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| 5 | [[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pac_man_official_pacman_video_game.png]] |
| 6 | [[caption-width-right:350: ♫ ''[[Music/PacManFever 'Cause I've got Pac-Man fever.]]'' ♫[[note]]Pac-Man on the left. The ghosts from top to bottom are: Inky, Pinky, [[OddNameOut Clyde]], and Blinky[[/note]]]] |
| 7 | %% |
| 8 | |
| 9 | ->''"Computer games don't affect kids. If ''Pac-Man'' affected us as kids, we'd all be running around in dark rooms, munching pills, and listening to repetitive music."'' |
| 10 | -->-- '''Marcus Brigstocke''' |
| 11 | |
| 12 | A well-known game developed by Creator/{{Namco}} (now Creator/BandaiNamcoEntertainment) and created by Tōru Iwatani, from UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfVideoGames, and one of the most popular games ever, ''Pac-Man'' was the first really successful MazeGame and one of the first games to be popular across gender demographics. It sparked a pop-culture phenomenon and helped drive the early-1980s video game craze. Ironically, its [[PortingDisaster poorly implemented]] Platform/Atari2600 port helped turn PacManFever into [[UsefulNotes/TheGreatVideoGameCrashOf1983 Pac-Man Cancer]]. It also was the first video game to get an AnimatedAdaptation, with a reluctant Marty Ingels in the lead role. |
| 13 | |
| 14 | The game depicts an abstract round yellow character vaguely reminiscent of a head with a mouth opening and closing [[ExtremeOmnivore to gobble up nearby objects]]. The player must steer the character around a maze and "eat" all of the dots and four special [[PowerUpFood power pellets]] (originally "energizers"). Four ghosts (originally [[https://web.archive.org/web/20150203064711/http://www.2600connection.com/articles/pac-man_monsters_ghosts/pac-man_monsters_ghosts.html "monsters"]]) pursue the character, and only become vulnerable for a short time after Pac-Man eats a power pellet. Touching a ghost at any other time is fatal. |
| 15 | |
| 16 | The original game famously had no random number generator: the ghosts moved through the maze in a completely predictable pattern. It is said that the ghosts were given [[UndergroundMonkey different colors]] to enable the programmers to give each a different "personality" or movement pattern. Top players could develop and memorize specific patterns to clear levels without losing lives. However, the ghosts prove an equal challenge if run on a random AI. |
| 17 | |
| 18 | A sequel, ''[[TertiarySexualCharacteristics Ms.]] Pac-Man'', was even more popular than the original in Western territories, featuring more complex mazes and semi-randomized play. It started life as a bootleg hack of the original ''Pac-Man'' called ''Crazy Otto'', which featured the player character as a Pac-Man head with legs. GCC, who created that hack, thought this game could be successful and brought the game to Creator/BallyMidway, Namco's American distributor. Midway was impressed. Together with the hackers, they edited the sprites back into Pac-Man–style sprites, and with Namco's blessing, [[AscendedFanfic they released it]] as a ''Pac-Man'' sequel in America. |
| 19 | |
| 20 | ''Pac-Man'' and ''Ms. Pac-Man'' were known for having lots of bootleg versions, many with altered mazes and graphics. They also had unofficial "speed-up kits" that, added to a legitimate machine, made the game faster and presumably harder. For players who mastered it, however, it became ultimately easier because being out-sped by Ghosts was no longer an issue. |
| 21 | |
