My Hero Academia’s battle royale beta is coming soon and will be free to play

At this year’s Anime Expo in Los Angeles, Bandai Namco announced a new game based on the popular anime series My Hero Academia: a 24-player battle royale that pits teams of heroes and villains against each other. The free-to-play game, called My Hero Ultra Rumble, will be available on PlayStation 4, Nintendo Switch, Xbox One, and PC.

You can sign up for the closed beta, which is currently just for PS4 players, on Bandai Namco’s website. The first phase starts on August 17th at 10PM ET (7PM PT) and ends on August 18th at 6AM ET (3AM PT), while the second phase runs from August 18th at 10PM ET (7PM PT) to August 21st at 2PM ET (11AM PT).

My Hero Ultra Rumble seems like an interesting take on the battle royale genre, as it splits a group of two dozen players into eight teams of three. Each player will have to work with their teammates and use their character’s Quirk — or special ability — to win fights against other players. Depending on whether you’re a hero or villain, you’ll get to rescue or intimidate bystanders to get special power-ups that give you a competitive advantage.

The confirmed roster so far includes just 12 characters, but developers are likely to add more given the size of the My Hero universe. You can choose to play as several heroes from the anime, including our main character Izuku Midoriya (Deku) as well as many of his classmates and companions, such as Shoto Todoroki, Katsuki Bakugo, Ochaco Uraraka, and Tsuyu Asui. Pro Heroes like All Might, Mt. Lady, and Cementoss are also confirmed to appear in the game as are a handful of villains, including Tomura Shigaraki, Dabi, and Himiko Toga.

Bandai Namco previously released two fighting games based on the series: My Hero One’s Justice and its sequel, My Hero One’s Justice 2. Both of the games are available on the PS4, Xbox One, Switch, and PC, but, unlike My Hero Ultra Rumble, you have to pay to play.