Cirque du Soleil has entertained crowds through live performances around the world for nearly 40 years. The celebrated circus company will soon be making its debut in a new type of venue: the metaverse.

Cirque du Soleil and branded game development company Gamefam unveiled Cirque du Soleil Tycoon, a Roblox game that lets players build their own circuses influenced by “Cirque du Soleil ECHO,” a new show that opened in Montreal last month. Think Sim City, but with a carnival-esque twist.

The game will blend costumes, performances, and behind-the-scenes elements adapted from Cirque du Soleil shows with interactive environments only possible in a video game world.

Cirque du Soleil is perhaps best known for its performances in Las Vegas, and like many other live entertainment companies it saw its business radically disrupted by the coronavirus pandemic, at one point going from thousands of active employees to just a few dozen. After filing for bankruptcy in June 2020, the company emerged later that year under new leadership and soon made a push into the digital world.

The build-your-own-circus game will also let players get a sense of what happens behind the scenes at Cirque du Soleil, providing a taste of the sprawling, 400,000-square-foot facility in Montreal where the circus trains its performers and creates sets and costumes.

The game, which is slated for a summer release, is free to play, though players can spend in-game currency to assemble their circuses faster, and additional monetization features may be added in the future.

In addition to crafting their circuses, player avatars will be able to acquire and wear virtual items like animal head masks inspired by costumes from ECHO. Cirque and Gamefam have worked to adapt the circus’s costumes and other elements to Roblox’s virtual world and aesthetic.

According to the fastcompany