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Circus Charlie

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You are Charlie, a member of a circus troupe. Your job is to please the crowd by performing five death-defying stunts: Stunt #1: You and the lion must jump through several rings of fire. Remember to avoid the jugs that emit fire. You must do this for 100 meters. Stunt #2: Walk the tightrope...

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Developer
Konami

Released on
1986

Size
1–2 Players

Version
NES

Requirements
Nintendo Entertainment System

Downloads
Action

Publisher
Soft Pro International

ESRB Rating
Not Rated

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Description

You are Charlie, a member of a circus troupe. Your job is to please the crowd by performing five death-defying stunts:

Stunt #1: You and the lion must jump through several rings of fire. Remember to avoid the jugs that emit fire. You must do this for 100 meters.

Stunt #2: Walk the tightrope for 70 meters, avoiding the monkeys that get in your way. Jump the cyan monkeys for 500 points.

Stunt #3: Roll on a ball for 80 meters, jumping from ball to ball. You can move balls backwards if the target is too close to make a successful jump. Avoid contact with the ground.

Stunt #4: Ride a horse for 200 meters, bouncing on trampolines along the way. Be careful not to miss the jump or go over the tops of trampolines. You can speed up or slow down the horse.

Stunt #5: Finally, trapeze from swing to swing for 50 meters. If you miss, make sure that you land on the platforms below so you bounce back on a swing.

Once you have completed all five stunts, you have to do them again and hopefully, more points will be awarded.

Circus Charlie

Overview & History

Released by Konami in arcades in 1984 and later brought to the Famicom and NES, Circus Charlie is a charming, multi-event action game set in a vibrant 19th-century traveling circus. Players control Charlie, a plucky, top-hat-wearing circus performer striving to win the crowd's adoration. Unlike standard platformers with an overarching narrative, the game features a continuous loop of distinct circus acts across five unique stages: leaping over flaming hoops on a majestic circus horse, balancing on a tightrope while dodging bouncing monkeys, jumping across a sea of rolling blue balls, leaping from trampoline to trampoline, and finally executing a daring flying trapeze finale. Each successful clear loops the player back to a harder difficulty.

Gameplay Features & Mechanics

Unlike standard side-scrollers, Circus Charlie demands precise timing, rhythmic momentum, and pattern memorization. In the opening stage, Charlie automatically rides his horse forward at a steady clip, requiring the player to time short or long leaps over fire rings and fiery hurdles. The tightrope stage shifts the perspective into a side-profile balancing act where Charlie must hop over or duck under aggressive, color-changing jumping monkeys. The rolling ball stage requires continuous forward momentum, as lingering on a single ball causes it to roll backward. Trampoline levels test vertical navigation through moving rings of fire, while the trapeze finale challenges players to calculate the exact pendulum arc needed to grab successive bars. Scoring relies heavily on speed bonuses, collecting bonus money bags, and clearing obstacles without losing lives.