The long-awaited successor to ‘90s cult sports series Sensible Soccer has, after a delayed kick-off, finally arrived on Steam.

Sociable Soccer, which is made by original series developer John Hare, launches in Early Access without its anticipated online multiplayer mode. The full feature-complete version of the game – including a manager mode, team editor, a card-based Ultimate Team style mode and eight player online competitions – is expected to arrive some time early in 2018. For now, solo and local multiplayer is included.

Its early user reviews currently sit as ‘mostly positive’, with some owners unhappy about the (clearly explained) currently missing features. Others complaints include the AI, which seemingly does not put up much of a fight, and some complications for those using high refresh-rate monitors. Some folks have also struggled to get their controllers working.

The game had been due to launch the week before last, but a short delay was announced just moments ahead of kick-off. Remember, too, that the first stab at getting the game off the ground was fumbled into the net when its Kickstarter was pulled having managed to raise only ten per cent of its £300k funding target. The developers pledged to press ahead regardless, however, perhaps emboldened by the torrid reception received by retro reboot rival Dino Dini’s Kick Off Revival, which won itself a lowly 31 per cent on Metacritic.

The Sensible Soccer versus Kick Off rivalry was one of the most keenly contested of the Atari ST and Amiga era. The Sensible series is best remembered for its popular Sensible World of Soccer iteration, which spanned four releases

Sociable Soccer costs £15 on Steam.