City of Steam’s closed beta is a go. Mechanist Games has broken down the closed beta test into four parts/seasons set to run throughout the rest of 2012. The first event, Springtide, is set to take place from November 16th - November 20th, followed by Summercrest from November 30th – December 4th, Atumnwane from December 14th – December 18th, and Winter Festival from December 23rd – December 28th.

Character wipes may take place during a given phase or all/none of them depending on certain testing needs.

“Now we know what you’re thinking. “Seasons? Does this mean character wipes like in Alpha?” (How did we know you’d ask that? We asked the Oracle of course) Well, it depends; if whatever needs fixing requires a character wipe (for balance and compatibility reasons), then we will have no choice. However, we do want you to reach those high levels, too, so we’ll try not to have to resort to that if it can be avoided.”

Visit the City of Steam website to learn more. Beta Collaborator Packs are also available that will grant beta keys, a number of in-game items and other perks for launch.

Source: City of Steam Beta Announcement