| 22 | Fun fact: It is one of the few games from the Golden Age to still make money in arcades in some form. ''Ms. Pac-Man'', ''VideoGame/{{Galaga}}'' and ''Pac-Man'' were released as a multiple game arcade machine in 2001, with Pac-Man being hidden or not depending on the version of the machine. There is also a "Penny Falls" gambling machine called ''Pac-Man Ball'' that's notable for featuring a screen with a video game mechanic reminiscent of ''[[VideoGame/BubbleBobble Puzzle Bobble]]''. It actually pays out rather generously, so play it if you find one. |
| 23 | |
| 24 | The game was originally released in Japan as "Puck-Man" but changed for the North American release when marketing noticed how easy and tempting it would be to [[SignsOfDisrepair blot out a bit of the P]] to undesirably retitle the game. Either version of the name is based on the Japanese sound "paku-paku", for eating. |
| 25 | |
| 26 | For the series' [[MilestoneCelebration 30th anniversary]], Google made a new version of the game using their name as the map. It's [[http://www.google.com/pacman awesome to play,]] by the way (and the mechanics are ''[[ShownTheirWork scarily]]'' [[ShownTheirWork accurate to the arcade game]], right down to the KillScreen). For April Fools Day 2015, the game became playable on Google Maps, so players could chomp pellets from all over the world. |
| 27 | |
| 28 | Pac-Man appeared as a fighter in ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'' and ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'', and also in ''VideoGame/StreetFighterXTekken'' riding a Mokujin-themed mini-mecha, and also makes an appearance in ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsDD''. |
| 29 | |
| 30 | [[https://web.archive.org/web/20130523145940/http://home.comcast.net/~jpittman2/pacman/pacmandossier.html This page]] should have anything you ever wanted to know about the gameplay. |
| 31 | |
| 32 | It's also [[https://web.archive.org/web/20130502133024/https://wiki.manjaro.org/index.php?title=Progress_Bar_as_Pacman_Eating_Power_Pills possible]] to enable a Pac-Man progress bar in [[Platform/{{UNIX}} Arch Linux and its derivatives]] (as they use the Pacman '''pac'''kage '''man'''ager). |
| 33 | |
| 34 | See also PacManFever. |
| 35 | |
| 36 | ---- |
| 37 | |
| 38 | !!The franchise has contributed the following works: |
| 39 | |
| 40 | [[foldercontrol]] |
| 41 | |
| 42 | [[folder:Arcade Games]] |
| 43 | * ''Pac-Man'' (1980) |
| 44 | * ''Ms. Pac-Man'' (1981, Made by Creator/BallyMidway without Namco's authorization, as well as:) |
| 45 | ** ''Pinball/MrAndMrsPacManPinball'' (1982) |
| 46 | ** ''Pinball/BabyPacMan'' (1982) |
| 47 | ** ''Professor Pac-Man'' (1983) |
| 48 | ** ''Jr. Pac-Man'' (1983)[[note]]This game and ''Professor Pac-Man'' eventually led to the separation of Namco and Bally Midway in 1984.[[/note]] |
| 49 | * ''Pac-Man Plus'' (1982) |
| 50 | * ''VideoGame/SuperPacMan'' (1982) |
| 51 | * ''VideoGame/PacAndPal'' (1983)[[note]]An alternate version, titled ''Pac-Man and Chomp Chomp'', which replaced Pal with Pac-Man's dog from the Hanna-Barbera cartoon, was test-marketed in Europe.[[/note]] |
| 52 | * ''VideoGame/PacLand'' (1984) |
| 53 | * ''VideoGame/PacMania'' (1987) |
| 54 | * ''[[VideoGame/PacManArrangement1996 Pac-Man Arrangement]]'' (1996, Included in ''Namco Classic Collection Vol. 2'' alongside a port of the original ''Pac-Man'') [[note]]A completely different game called ''[[VideoGame/PacManArrangement2005 Pac-Man Arrangement]]'' later appeared on ''Namco Museum Battle Collection'' 2005 ([[Platform/PlaystationPortable PSP]]).[[/note]] |
