Active Soccer 3

Here's Gianluca's official statement on Steam:
https://steamcommunity.com/app/2187300/discussions/0/832747360956255873/

Honestly, I'm looking forward to it.
I don't play much anymore, and on top of that I admit that I had put the game aside a little in the past, but I got it installed again upon resetting the PC and the latest patch made it actually better.
Apparently it's being reworked in many areas, so... I'm definitely keeping it installed waiting for *THE* update.

@millossobek is there a chance you update the thread title too?
 
@*aLe done! :)

Looking forward to the latest release as well! Can't wait to see what the final product looks like! :BSCARF:
One of my favorite things about Active Soccer 3 is the sheer number of leagues.
Even if the game are fantasy players, @TheFoxSoft has really taken the time to make accurate depictions of all of them! (which is a huge labour of love)
(I just checked Millonarios and that's the case :) )
IIRC, the community has made some option files to include real players.

I also hope that the final game has some kind of commentary.
I remember @TheFoxSoft mentioning one time that commentary was a future option, and it would be ace to have some in the game.
:TU:
 
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Greetings, @*aLe @millossobek and anyone else still browsing this thread​

I just read the whole thread from the start, i just discovered this game and was really interested, also really glad that you guys still are interested in this after all this time.

I was actually in almost the same boat as some people here and needing another game to love and spend time in again and thats not pes games and wanted something new. I went even as far as searching for mobile games and those are what lead me to this game.
- Was looking for something like stripped down version of PES master league/BAL as wanted something slightly less complicated for a change but still immersive enough to have nice sim/managing aspects and ofcourse good gameplay that you want to return to, which lead me to (as expected because of the "stripped down" requirement) mobile games, specifically> Retro Goal (ML) & Mini Soccer Star (BAL) also New Star Soccer/Manager games.

- Wanted something that would let us put real names and teams and kind of more managerial experience than retro goal provided, that lead me to> World Soccer Champs which was good and allowed community made updates to teams rosters logos etc, and people even went very deep into playing this but the actual gameplay here was too random and too less for my liking, but the management sure was nice.

- Now that made me want to find something with "not too complicated but still have a learning curve" gameplay of Retro Goal x The managerial/career mode aspect of WSC and that lead me back to pc (as i realised the mobile ones would always be too stripped down one way or other for my liking), specifically> SWOS-2020 but the gameplay felt too arcadey/floaty/fast for me and a bit dated too, then i found out about spiritual successor made by the same dev> Sociable Soccer 24/25 but its delisted now and the new one don't have a career mode anymore

All that is what finally lead me to Active Soccer 3 and this thread here, as it seems to have everything i want (yet to try it, heavily considering). But reading the thread i see lot of people were in the same boat, so I don't know how appropriate it is to ask this here, but the community does seem very welcoming and sharing the same interests as me so I'll just go ahead and ask.

Would you guys be able to recommend some similar games now that you know what kind I'm looking for, the few name dropped in this thread were too arcadey for my liking or dated. And also does this game really deliver on all the aspects it claims to? I really want to try it as it seems to tick all the boxes for me, as the dev's vision, especially what he mentioned here, really interested me but how close is the game right now to that vision. Gameplay that you can come back to and stick with for a long time? Good career mode/managerial aspect with enough depth to keep you enagged for longer runs? Community mods around it? (this is the one i have found to be especially lacking with this as i haven't found anything except just a random edited player and team names file).

So if this game does tick those boxes I'd be happy to give it a try, especially with the new update and official release (finally?) coming very soon.

But also would appreciate some more recommendations from people much more experienced than me and in the same boat.
 
The developer has announced the release date with some more info about what to expect. Looking forward to seeing what he's done with it over the past couple of years...

Active Soccer 3 officially launches on July 13, 2026​


Hi everyone,

I’m very happy to finally announce that Active Soccer 3 will officially launch on July 13, 2026.

This has been a very long journey for me, and I can honestly say that I am incredibly proud of the game. Active Soccer originally started with a strong retro arcade spirit, but during development Active Soccer 3 has grown into something much bigger than that.

The match engine has evolved so much that I now see the game as a true arcade football experience, regardless of whether people want to call it retro or not. It still has that immediate, fast and direct feeling that I love, but under the surface there is a much deeper football game.

A true arcade football game, with full control​


In many ways, Active Soccer 3 has become a sort of simcade football game: arcade in its speed, accessibility and fun, but with enough control and football logic to let you play real football on the pitch.

There are no scripted actions forcing the outcome. You are always in control.

You can build tiki-taka moves, play on the counter-attack, use overlapping runs, make your striker hold the ball up, create one-twos, switch play, bend the ball into space and much more.

But every action has to be earned.

  • You have to aim.
  • You have to choose the power.
  • You have to control the curve of the ball.
  • You have to read the situation and execute the play yourself.


