Atlas Reactor, Trion Worlds’ competitive, fast-paced, turn-based team tactics game, has partnered with ESL, the world’s largest eSports company, to create an eSports structure for fans of the newly-released game who have already been looking for a venue for organised competitive play. Atlas Reactor’s inaugural competition kicks off in two days as part of the ESL Go4 series, with a prize purse of more than US$8,000 to be shared among the top teams. North American and European gamers interested in competing can learn more and register their teams at ESL’s website. To celebrate the alliance, Trion is staging an all-access weekend during which Atlas Reactor will be entirely free to all players beginning tomorrow (Friday) through Sunday, November 13.

The announcement comes on the heels of a series of successful community-driven Atlas Reactor competitions conducted under the ESL Play banner over the past two weeks. Dozens of four-player teams have participated in those events, and player feedback from those tournaments has helped shape the structure and format of the more formal ESL Go4 Atlas Reactor competition.

“The community’s response to Atlas Reactor’s competitive structure has been overwhelmingly positive, so we are happy to help solidify the title in the eSports arena,” said Sean Charles, Vice President of Publisher Relations at ESL. “It’s always an exciting time when a title shows potential and we look forward to working closely with Trion Worlds to bring Atlas Reactor to a wider gaming audience.” “Atlas Reactor officially launched just a month ago, but the game’s competitive elements have been attracting a passionate, competitive audience since Open Alpha back in March,” noted Peter Ju, Executive Producer on Atlas Reactor. “We’re very excited to kick off this joint effort with ESL and our community, and have ambitious plans to further expand and evolve the game to support all types of players.”

Atlas Reactor’s move into eSports also comes in the wake of a swath of glowing reviews and first impressions praising the game’s competitive structure. As one example, RedBull eSports stated “Atlas Reactor has everything it takes to turn heads in the competitive space…Trion Worlds has accomplished something special,” while Gamespot described the game as “a near-perfect balance of match length, tactics, replayability, and flow of action…unique and fresh.” A new Atlas Reactor trailer touting some of the recent accolades garnered by the game can be found here.

As part of the agreement, ESL will provide editorial, social, and other promotional support, as well as logistical and managerial expertise and oversight. Atlas Reactor is currently available in fully localised English, French, German, and Russian, with additional language support added soon.

Described by Polygon as “Dota meets XCOM,” Atlas Reactor reinvents tactical team combat, combining competitive, fast-paced turn-based action with simultaneous planning that rewards quick thinking. Players must outsmart and outgun their fellow Freelancers with mere seconds to survey the field, coordinate with their team and lock in their moves, then see the action play out all at the same time. By working together as a team and predicting your opponents’ decisions, players must devise the best strategy to put themselves one step ahead of the opposition and achieve victory.