| 55 | * ''Pac-Man VR'' (1996) |
| 56 | * ''Pac 'N Party'' (2000) |
| 57 | * ''Pac-Man Battle Royale'' (2010) |
| 58 | * ''World's Largest Pac-Man'' (2016)[[note]]Developed in collaboration with Raw Thrills and is [[https://www.guinnessworldrecords.com/world-records/484821-largest-pac-man-arcade-machine literally]] the world's largest ''Pac-Man'' arcade machine.[[/note]] |
| 59 | * ''Athletic VR: Pac-Man Challenge'' (2019) |
| 60 | * ''スピード錯覚アトラクション Pac-Man Racer'' (2020) |
| 61 | * ''Pac-Man Battle Royale Chompionship'' [''sic''] (2022) |
| 62 | [[/folder]] |
| 63 | |
| 64 | [[folder:Home Console / Computer Games]] |
| 65 | |
| 66 | * ''VideoGame/PacAttack'' (Platform/MegaDrive, [[Platform/SuperNintendoEntertainmentSystem SNES]], 1993) - [[DolledUpInstallment A Pac-Man reskinning]] of the Japan-only arcade and SNES game ''Cosmo Gang: The Puzzle'') |
| 67 | * ''VideoGame/PacMan2TheNewAdventures'' (SNES, Mega Drive, 1994) |
| 68 | * ''Pac-In-Time'' (SNES, DOS, Game Boy, 1994) [[note]]The DOS and Game Boy versions are [[DolledUpInstallment reskins]] of the Platform/{{Amiga}} and DOS game ''Fury of the Furries''[[/note]] |
| 69 | * ''VideoGame/PacManWorld'' ([=PlayStation=], Game Boy Advance, 1999) |
| 70 | *** ''Pac-Man World: Re-PAC'' (Platform/PlayStation4, Platform/PlayStation5, Platform/NintendoSwitch, Platform/XboxOne, Platform/XboxSeriesXAndS, Platform/{{Steam}}, 2022) |
| 71 | ** ''VideoGame/PacManWorld2'' (Platform/NintendoGameCube, Platform/PlayStation2, [[Platform/MicrosoftWindows PC]], Platform/{{Xbox}}, Platform/GameBoyAdvance, 2002) |
| 72 | *** ''Tree Top Token Game'' (Web browser, 2002) |
| 73 | ** ''VideoGame/PacManWorld3'' ([=PlayStation=] 2, Nintendo [=GameCube=], Xbox, Platform/PlayStationPortable, Platform/NintendoDS, PC, 2005) |
| 74 | ** ''VideoGame/PacManWorldRally'' ([=PlayStation=] 2, [=PlayStation=] Portable, Nintendo [=GameCube=], PC, 2006) |
| 75 | * ''Pac-Man no Desktop Daisakusen'' (PC, 1999) |
| 76 | * ''VideoGame/MsPacManMazeMadness'' ([=PlayStation=], Platform/{{Nintendo 64}}, [[Platform/SegaDreamcast Dreamcast]], 2000) |
| 77 | * ''Pac-Man: Adventures in Time'' (PC, 2000) |
| 78 | * ''Ms. Pac-Man: Quest for the Golden Maze'' (PC, 2001) |
| 79 | * ''Pac-Man All-Stars'' (PC, 2002) |
| 80 | * ''[[VideoGame/PacManFever2002 Pac-Man Fever]]'' (Nintendo [=GameCube=], [=PlayStation=] 2, 2002) |
| 81 | ** ''Pac-Man Fever Trading Card Hunt'' (Web browser, 2002) |
| 82 | * ''VideoGame/PacManVs'' (Nintendo [=GameCube=], 2003)[[note]]Developed in collaboration with Creator/{{Nintendo}}[[/note]] |
| 83 | * ''VideoGame/PacPix'' (Nintendo DS, 2005) |
| 84 | * ''Pac-Man Pinball Advance'' (Game Boy Advance, 2005) |
| 85 | * ''VideoGame/PacNRoll'' (Nintendo DS, 2005) |
| 86 | * ''Namco Museum Remix'' (Nintendo Wii, 2007) - Pac-Man is playable and/or featured in all Remix minigames |
| 87 | ** ''Namco Museum Megamix'' (Nintendo Wii, 2010) |
| 88 | * ''VideoGame/PacManChampionshipEdition'' (Platform/XboxLiveArcade, 2007) |
| 89 | ** ''Pac-Man Championship Edition DX'' (Xbox Live Arcade, Platform/PlayStationNetwork, PC, 2010) |
| 90 | ** ''Pac-Man Championship Edition 2'' (Xbox One, [=PlayStation=] 4, PC[=/=]Steam, and Platform/NintendoSwitch, 2016) |
| 91 | ** ''Pac-Man Championship Edition'' demake ([[Platform/NintendoEntertainmentSystem NES]], Xbox One, [=PlayStation=] 4, PC[=/=]Steam, and Platform/NintendoSwitch, 2020)[[note]] All versions of the game are played through an NES emulator.[[/note]] |
| 92 | * ''VideoGame/PacManParty'' (Platform/{{Wii}}, Nintendo 3DS, 2010) |
| 93 | * ''Pac-Match Party'' (Web browser, 2010) |
