Is Circus Atari on Steam?

No. Circus Atari is not distributed on Steam, so there is no Steam Charts or SteamDB player count for it. Its live popularity is tracked here via Twitch viewership instead.

What platforms is Circus Atari on?

Circus Atari is available on Atari 2600, VC 4000, iOS, 1292 Advanced Programmable Video System, Arcade.

When did Circus Atari release?

Circus Atari was first released on December 31, 1979.

Circus Atari

Dec 31, 1979SimulatorArcadeAtari 2600VC 4000iOS1292 Advanced Programmable Video SystemArcade

Circus Atari — frequently asked questions

Is Circus Atari on Steam?: No. Circus Atari is not distributed on Steam, so there is no Steam Charts or SteamDB player count for it. Its live popularity is tracked here via Twitch viewership instead.
What platforms is Circus Atari on?: Circus Atari is available on Atari 2600, VC 4000, iOS, 1292 Advanced Programmable Video System, Arcade.
When did Circus Atari release?: Circus Atari was first released on December 31, 1979.

About Circus Atari

3 rows of triangular balloons move along the top part of the screen, each overlaid with blue, green, and yellow (colors used in the original version), counting from the top row. A clown appears from the edge of the screen where there is a jumping board, and the player must move the seesaw located at the bottom of the screen so that the clown can bounce back off the seesaw once he jumps off from his starting position. If the player successfully gets the clown onto the seesaw, the clown on the other side shoots off into the air towards the 3 rows of balloons on the top of the screen. The clown may not have enough speed to reach the balloons if the first clown does not land squarely on the seesaw. Clowns bounce off of balloons, walls, and jumping boards, but will pass directly through multiple balloons if they are moving quickly enough. They will only bounce off the jumping boards when they are heading downwards, and will pass straight through the boards while moving upwards.

Summary via IGDB.

Game details

Platforms: Atari 2600, VC 4000, iOS, 1292 Advanced Programmable Video System, Arcade
Developer: Atari
Publisher: Acetronic
Game modes: Single player
Themes: Action, Comedy

Details via IGDB.

Reception

IGDB rating

56/100

from 16 ratings

Every version compared

Prices, contemporary reception and the studio credited for each release

Platform	Year	Loose	Complete	Sealed	Built by
Atari 2600	1980	$6	$14	$45	Atari (designed by Michael Lorenzen)

Also released on: VC 4000 · iOS · 1292 Advanced Programmable Video System · Arcade. We haven’t priced or authenticated those versions yet.

Collector value & authenticity

Atari 2600 · PriceCharting sold data · Verified 2026-10-06

Loose

Complete

$14

Sealed

$45

Label variants

Release	Loose	Complete	Sealed
Text Label	$5	$14	—
Circus	$7	$34	—
Circus [Zellers]	$23	$63	—

Release record

Territory	Label	Catalog #	Rarity
North America Atari	Picture	CX2630	Common+
North America Atari	Text	CX2630	Common+
North America Sears	Text	49-75172	Scarce
North America Unknown	Green	—	—
North America Zellers	Standard	—	Scarce+

Also released in South America by Dynacom.

Source: Catalog numbers, label types, rarity, controllers and player counts: AtariAge 2600 software database

Region: NA
Released: 1980
Controller: Atari Paddles, Atari Joystick
Players: 1 - 2
Authenticity: Low

On Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration since Dec 5, 2023 — the cartridge is now a collectibleLow counterfeit risk

Atari 2600 prices, all games & how to spot a fake

Atari's clown-and-seesaw Breakout variant is a cheap, simple game, and the label you choose matters more than the game.

Circus Atari is Atari's home version of Circus, Exidy's 1977 arcade re-theme of Breakout, in which you bounce a clown on a seesaw to pop balloons. Michael Lorenzen designed the 2600 cartridge, which Atari released in July 1980. Sears sold it as Circus.

It is on Atari 50: The Anniversary Celebration, added in 2023.

How it was made

What the press said at the time

“Circus Atari is basically the same as Atari's Breakout cartridge — only better.”
— JoyStik, December 1982

Cartridge & preservation record

Program size 4 KB, measured from the preserved dump.

Catalogue number as recorded for the physical release.

Also on other platforms

Arcade

Atari 2600	Atari (designed by Michael Lorenzen)
Arcade	Exidy (publisher)

Worth knowing

1981 dealer price. Atari's confidential retailer price list for January 1 to June 1, 1981 lists Circus Atari (CX2630) in its basic tier: dealers paid $14.00 against a suggested retail price of $22.95. The same list groups it among the "cartridge titles introduced in 1980".

Before you buy

Check which label you have: the Atari text label is the common one, the Sears Circus label is close behind, and the Zellers-labelled Circus is the scarcer variant and costs more. All three are the same game, and none is a counterfeit concern.