Circuit Breakers

About

Circuit Breakers is a single player arcade role playing shooter game. It was developed by Triverske and was released on November 17, 2015. It received neutral reviews from both critics and players.

Circuit Breakers is an action racing game. Use a mighty array of devastating weaponry and rack up combos and upgrades to inflict maximum mayhem on the robot army, fighting your way through its massive manufacturing plant.

+11

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54%

Audience ScoreBased on 78 reviews

gameplay9 positive mentions

story3 negative mentions

Fast-paced and challenging twin-stick shooter gameplay with a unique ammo-as-power-up mechanic that encourages precise shooting and resource management.
Variety of playable characters each with unique weapons, enhancing replayability and offering different playstyles.
Highly enjoyable local multiplayer co-op experience that significantly increases the fun factor.

Core gameplay mechanic involving ammo and weapon upgrades is punishing and counterintuitive, leading to frustrating and repetitive play where players must avoid shooting to maintain power.
Limited shooting directions (only 8-way aiming) hinder aiming precision, impacting gameplay negatively especially in a bullet hell context.
Poorly designed menus, awkward controls configuration, repetitive and small levels, and lack of online multiplayer reduce overall enjoyment.

gameplay
43 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
21%
70%
9%
The gameplay offers a simple, arcade-style twin-stick shooter experience with responsive controls, varied weapons, and enjoyable co-op modes, appealing to fans of nostalgic titles like Smash TV. However, it suffers from repetitive loops, limited shooting directions, a broken core mechanic centered on energy management, and lack of meaningful progression, which can diminish long-term engagement. Despite these flaws, the gameplay remains functional and fun for casual play, though some mechanics like the shield and power-ups feel underutilized or poorly designed.
- “The bullet hell aspect is in both how gameplay is as the difficulty ramps up, and you’re constantly upgrading your weapons on the fly temporarily by piling up your energy meter; and in the memorable screen-filling bosses that appear in every 10th room.”
- “If you enable the beta 4.0 branch on Steam, the keyboard/mouse twin stick shooter gameplay is great fun with some innovative bits and a great deal of replayability.”
- “Controls are responsive, the mechanic of trying to not go crazy with your shots (as the guns work on an energy level system so if you shoot faster than you can collect the energy your power suffers as a result) and it's honestly a lot of fun overall.”
- “The lack of framing or a significant sense of progression makes the gameplay all the more repetitive.”
- “Core mechanic of kiting endlessly instead of shooting is still fundamentally broken.”
- “The gameplay is uninspired--robots pour out of a door, you shoot them.”
graphics
23 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
26%
61%
13%
The graphics feature a charming retro, pixel-art style that many find aesthetically pleasing and well-executed, though they remain simple and occasionally lack detail. While the visuals effectively evoke a classic arcade feel and include multiple modes and characters, some players note difficulty distinguishing certain elements, such as enemies. Overall, the art style is praised for its nostalgic appeal, even if the graphics don't push technical boundaries.
- “The developers put some time into it - it actually has properly made pixel graphics (none of those rotated pixels here), there are two modes to play, the music is okay, and there are many characters to choose from.”
- “The art style on show has a very retro arcade feel to it. I really liked this art style and it is not very often you see it done as well as this.”
- “Retro sound and visuals with an awesome art style, and the sprites look fantastic.”
- “- very simple: graphics are poor, they lack detail.”
- “However, one qualm I would say about the visuals is the fact I have trouble telling the robots apart from one another.”
- “Sadly what we have is another proof-of-concept with snappy graphics, that didn't actually amount to a complete game.”
music
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
46%
27%
The music in the game is generally seen as competent but forgettable, often overshadowed by sound effects like gunfire and lacking memorable or exciting qualities. While some appreciate its retro style and see it as a distinguishing factor, overall the soundtrack is considered repetitive and not particularly impactful.
- “A mosh of fun with friends with a banger of a soundtrack.”
- “Circuit Breaker's music and retro art sets it apart from the clutter of games with recognizable tunes and indiscernible drawings.”
- “Stellar soundtrack and a beautiful retro art style.”
- “Frankly, I had to really go out of my way to notice the music because the gunfire drowns out most of it.”
- “Since the audio balancing is askew, all I can really say is that the songs sounded alright when I could make them out, but it is largely irrelevant since few will likely notice it at all.”
- “The music may as well be royalty free and I would remember it no more.”
story
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
70%
30%
The game currently lacks a storyline, focusing entirely on gameplay with no narrative depth. Some users noted the potential for a more developed story, possibly linked to the game's theme, but at present, there is no story mode available.
- “I would have expected some storyline behind the game, but you just jump in and start killing robots.”
- “I'll admit though, this theming seems underutilized since it could have easily developed into a story about a task force that attacks hostile forces in the digital realm.”
- “There isn’t really a story to this game, it’s completely focused on the gameplay, as I would expect from an arcade title, so don’t go into this expecting a deep thriller backstory.”
replayability
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
60%
40%
The game offers high replayability thanks to its varied characters, diverse enemy entry patterns, and multiple weapon specialties, keeping gameplay fresh and unpredictable. The inclusion of co-op play, weapon upgrades, and challenging arenas further enhances long-term engagement. Despite some minor control limitations, it remains an endlessly enjoyable and replayable twin-stick shooter.
- “Brilliant, very replayable overhead twin-stick arena shooter akin to a turbo-super charged version of Smash TV with much more varied arenas, with some Robotron 2084 and bullet hell shooter DNA mixed in.”
- “High degree of replayability due to its starting set of 5 different characters, each with a specific weapon specialty: machine gun, shotgun, chaingun, missile launcher, and laser (long-beam type, not pew-pew).”
- “Endlessly replayable with an enormous amount of challenges to complete.”
grinding
8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
13%
88%
Grinding in this game is generally seen as tedious and repetitive, with lengthy challenges requiring excessive kills or playtime that can quickly become boring. While some players appreciate the intense, swarm-based combat reminiscent of classic shooters, many find the grind detracts from the fun, making progression feel slow and unrewarding.
- “Said challenges are also incredibly grindy: kill 1,000 robots, kill 10,000 robots, play 10 hours with a particular character, etc.”
- “As you just wait, and wait, and wait for the challenge, grinding away at trying to get everything the game arbitrarily locks away.”
- “My play time has been inflated by card farming, as I got bored of it before too long.”
optimization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users generally highlight strong performance and efficient optimization, indicating that the game runs smoothly with minimal issues.
stability
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, with persistent bugs and a broken energium system that detract from the overall experience.
humor
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor is highly praised for delivering hilarious co-op couch play that keeps players wanting more, despite the game needing some polishing.

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54%Critics’ scoreBased on 6 critic reviews

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Frequently Asked Questions

Circuit Breakers is a arcade role playing shooter game.

Circuit Breakers is available on PC, PlayStation 5, Mac OS, PlayStation 4 and others.

Circuit Breakers was released on November 17, 2015.

Circuit Breakers was developed by Triverske.

Circuit Breakers has received neutral reviews from both players and critics. Most players liked this game for its gameplay but disliked it for its music.

Circuit Breakers is a single player game with local co-op support.

Similar games include Assault Android Cactus, Serious Sam's Bogus Detour, It came from space and ate our brains, NeuroVoider, Nex Machina and others.

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