That is exactly what makes the game feel so rewarding to me. When you score a great goal in Active Soccer 3, it does not feel like the game did it for you. It feels like you created it.

No scripts. No rails. Just football, freedom and skill.​


I know football games today are often built around scripted moments, assists and predefined outcomes. Active Soccer 3 goes in a different direction.

If you are able to detach yourself from that modern way of playing football games, I truly believe you can appreciate what Active Soccer 3 is trying to do.

It is fast, free, manual, physical, unpredictable and skill-based.

It has its own identity.

The work continues after launch​


The extra development time has also allowed me to work ahead on the first updates after release. I have already been preparing a patch that will add new features, new languages and more improvements.

I will share more details about that soon.

I have spent almost all my time working on this game. Making a football game is extremely demanding, especially as an indie developer, but I have a very clear idea of where Active Soccer should go.

When I look back at Active Soccer 2 and Active Soccer 2019, I can really see how far the series has evolved. Active Soccer 3 feels like a huge step forward, and I sincerely hope it can become the beginning of a bigger journey.

Thank you to everyone who supported the game, gave feedback, shared clips, wishlisted it, or simply believed in the project.

See you on the pitch on July 13, 2026.

— Gianluca
 
Took the plunge and purchased it from steam. Mmmm cant say my experience was positive. Crashed twice in my first 1 hour of play for no reason. As for the gameplay, the tutorial for attacking was actually ok but I cant understand why there isnt any instructions on how to defend. It appears there is only a slide tackle and doesnt seem to be a standing tackle. This then brings me on to the auto change man which just doesnt work and when you change it to manual its even worse.

Then the major issue for me, the goalies are very very bad. For the shots the do save they always seem to parry it to the CPU for an easy tap in yet this doesnt seem to work when you take a shot at the cpu keeper who very rarely parrys any shots.

There's also a weird issue when you pass the ball and the player you try and pass to suddenly just stops running and you loose the ball. I had high hopes for the game and the number of leagues and teams is impressive but if the gameplay just doesn't work and rather than being enjoyable is massively frustrating.
 
thereplicant said:
Took the plunge and purchased it from steam. Mmmm cant say my experience was positive. Crashed twice in my first 1 hour of play for no reason. As for the gameplay, the tutorial for attacking was actually ok but I cant understand why there isnt any instructions on how to defend. It appears there is only a slide tackle and doesnt seem to be a standing tackle. This then brings me on to the auto change man which just doesnt work and when you change it to manual its even worse.

Then the major issue for me, the goalies are very very bad. For the shots the do save they always seem to parry it to the CPU for an easy tap in yet this doesnt seem to work when you take a shot at the cpu keeper who very rarely parrys any shots.

There's also a weird issue when you pass the ball and the player you try and pass to suddenly just stops running and you loose the ball. I had high hopes for the game and the number of leagues and teams is impressive but if the gameplay just doesn't work and rather than being enjoyable is massively frustrating.
Click to expand...
hopefully the July 13th update addresses some of those issues pal. I'm cautiously optimistic but I might be being naïve
 
Just played the update now - it's a great little game. I truly hope @TheFoxSoft (who sadly doesn't appear to be an active member any longer) continues development and this isn't the end of the road.

There are lots of indie football games out there that go for an arcade feel, but none have the extra bit of detail this game has (and none are quite as fun).

It's close to a modern Sensible Soccer for me. The thought of more QoL tweaks, more advanced (and more predictive) AI, and maybe even a "Be A Pro" style mode in future, would be really exciting.

If it was on Switch, for example, I can't think of a better independent football game than this.
 
Chris Davies said:
Just played the update now - it's a great little game. I truly hope @TheFoxSoft (who sadly doesn't appear to be an active member any longer) continues development and this isn't the end of the road.

There are lots of indie football games out there that go for an arcade feel, but none have the extra bit of detail this game has (and none are quite as fun).

It's close to a modern Sensible Soccer for me. The thought of more QoL tweaks, more advanced (and more predictive) AI, and maybe even a "Be A Pro" style mode in future, would be really exciting.

If it was on Switch, for example, I can't think of a better independent football game than this.
Click to expand...
I agree with all of this

The developer is active on discord and in the steam discussions too and seems very open to suggestions/improvements

looking forward to seeing how this game develops
 
this is a copy and paste from the discord 16/07/26

Build 1.0.9 is live in activesoccer3preview channel.

What's new:
- wrote a new player selection routine
- improved headers
- 1-2 pass more reactive
- players should not try to catch the ball when the keeper carries the ball
- ball flickering when the keeper carries the ball
- removed big boards
- better translations
- controller setup crash fix
- career crash fix
 
Version 1.1 is now available and it adds a lot

Added Casual Mode

Improved player switching in both automatic and manual mode

Added player switching while attacking

More responsive passing and shooting

Added visual aiming guides

Added contextual gamepad button icons over players

Added new in-game help messages

Added light assistance for shot direction and power in Casual Mode

Improved and polished the tutorial

Fixed several bugs and issues

good to see the developer being so attentive
 
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from discord

version 1.1.2 is now live for testing!