| 94 | * ''Pac-Man Pizza Parlor'' (PC, 2010) |
| 95 | * ''World's Biggest Pac-Man'' (Web browser, 2011) |
| 96 | * ''Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions'' (Nintendo 3DS, 2011) |
| 97 | * ''VideoGame/PacManAndTheGhostlyAdventures'' (Platform/PlayStation3, Platform/WiiU, Platform/{{Xbox 360}}, PC, Platform/Nintendo3DS, 2013) |
| 98 | ** ''Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures 2'' (Wii U, Nintendo 3DS, Xbox 360 and [=PlayStation=] 3, 2014) |
| 99 | * ''VideoGame/PacMan256'' (Xbox One, [=PlayStation=] 4, and PC[=/=]Steam, 2016) |
| 100 | * ''VideoGame/PacMan99'' (Platform/NintendoSwitch, 2021) |
| 101 | |
| 102 | [[/folder]] |
| 103 | |
| 104 | [[folder:Mobile Games]] |
| 105 | [[index]] |
| 106 | * '''Pac-Match''' 2001 ([=J2ME=]) |
| 107 | ** '''Pac-Match Party''' 2010 (iOS) |
| 108 | * '''Pac-Man Crisis''' 2002 ([=J2ME=]) |
| 109 | * '''Pac-Man Casino''' ([=J2ME=]) |
| 110 | ** ''Card Game Pack'' |
| 111 | ** ''Slots Pack'' |
| 112 | * '''Pac-Man Pinball''' 2003 ([=J2ME=]) |
| 113 | ** '''Pac-Man Pinball 2''' 2008 ([=J2ME=]) |
| 114 | * '''Pac-Man Puzzle''' 2004 ([=J2ME=]) |
| 115 | * '''Pac-Man Bowling''' 2004 ([=J2ME=]) |
| 116 | * '''Pac-Man's Arcade Corner''' 2005 ([=J2ME=]) |
| 117 | * '''Space Invaders × Pac-Man''' 2005 ([=J2ME=]) |
| 118 | * '''Pac-Man Arcade Golf''' 2006 ([=J2ME=]) |
| 119 | * '''Pac-Man Party''' 2010 ([=J2ME=]) |
| 120 | * '''Pac-Man Reborn''' 2010 ([=J2ME=]) |
| 121 | * '''Pac 'n Twit''' 2010 ([=iOS=]) |
| 122 | * '''Pac-Chain''' 2010 ([=iOS=]) |
| 123 | ** '''Pac-Chain Compact''' 2010 ([=iOS=]) |
| 124 | * '''Letter Labyrinth: Pac-Man Edition''' 2010 ([=iOS=]) |
| 125 | * '''Pac-Man Kart Rally''' 2010 ([=J2ME=], Windows Phone, Android) |
| 126 | * '''Pac'n Jump''' 2011 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 127 | * '''Pac-Chomp''' 2011 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 128 | * '''Pac-Man SP''' 2011 ([=J2ME=]) |
| 129 | * '''Pac-Man Games''' 2012 ([=iOS=]) |
| 130 | * '''Pac-Man Dash''' 2013 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 131 | * '''Pac-Man + Tournaments''' 2013 ([=iOS=], Android - Renamed to just ''Pac-Man'' in later updates; also called '''Pac-Man for Mobile''' in the game's official Facebook page) [[note]]The game's files contain the former title[[/note]] |
| 132 | * '''Videogame/PacManMonsters''' 2014 ([=iOS=], Android) ([[DefunctOnlineVideoGames Discontinued]]) |
| 133 | * '''Pac-Man Friends''' 2014 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 134 | * '''Pac-Man Bounce''' 2015 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 135 | * '''Dodge and Dash Pac-Man''' 2015 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 136 | * '''Mobile eSports with Pac-Man''' 2015 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 137 | * '''Pac-Man Slots''' 2015 (Android) |
| 138 | * '''Pac-Man 256''' 2015 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 139 | * '''Pac-Man Hats''' 2016 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 140 | ** '''Pac-Man Hats 2''' 2017 ([=iOS=], Android) (Beta) [[note]]Both games are test demos for eventual updates of ''Pac-Man for Mobile''[[/note]] |
