Overview
Battle Circuit is a side-scrolling 4 player brawler that uses the CPS-2 hardware in which it plays like Final Fight. It was also the last side scrolling game to be released on the arcades.
Story
In the year 20XX, the world is in peril as world domination is about to take place. The source of all this, is a single disk that a gang known as the "Delete Gang" have managed to steal and the program known as "Shiva System" has enough power to conquer the world. But once it was made known who had this disk, bounty hunters, other gang members and even a scientist are moving out to grab the disk and claim the power for themselves.
It's up to five bounty hunters to retrieve the disk and destroy it so that no one else may use it. The bounty hunters begin their first mission by infiltrating another common enemy known as Dr Saturn (criminal number 9696X). With multiple twists happening in the story, it's truly a race to recover the disk.
Gameplay
Up to four characters can play at the same time out of the five bounty hunters. The game is similar to Final Fight where the direction works on an 8-way joystick to move or run and two buttons are used: Attack and Jump.
Movement
Players can move around the area in 8 directions but can also dash forward by tapping either left or right twice. They can run forever until the player either stops or moves in the other direction.
Attacking
Chain Combo - By tapping the attack button on the enemies, chain combos can be produced resulting in 4-5 hits.
Special Moves - Different special moves can also be chained with the combo which means that more hits can be added and attacks can be varied to each bounty hunter. These special moves can be performed like Street Fighter moves e.g. quarter circle forward and attack.
Dash Attack - This attack is performed by running and pressing the attack button.
Grapples
There are two types of attacks that can be done after grabbing an enemy.
Throws - Enemies can be grabbed to throw them and can also be a part of the chain combo as well. They can also be thrown even if they're on the ground.
Jump Attacks - All players have two types of basic air attacks.
- Jump, Attack = An attack that will knock back the enemy
- Jump, Down + Attack = An attack that will not knockback the enemy but easier to start a chain combo.
Desperation Attack - Pressing both buttons will damage surrounding enemies and is very useful in case some enemies are about to throw the player but in exchange, some health is lost in the process. A special unique Desperation move can also be pulled off by two people. When bother players activate the desperation attack, an attack swarms in on all enemies on the screen.
Charging Attacks - The attack button can also be charged for a few seconds to perform another type of attack.
Battle Downloads
This is what makes the characters unique in this game. Each character has a unique ability and players can activate the power by jumping and pressing both Attack and Jump and the ability begins. Once it activates, all party members will gain this skill. It's on a timer as it does not last forever but additional downloads can also be picked up as an item in the game. All characters can hold up to a maximum of 5 Battle Downloads.
Upgrade System
This game also has some RPG elements where coins can be collected from the ground. They can be collected from dead enemies or by collecting a powerup which converts all enemies into coins. Once a stage ends, the player is given an opportunity to purchase and upgrade the characters in the following areas:
- Stronger version of the original moves.
- Maximum health increase.
- Additional Battle Downloads to stock up.
There are some missions where money is given as a reward as well.
Playable Characters
Pickups
There are multiple items that can be picked up in the game to aid the players.
Food
These items are used to restore health and some items can even be eaten more than once.
            | These items can be eaten to regain health |
  | These items are normally found near boss characters. Can be eaten multiple times to regain extra health |
Money
This is used to purchase for upgrades. There are multiple types of items that can be collected as currency.
   | Coins - Comes in either 1, 2 or 5 coins. |
 | Coin Bag - Worth 10 coins |
 | Suitcase - Worth 20 coins |
Containers
These containers are scattered around the stages where items can be collected inside these container like barrels and crates.
Special Items
There are also items that can be used to gain the advantage whilst fighting.
 | Battle Download Unit - Adds 1 Battle Download to stock. Maximum is 5. |
 | Money Maker Unit - This item converts all enemies on the screen into money (except for bosses where they will get damaged) |
 | Vital Gain Unit - This is an item can be bought in the shops but also can be found in the game as a collectible item. |
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