- goalkeeper kick throw sound enabled
- steam remote playing charging fix on controller type == 2
- better player selection on defense
- Keepers balanced
- AI less aggressive!
- AI reaction time implemented (feints and direction change may fool the CPU)!
- localizations indentation fix
- various bug fix

Steam branch: activesoccer3preview
Password: discordpreview
 
from his patch notes, really encouraged by how active he's being

Hi everyone,
Version 1.1.4 of Active Soccer 3 is now available.
This update focuses heavily on making the gameplay feel more responsive, cleaner and more enjoyable.
Main changes:
  • Player selection has been extensively rewritten. Switching players is now significantly more responsive and much less chaotic, especially during defensive situations.
  • Improved goalkeeper positioning, allowing keepers to read situations and cover the goal more effectively.
  • Shots now react even faster to button input, making the game feel quicker, more immediate and even more arcade-oriented.
  • The CPU now performs fewer sliding tackles and commits fewer fouls, reducing unnecessary interruptions during matches.
  • Improved ball-to-player deflections. When a shot is blocked by another player, the resulting rebound now behaves in a more natural and less punishing way.
  • Reduced the processing time required to calculate a new season in Career Mode.
  • Various general bug fixes and improvements.
The goal remains to keep refining the core gameplay while preserving the fast, manual and arcade nature of Active Soccer 3.
And this is not the end: the next version will introduce some important new additions to the game.
Thanks again for your feedback and continued support!
 
Another update from the developer

Hello everyone!
Your next match is about more than the final score. Update 1.2.0 introduces Steam Achievements, XP levels and Mastery ranks, giving you new milestones to reach and new ways to celebrate your progress in Active Soccer 3.
There’s plenty happening on the pitch too, with reworked ground passing, refined defensive switching and improvements to Career mode.
Steam Achievements are here
Put your skills to the test and build your collection of Steam Achievements!
From memorable moments on the pitch to career milestones, there are plenty of challenges to pursue. Complete a comeback, keep a clean sheet, score a hat-trick, or work towards your next trophy.
Check your achievements and progress directly in the game, choose your next target, and make your next match count.
Earn XP, level up, keep going
The new XP system rewards your time on the pitch. Complete matches to earn experience—even when you lose—and collect bonuses for results, goals and special feats against the CPU.
Local multiplayer matches also award XP for participation and goals. Tutorial completion and selected competition milestones offer additional rewards.
Reach level 50, then continue with Prestige. Unlock profile titles and frames along the way to show how far you’ve come.
From Sunday League to Legend
Ready for a bigger challenge? Your new Mastery Rank reflects what you achieve on the pitch.
Results against the CPU, the variety of feats you complete, and success in career competitions and preset tournaments all contribute. Difficulty and relative team strength matter too, giving you a reason to test yourself against tougher opposition.
Climb through seven categories, from Sunday League to Legend. Your current rank can rise or fall with your performances, while your personal best stays recorded.
The new progression screen brings together your objectives, statistics, trophies and upcoming milestones. Reward summaries show the XP you’ve earned and any changes to your Mastery after matches.
What will you chase first: your next level, a new achievement, or promotion to the next Mastery rank?
More freedom in your ground passing
Ground passing has been reworked to give you more control when building an attack.
The power you charge now plays a more decisive role in selecting the teammate who receives the ball. A lighter touch favours a closer option, while a stronger charge can pick out a teammate further along your passing line.
Read the space, judge the distance, and choose the pass that opens up the defence.
Refined defensive switching
We’re continuing to improve player switching, with particular attention to defending.
This update better respects your control when you’re covering space, tracking a dangerous opponent or chasing a reachable ball, reducing unwanted automatic switches during those moments.
Manual switching has also been refined, alongside improvements to player selection around corners and aerial balls, helping you take control as the action unfolds.
Fairer end-of-season Career assessments
End-of-season player assessments have been reworked to better reflect each player’s contribution and role.
Outfield players are compared with others in similar roles across their division. Goalkeepers receive a dedicated assessment that considers their team’s defensive record and their involvement during the season.
We’ve also improved the assessment display and corrected season statistics. Goals and assists earned before a mid-season transfer remain part of a player’s club season, while international performances are kept separate.
Localisation and other improvements
This update also includes:
  • Translation improvements across menus, tutorials, hints and achievement descriptions.
  • Clearer profile screens and progression summaries.
  • Fixes to achievement tracking and competition rewards.
  • Improved save handling and protection for your progression.
Thanks for playing and sharing your feedback. We look forward to hearing about your best moments, your latest unlocks and your climb through the Mastery ranks.
See you on the pitch!
 
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