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Pac-Man Collection (GBA)
The Pac is back for the attack!
By - Andrew S. Bub
Notably missing from Namco Museum was its flagship title, Pac-Man. And why not? Pac-Man joined Ms. Pac-Man, Dig Dug, Pole Position, Galaga, and Galaxian for every previous Namco Museum title, so on the GBA, where was the man himself? Well here he is, on his own cartridge, and in case you feel a little cheated, he's joined here by an eclectic collection of Pac-Man inspired games to play with.
Pac Man Fever
We start with Pac-Man himself. He's still eyeless, still hungry, and still dodging those malevolent ghosts in his classic maze. It's all here: the dots, the wacka-wacka eating sound, the power pellets, the stationary bonus fruit, and, of course, those wacky ghosts: Inky, Blinky, Pinky, and Clyde. Like Namco Museum it's a picture perfect recreation of the game, down to the music and the 'patterns' the ghosts follow, like Blinky's famous double-backs. Also like Namco Museum, the game is offered in a small full mode (too small for me) and a scrolling mode, to accommodate the small GBA screen. Neither mode is perfect, but the scrolling mode can prove challenging to Pac-Man experts as they can't see the position of every ghost all the time.
Pac-Mania
The second title offered was a lame attempt to bring Pac-Man to 3D ¾ perspective graphics, which were the rage when the game came to arcades. It was a dud then and more of a curiosity now. It's colorful, but adding the ability to jump really didn't do much for the gameplay. It's also saddled with a somewhat annoying camera, which moves with you, and only reveals parts of the board. If this was a favorite for you personally, you'll be happy to know it's faithfully recreated here. Down to the quirky music and colorful graphics.
Pac-Attack
Pac-Attack was odd when it came out for the 16-bit systems and it's odd today. It's basically a Tetris inspired game that shoehorns in Pac-Man concepts. You've got to line up falling blocks and the ghosts attached to them and clear them with lined up Pac-Men. It's nice to have in the package, but you'd be hard pressed to play it consistently. It's more of a curiosity than a clone, or even a homage, to Tetris.
Pac-Arrangement?
Pac-Arrangement, an arcade only title that has apparently never been offered for a console before, is a true oddity. I don't recall ever playing it before. Still, you can easily figure out its timeframe with a single-play. The game is obviously both an attempt to modernize Pac-Man and bring it in line with the mid-80's "Continue" trend. (A time when arcade game makers finally realized that having the word Continue, and a clock, just after the "Game Over" sign, meant people would keep pumping quarters into the game.) Not only does the game let you continue after you lose all your lives, it gives Pac-Man an eye and a cuter look. The ghosts have 3D eyes and they even have mouths themselves. The look is very anime and was probably developed for a Saturday Morning Cartoon or Cereal license of some sort.
The gameplay is exactly the same as regular Pac-Man, except for the weird addition of a fifth ghost. Colored blue. And named… Kinky. No kidding. Kinky is blue in color and acts as a wild card. If you eat him, he acts as a Super Pill and lets you eat the other ghosts at double the usual points. However, if one of the ghosts runs into him first, like Blinky, for example, you get chased down by a gigantic Blinky! As if that weren't scary enough, the giant ghosts get special powers like super speed, replacing devoured dots, or teleportation. It's a gimmicky device that ultimately throws out the simplicity that made the first Pac-Man such an interesting game, and thus, weakens the formula.
Next: Scores...
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