Questions about the Winter Major
If something here is not answered, the format page covers the competition in detail.
What is Uplink Masters?
An independent competitive circuit for Coldwire. Each season runs an open circuit, and the eight teams holding the most circuit points when the season closes are invited to the Major. The 2026 Winter Major is the current event and its playoffs are played at Exchange Hall.
What is Coldwire?
Coldwire is the original four on four extraction shooter the circuit is built around. Two squads enter the same map from opposite ends, contest a small number of caches, and score by carrying what they recover out through an exit before the timer expires. Rosters name four roles, Lead, Breach, Ghost and Carrier, describing how a squad splits the work of opening a cache, holding it and carrying it out.
How much does it cost to watch?
Nothing. Every match is called live from the Uplink Desk and a replay is published after each playoff day. There is no ticket, no subscription and no paid tier, and nothing at all is for sale on this website.
How were the eight teams chosen?
By circuit points alone. The season ran an open circuit, and the eight highest placed teams at the close received invitations. There is no application, no selection committee and no entry fee. A team that stopped competing before the season closed forfeits its standing.
What is a Swiss stage?
Five rounds in which nobody is eliminated. Each round pairs teams on similar records, so a side that loses early still plays every round and can recover. After five rounds the four best records advance. It rewards consistency across the whole stage rather than a single decisive match.
How big is the prize pool, and is there a buy-in?
The Winter Major pool is 180,000, split by final placement: 85,000 to the champion, 42,000 to the runner up, 18,000 to each losing semifinalist and 4,250 to each team finishing fifth through eighth in Swiss. There is no buy-in. It is a prize for placing in a competition of skill, not a wager, and nothing is staked by the teams or by anyone watching.
Is there an age requirement to follow the circuit?
No. This is an information site about a competitive gaming tournament. There is nothing to purchase, nothing to wager and no account to open, so it is open to anyone who wants to read the schedule or watch a match.
Where are the playoffs held?
At Exchange Hall in Europe, across two playoff days on August 21 and 22, 2026. The hall seats a small studio audience made up of the competing teams' travelling parties; general admission is not sold.
Are the game, teams and players real?
They are original works of the Uplink Masters team. Coldwire, the circuit, the eight organisations and every player handle shown are our own creations, and the site is not affiliated with any real game publisher or esports organization. Nothing here uses another company's game, logos or artwork.