| 141 | * '''Pac-Man Puzzle Tour''' 2016 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 142 | * '''Mega Run Meets Pac-Man''' 2016 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 143 | * '''Trace It Pac-Man''' 2016 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 144 | * '''MilboxTouch VR Pac-Man''' 2016 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 145 | * '''Pac-Tune''' 2016 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 146 | * '''Mogpac''' 2016 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 147 | * '''Intense! Pac-Man Fantasy Tower''' 2016 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 148 | * '''Pac-Man Pop''' 2016 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 149 | * '''The Card: Respectable Pac-Man''' 2017 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 150 | * '''Gachi Escape: Serious Escape Pac-Man''' 2017 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 151 | * '''Pac-Pong''' 2017 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 152 | * '''Pac-Man Note: Escape From the Page''' 2017 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 153 | * '''Pac-Man Maker''' 2017 ([=iOS=] - only in Canada) |
| 154 | * '''Pac-Man: Ralph Breaks the Maze''' 2018 ([=iOS=], Android) - a crossover with ''WesternAnimation/RalphBreaksTheInternet'' |
| 155 | * '''Pac-Man's Nippon Journey''' 2018 ([=iOS=], Android) |
| 156 | * '''Pac-Man Geo''' 2020 ([=iOS=], Android - a fully-fledged implementation of a 2015 Google Maps April Fools game) |
| 157 | [[/index]] |
| 158 | [[/folder]] |
| 159 | |
| 160 | [[folder:Cross-Platform Games]] |
| 161 | Games that can be played across both PC and mobile devices. |
| 162 | * ''Google Pac-Man'' (Web browser, 2010) |
| 163 | * ''とびだせ Pac-Man Run'' (Web browser, 2016) |
| 164 | * ''Pac-Man Mini'' (Web browser, 2017) |
| 165 | * ''Pac-Man Shanghai Mahjong'' (Web browser, 2017) |
| 166 | * ''Pac-Man Ghost & Stage Maker'' (Web browser, 2017) |
| 167 | * ''Pac-Run'' (Web browser, 2017) |
| 168 | * ''Pac-Man.io'' (Web browser, 2018) - Open beta by Miniclip |
| 169 | * ''Million x Pac-Man'' (Web browser, 2019) |
| 170 | * ''One Piece Pac-Man Stampede Ver.'' 2019 (Web browser) - a crossover with ''Anime/OnePieceStampede'' |
| 171 | * ''Pac-Man Party Royale'' (Apple Arcade, 2019) |
| 172 | * ''Morinaga Pac-Man Mini'' (Web browser, 2020) |
| 173 | * ''[=TenSura=] x Pac-Man'' (Web browser, 2020) |
| 174 | * ''Pac-Man: Mega Tunnel Battle'' (Platform/GoogleStadia, 2020) |
| 175 | ** ''Pac-Man Mega Tunnel Battle: Chomp Champs'' ([=PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, and PC=], 2024): UpdatedRerelease for all other [=8th/9th=] Generation platforms. |
| 176 | [[/folder]] |
| 177 | |
| 178 | [[folder:Other Games]] |
| 179 | Non-Pac-Man games which feature Pac-Man. |
| 180 | * ''Kick'' (Arcade, 1981) |
| 181 | * ''Family Pinball'' (Famicom, 1990)[[note]]Released in the USA as Rock 'n Ball without ''Pac-Man'' elements.[[/note]] |
| 182 | * ''VideoGame/MarioKartArcadeGP'' (Arcade, 2005) |
| 183 | ** ''Mario Kart Arcade GP 2'' (Arcade, 2007) |
| 184 | ** ''Mario Kart Arcade GP DX'' (Arcade, 2013) |
| 185 | * ''Honeycomb Rock'' ([=J2ME=], 2006) |
| 186 | * ''Namco Arcade Golf'' ([=J2ME=], 2007)[[note]]A rebrand of ''Pac-Man Arcade Golf''[[/note]] |
| 187 | * ''VideoGame/{{Minecraft}}'' (2009) - A 2020 ''Pac-Man'' DLC for Bedrock Edition features ten mazes, a maze builder, and unlockable characters. |
| 188 | * ''Body and Brain Connection'' (Xbox 360, 2010) |
| 189 | * ''=10'' ([=iOS=], Android, 2011) |
| 190 | * ''VideoGame/HotShotsGolf: World Invitational'' (Platform/PlaystationVita, [=PlayStation=] 3, 2011) |
| 191 | * ''VideoGame/StreetFighterXTekken'' ([=PlayStation=] 3 and [=PlayStation=] Vita versions only, 2012) |
| 192 | * ''VideoGame/NamcoHigh'' (Web Browser, 2013) |
| 193 | * ''Videogame/SonicDash'' ([=iOS=], Android, 2013) - Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man were introduced as [[TemporaryOnlineContent limited event unlockable characters]] during February-March 2018 |
