A reporter hunting for news, a complicated family story, a circus in the city, and a sudden wave of violence. Circus Electrique is colorful and inviting on the surface, but hides a much deeper level of complexity, where we must organize shows, manage the health and abilities of our artists, obtain resources, explore the streets of London, and of course, find those responsible for so much madness. This is your free game of the weekend, available on the Epic Games Store.
A Circus Against Madness
The story of Circus Electrique begins with Amelia, a reporter accompanied by her pet lion, Leonidas (!). Her search for news leads her to the new event of her uncle Randolph, ringmaster of Circus Electrique, with whom she has a very poor relationship. Apparently, Amelia blames him for the loss of her mother, which Randolph sees as an accident. However, tensions between them become secondary when a group of bobbies begins attacking, and the city of London ends up engulfed in chaos. The circus artists are the only ones with the skill to face this wave of madness (The Maddening) and discover who is responsible.
Managing Your Troupe
Now, it's much easier said than done. In Circus Electrique, you have to manage... well, everything. First, you must recruit new artists on the train and study their abilities closely. Then you have to organize events, because this is still a circus and it needs an audience. Artists require money and food, but when scheduling the event, you also need to consider the synergy between them. Poor chemistry among participants can affect the quality of the show, and at the same time, it's your responsibility to assign stars to get more money or experience.
Growth and Rest
What does that mean? It means artists have levels and receive upgrades as you progress through the game. This allows them to improve their attacks and passive abilities, optimize values like evasion and the loyalty factor, essential for keeping them on the battlefield. Obviously, artists are not immortal, and any damage they receive can only be restored during combat (by using certain abilities) or by sending them to rest. This temporarily removes them from the roster and puts more pressure on the rest of the team.
Exploring the Streets of London
Finally, we come to the exploration phase. Your Circus Electrique team will need to travel across the city, facing all kinds of lunatics and discovering rewards to improve your chances of success. Many items can be used during shows to make them more impressive, but you also need to obtain new routines and keep the audience from getting bored. Repeating the same event multiple times has consequences.
In summary, Circus Electrique is not a fast-paced game, and you can think through each move with plenty of time, but its scope is broader than it appears at first. Its download size is reasonable (less than 4.5 gigabytes), and it will be available until next Thursday. Don't let it pass you by!
