The Game Band that has been in recent news. The team’s puzzle game, Where Cards Fall, is coming to Switch and PC next week.