| 194 | * ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBros'' |
| 195 | ** ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosForNintendo3DSAndWiiU'' (2014) |
| 196 | ** ''VideoGame/SuperSmashBrosUltimate'' (2018) |
| 197 | ** An Toys/{{amiibo}} figure was also released based on his ''Smash Bros.'' appearance, and other games have ''Pac-Man'' content unlocked by that figure. |
| 198 | * ''VideoGame/CrossyRoad'' ([=iOS=], Android, 2014) |
| 199 | * ''Family Stadium / Famista'' |
| 200 | ** ''Famista Dream Match'' 2014 ([=iOS=]) |
| 201 | ** ''Famista Evolution'' (Nintendo Switch, 2018) |
| 202 | ** ''Pro Yakyuu Famista 2020'' (Nintendo Switch, 2020) |
| 203 | * ''VideoGame/DisneyTsumTsum'' (iOS, Android, 2014) - Pac-Man and Blinky were introduced as [[TemporaryOnlineContent limited event]] Tsums classified under the ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph'' series in 2019 |
| 204 | ** ''Disney Tsum Tsum Festival'' (Nintendo Switch, 2019) - Pac-Man was a DLC character until January 2020 |
| 205 | * ''Pixel Super Stars'' ([=iOS=], Android, 2015) |
| 206 | * ''Pixel Runners'' ([=iOS=], Android, 2018) |
| 207 | * ''VideoGame/SuperRobotWarsDD'' ([=iOS=], Android, 2019) - Pac-Man joined the roster in 2021, piloting his Toys/SuperRobotChogokin toy. |
| 208 | [[/folder]] |
| 209 | |
| 210 | [[folder:Non-Video Game Adaptations]] |
| 211 | Pac-Man games and media that are not of the video variety. |
| 212 | * ''Pac-Man'' (card game, 1981) |
| 213 | * ''Pac-Man'' (board game, 1982) |
| 214 | * ''WesternAnimation/PacMan'' (Creator/HannaBarbera animated adaptation, 1982) |
| 215 | * ''Ms. Pac-Man'' (board game, 1983) |
| 216 | * ''WesternAnimation/PacManAndTheGhostlyAdventures'' (CGI animated series which spawned video games based on this series, 2013) |
| 217 | * ''Pac-Man Stories'' (Amazon Alexa, 2018) |
| 218 | * ''Pac-Man: The Board Game'' (2019) |
| 219 | * ''Monopoly Arcade: Pac-Man'' (board game, 2020) |
| 220 | * ''Pac-Man: The Card Game'' (2020) |
| 221 | [[/folder]] |
| 222 | |
| 223 | [[folder:Appearances in Other Media]] |
| 224 | * In ''WesternAnimation/WreckItRalph'', Clyde (voiced by Disney animation employee Kevin Deters) hosts the villain support group in a ''Pac-Man'' arcade machine, and Pac-Man is a guest at Felix's anniversary party. |
| 225 | ** Pac-Man also appears in the sequel, ''WesternAnimation/RalphBreaksTheInternet''. |
| 226 | * When aliens attack with retro game characters in ''Film/{{Pixels}}'', Pac-Man is one of their main weapons. The heroes use Mini Coopers to take the role of the ghosts, and Pac-Man's creator Toru Iwatani also appears (played by Denis Akiyama, but the real Iwatani does make his own CreatorCameo as a background scientist). |
| 227 | * The antagonist in the ''Series/KamenRiderExAid'' movie ''[[Film/KamenRiderGenerationsDrPacmanVsExAidAndGhostWithLegendaryRiders Kamen Rider Heisei Generations]]'' is "[[MorallyAmbiguousDoctorate Doctor]] Pac-Man", who wears a warped Pac-Man mask and spreads a bio-digital Pac-Man virus that manifests physically as both a swarm of Pac-Men and as a giant demonic-looking Pac-Man. While it seems odd for Pac-Man to appear in ''Franchise/KamenRider'', ItMakesSenseInContext as he fulfills the role of a CrossoverComboVillain: ''Ex-Aid'' is video game-themed and the heroes fight game viruses like these all the time, while the film's main co-star Series/KamenRiderGhost has, well, [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin ghost powers]], which the Pac-Man virus naturally fears and targets him for. And Namco Bandai [[MerchandiseDriven has some control over the show as the toy manufacturer]], so there's that. |
