Circus Electrique Review (PS5)

Although officially defined as roguelite RPG, Darkest Dungeon managed to create a sub-genre followed by a tightknit community, that praise the merciless features of the game. Circus Electrique tries to walk the same path, but with a gentler approach and a setting that takes us back to the illusions created by P.T. Barnum. But can the shine and dazzle of the circus world keep up with the gothic gloom of the depressing dungeons?

Developed by the Hungarian team Zen Studios, Circus Electrique seems to try hard to reinvent the Darkest Dungeon formula, without bringing though a significant change. The result is a very complex game, often way too overcomplicated for its own good. Yet it has an undeniable charm due to its setting and storytelling, and the way the RPG elements are mixed with the combat system.

You will have to form a 4-member party, line them up in a row and take part in a daily battle, trying to vanquish your opponents in a turn based style combat. During fights the positioning of your party is just as important as the abilities of your heroes.

There are different classes with various abilities and all of them have a preferred spot on the battlefield. You can throw your enemies off-balance in various ways and by changing their placement in the fight, you can block some of their abilities. But the same is true about the characters you control. This gives a depth to the tactics system that is furthered by the way you can defeat your enemies.

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Bringing their HP level to 0 is the most obvious choice, but there is another method that is often easier achieved. Next to their health points you need to keep an eye also on their devotion: if your opponent gets too frightened, they will flee the encounter. Meeting enemies with high HP or devotion requires an efficient combining of the various abilities of your heroes to achieve victory by carefully targeting their life points or their devotion.

On top of this we will find a feature that lets you unleash powerful attacks. The Amazemeter fills up the better you perform during the battle, and once it is fully charged you can use a one-time defined action selected from a generous portfolio. Be it a super attack or a well-placed heal for your entire team, the strategic options allow you to develop your own fighting style.

These are just the tips of the iceberg represented by a complex combat system, with numerous strategic and tactical options, proving the developers have a deep understanding of this genre. The three different difficulty options make the game enjoyable for a large number of gamers, but the complexity of the game will need you to pay attention and will try your skills even on the normal setting.

All these gameplay elements are framed by a story that takes us back to the glory days of the circus. Taking place on the streets of London, the developers tied the events to a fictional protégé of P.T. Barnum, mixing dark plot twists with the ability to develop the acts that keep the tent over your performers. The way the development of your base ties in with the exploration of the city streets is really well thought out and engaging.

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You can plan shows in order to gain money but also to use the spotlight to recover the loyalty of your heroes. Each day you will have to make several decisions: from choosing the path through the haunted city to what kind of show you will put on the evening. Moreover, you will have to manage your facilities, develop them and continuously expand the roster of your characters.

The evolution of your heroes is based on their level of XP, and while the points can be distributed freely, their abilities are often conditioned by how much you managed to expand your circus grounds. This is just another example of how all the game system are tied into each other, by forming a spiderweb of gameplay in which you cannot ignore any aspect or feature.

And this is the scariest about Circus Electrique: it is more complex than a Swiss watch mechanism. The tutorial alone is around 1,5 hours and it fails to explain everything. The codex in the game is hefty and you will need to visit it often until you learn everything you need to know in order make the best of your options.

Graphics wise the visual style takes you back to the golden era of the circus, dazzling you with an art direction based on the preconceptions we have about the performers. The end result is charming and anachronism of the world that mixes robots with strongmen, and drones with clowns is irresistible. The graphics itself is a bit outdated, and the UI can be overwhelmingly clouded. On the other hand, the audio is remarkable, the soundtrack creating the right atmosphere, while the voice acting is spot on.

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The Good

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