Nightmare Circus
A landmark action game for the Sega Genesis, Nightmare Circus combines tight controls with engaging gameplay. Its enduring appeal lies in the perfect balance of challenge and reward.
- Developer
- Funcom
- Platform
- Mega Drive
- Genre
- Action
- Players
- 2P
- Rating
- 4.6 / 5 (779)
- Last updated
Nightmare Circus Controls — Mega Drive Keyboard Keys
Default keyboard bindings for Nightmare Circus on our in-browser Mega Drive emulator. Plug in a USB or Bluetooth gamepad to auto-detect mappings, or rebind any key from the emulator settings menu.
| Keyboard | Console button | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| ↑ | D-Pad Up | Move up |
| ↓ | D-Pad Down | Move down |
| ← | D-Pad Left | Move left |
| → | D-Pad Right | Move right |
| X | A | Primary action (jump / confirm) |
| Z | B | Secondary action (attack / cancel) |
| S | C | Tertiary action |
| A | X | Quaternary action |
| Q | Y | Fifth button |
| W | Z | Sixth button |
| Enter | Start | Start / Pause |
These bindings cover the 6-button Mega Drive controller. Most older titles only use buttons A/B/C; the extra X/Y/Z buttons matter for Street Fighter II and other 6-button fighters.
Rebind any key from the EmulatorJS in-game settings menu (gear icon → Controls). A connected gamepad auto-maps to the same buttons.
Nightmare Circus Longplay & Gameplay Videos
Watch a full playthrough of Nightmare Circus on Mega Drive before you dive in — recommended for getting a feel for the game's pacing, story beats, and difficulty curve.
Watch longplay on YouTube
"Nightmare Circus" Mega Drive longplay
Nightmare Circus Cheat Codes
7 community-curated cheats for Nightmare Circus. Tick any to activate them automatically when you click "Play with cheats" — or copy a code into your own emulator.
-
Infinite Health
FF6F46:25FF6F46:0025 -
Infinite Energy
AM3T-4A9A -
Debug Mode/Level Select Hold A+MODE Start On Screen Start Options
FF08BB:0001 -
Invincibility/Untouchable Against Enemies. See Notes
R1YA-4602 -
Press Z for password
REWT-A6TA
External references
Frequently Asked Questions
Who developed Nightmare Circus?
Nightmare Circus was developed by Funcom, available to play in your browser on RetroGameSpace.
How many players does Nightmare Circus support?
Nightmare Circus supports up to 2 players, ideal for couch co-op or competitive sessions on the Mega Drive.
What type of game is Nightmare Circus?
Nightmare Circus is a Action game for the Mega Drive, playable instantly in your browser — no downloads, no installs.
How can I play Nightmare Circus for free?
Open this page and click "Play Now" — Nightmare Circus runs free in your browser via WebAssembly emulation. No account, no payment, no installer.
Do I need to download anything to play Nightmare Circus in the browser?
No. Nightmare Circus streams from a public archive into a browser-side Mega Drive emulator. Nothing is installed on your computer.
Can I save my progress in Nightmare Circus?
Yes. Save states are stored in your browser (IndexedDB) per game, and you can also use any in-game save the original Mega Drive cartridge supported.
Does Nightmare Circus work on mobile devices?
Yes — the Mega Drive emulator runs on iOS Safari and Android Chrome. Touch controls overlay the game; landscape mode is recommended.
Is it legal to play Nightmare Circus this way?
RetroGameSpace is a transient caching reverse-proxy and does not host first-party copies of Nightmare Circus. Game files are fetched on demand from publicly-accessible archives. You are responsible for compliance with your local laws and the bring-your-own-ROM principle.
