Stampede: Racing Royale was first announced by developer Sumo Leamington in June 2023. Since then the dev team has offered private early access to the game for limited periods on the PC via Steam. Today, the team announced that a version of the game is now available to try out for members of Microsoft"s Xbox Insider program on the Xbox Series X and S consoles, along with Windows PCs.
The game is designed to be a free-to-play online title where players compete in a mashup of kart racing and battle royale gameplay. In a post on Xbox Wire, Chris Groves, the Senior Community Manager at Sumo Leamington, offers a summary of what to expect:
Imagine dropping into a go-kart and racing in 60-player online events (yes, sixty!), avoiding elimination across three rounds, and competing to become the ultimate champion. Throw in a variety of wild power-ups to deploy, incredible maps to master, and different modes like Battle and Zombies, and you’ve got yourself a tasty cocktail known as ‘Stampede: Racing Royale’.
You can also expect to find and earn a ton of customization in-game items. You can put cheese wheels on your go-kart, have your character wear an octopus on its head, and more. Special events will also be held where you can win and access rare in-game items and rewards.
The bad news is that when the game officially launches for all Xbox players in Early Access, your progress in this more private playtest will not be moved to that version of the game. The good news is that all Xbox Insider members who participate will get an exclusive in-game gift when the Early Access version launches.
If you are a member of the Xbox Insider program, here"s how to join the Stampede: Racing Royale private test:
- Open the Xbox Insider Hub on your Xbox Series X|S or Windows PC.
- Navigate to Previews > Stampede: Racing Royale
- Select Join.
- Wait for registration to complete, and you should be directed to the correct Store Page to install the preview.
Keep in mind there are only a limited number of spots open during this Xbox Insider test, and they will be on a first-come, first-served basis.