| 228 | ** In a series of web videos set after the movie, another character takes on the identity of Dr. Pac-Man and loans Ex-Aid and his allies powerups based on Namco games, with Ex-Aid using a ''Pac-Man''-themed one. |
| 229 | [[/folder]] |
| 230 | ---- |
| 231 | !!''Pac-Man'' contains examples of: |
| 232 | * ActionGirl: Ms. Pac-Man is [[TertiarySexualCharacteristics very markedly]] a woman and she dodges and bites her way through mazes just as well as her spouse. |
| 233 | * AdaptationExpansion: |
| 234 | ** The Tengen version of ''Ms. Pac-Man'' features new mazes, different maze sizes, and the ability to move faster. These are carried over for the Genesis and SNES ports. The Platform/AtariLynx version likewise has its own set of large mazes. |
| 235 | ** ''Pac-Man for Mobile'' has a bunch of unique mazes (bought with gained tokens or real money) that serve as mini gauntlets. The weekly tournaments feature the new mazes. Later updates add elements from ''Pac-Man Hats'' which includes new powerups and events with multiple mazes and goals. |
| 236 | * AdrenalineTime: In ''Championship Edition DX'' and ''Pac-Man Geo'', it's something to help you so the time slows down when you're in a dangerous situation. |
| 237 | * AerithAndBob: The ghosts are mainly known as Blinky, Pinky, Inky and... Clyde. (Or Sue... or Tim.) |
| 238 | * AncientEgypt: |
| 239 | ** One of the worlds in ''Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness'' and the overall setting of ''Quest for the Golden Maze'' |
| 240 | ** One of the time zones in ''Adventures in Time''. |
| 241 | * AnimatedAdaptation: Creator/HannaBarbera produced one [[WesternAnimation/PacMan in the early 1980s]]. And after that was [[WesternAnimation/PacManAndTheGhostlyAdventures a second one]] on Creator/DisneyXD. |
| 242 | * AntagonistTitle: ''Professor Pac-Man'' - though he is generally non-malicious, he is the opposing force of the game. |
| 243 | * ArtificialBrilliance: |
| 244 | ** The original ''Pac-Man'' -- for the time, at least. Because the game doesn't have a random number generator, the ghosts' moves were deterministic, but they were each given different tendencies. In "Chase" mode, Blinky (Red) targets Pac-Man, Pinky (Pink) targets 4 spaces ahead of Pac-Man[[note]]unless Pac-Man is moving up, then it looks four spaces up and four spaces to the left, due to a bug[[/note]], Clyde (Orange) targets Pac-Man when far away and the lower-left corner when close, and Inky (Light Blue)... wow. Draw a line from Blinky to two spaces in front of Pac-Man[[note]]or if Pac-Man is moving up, then two up and two left[[/note]]. Now keep drawing this line past this space until it's twice as long. The end of the line is where Inky targets. As a result of these simple and unique behaviors, the ghosts provide shockingly intelligent tactics; Inky and Pinky work in conjunction with Blinky to try and corner Pac-Man between them, while Clyde's constant presence around Pac-Man but not chasing him can lead to him becoming a SpannerInTheWorks when trying to escape the other ghosts or group them up to eat in one swoop. |
