Circus Empire
In the very crowded field of computer simulation games, it’s hard for any one game to be very different from any other. Every interesting profession has been covered, from theme parks to hospitals to fast food. Circus Empire is a simulation based on running a successful circus business, with the emphasis on creating circus shows. While Circus Empire doesn’t offer anything really new to the simulation genre, it does present a good economic simulation with the fun exercise of putting on a circus act, complete with clowns. It’s easy to pick up and play, and kids will enjoy it. This final release appears to be the same as the preview version, and so this review is mostly a revisit of the information in the preview.When beginning the game, players can choose to either play a campaign mode or a sandbox mode. The campaign starts with a tutorial mode, which is narrated by a friendly dog. This tutorial is one of the better ones I’ve seen and it does an excellent job of leading players through the game mechanics. Kids should be able to easily learn the game mechanics playing the tutorial. Once the tutorial is finished, it’s off to harder and more complex tasks.
The main goal of Circus Empire is to build entertaining shows that the audience will love. Each day, players will assign new tasks to their performers and other employees. These tasks center mainly on learning new tricks. Once new tricks are mastered, the performers can use them in their acts onstage. If the acts are performed correctly, the audience will enjoy them and the show will get good ratings. Success in turn advances the game in terms of items and tricks that can be added to the menus.
The game is played in two distinct visual modes. Players can view the game map from an overhead view, or can choose to have the manager walk around. This up-close mode was actually pretty strange in that the character would walk sideways if the camera wasn’t turned in the same direction. The menus that pop up for certain areas won’t be accessible unless the camera has the character pointed straight toward the building. Also, the movement was awkward because the keyboard is used for walking and the mouse is used to turn the camera viewpoint. For the purpose of managing the circus, we found the overhead view to work the best.
Circus Empire is a basic simulation on the lines of Zoo Tycoon or Rollercoaster Tycoon, but on a much smaller scale. This means there is less to do, but it also means it’s easier to play. For people looking for a few hours of easy entertainment that doesn’t require a lot of thinking, this is a good choice, especially for families with kids.
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