| 245 | ** When not in "Chase" mode, the ghosts go into "Scatter" mode, where they target squares off the grid instead (Blinky targets the upper-right corner, Pinky the upper-left, Inky the lower-right, and Clyde the lower-left, the same corner he targets when Pac-Man gets too close in Chase mode). They alternate between chasing Pac-Man and scattering to the corners, which gives the game moments of tension and moments of calm -- with the latter's duration steadily decreasing the longer the game is played. Furthermore, they'll all automatically enter scatter mode when a Power Pellet is eaten, leading to the player to want to capitalize on its effects quickly before the ghosts scatter too far to consume all at the same time. |
| 246 | ** ''Ms. Pac-Man'' mixed things up by making the ghosts move pseudo-randomly when in Scatter mode instead of targeting the corners. The upside is that you can't memorize paths this time around, the downside is that finishing a level quickly (or "perfectly") now relies on luck. |
| 247 | * ArtEvolution: Pac-Man has changed a lot in design over the years; from [[http://images.wikia.com/pacman/images/a/a6/Pacoriginal.png this]] to [[http://images.wikia.com/pacman/images/f/fa/JapanesePacMan.png this]] and now [[http://images1.wikia.nocookie.net/__cb20100925112354/pacman/images/9/90/Pacman.jpg this]]. He and his friends got a complete design overall for ''Pac-Man Party'', and many games since adopted various styles of their own. |
| 248 | * AscendedGlitch: ''Pac-Man 256'' is based off the original game's KillScreen. |
| 249 | ** ''Pac-Man Mega Tunnel Battle'' uses the 256 glitch as a means of teleporting gateways and the mazes around. |
| 250 | * {{Beat}}: The ghosts in ''Super Pac-Man'' and ''Pac & Pal'' occasionally stop in their tracks, quickly shift in place, and move along forward. This is in contrast to most ''Pac-Man'' games, in which they'll instantaneously turn around when switching between chase and scatter mode. |
| 251 | * BeautyIsNeverTarnished: Downplayed with Ms. Pac-Man, as far as her original appearance is concerned; Pac-Man blinks out of existence when he loses a life, while Ms. Pac-Man [[SpectacularSpinning spins wildly in place]]. |
| 252 | * BedsheetGhost: Although the intermissions in the original game suggest they have some kind of body under there. The arcade game calls them "monsters". |
| 253 | * BigEater: The original game established eating as one of Pac-Man's main character traits, with his primary objective being to eat an entire maze full of Pac-Dots to clear each stage, and maybe eat some ghosts along the way. Most future games feature eating as a major mechanic, with the maze games typically having it as the main objective, and even the other games tend to feature lots of food for Pac-Man and his family to eat. |
| 254 | * BlueWithShock: |
| 255 | ** Whenever Pac-Man eats an Energizer/Power Pellet, the monsters/ghosts turn blue and have expressions of fear on their face, and in this state, Pac-Man can eat them. |
| 256 | ** In ''Pac-Man Battle Royale'', when any player eats a Power Pellet, all opposing players that haven't eaten one will turn blue, and much like the ghosts, they are vulnerable to getting eaten. |
| 257 | ** In the first game, due to a bug, getting killed by a ghost under certain (very rare) circumstances (''right'' as their vulnerability time wears off) causes all four ghosts to turn bright orange[[note]]as in ''really'' bright, at least 50% more so than Clyde's usual colouring[[/note]]. |
| 258 | %% I actually saw the above happen once, having previously read about it in the first issue of British ''Computer and Video Games'' magazine, but I can't remember the details; could someone add them? |
| 259 | * BoldInflation: Pac-Man is referred to as PAC-MAN in modern game descriptions. |
| 260 | * BonusStage: |
| 261 | ** The minigames in ''Pac-Man Adventures in Time'' |
| 262 | ** Some maze sets in ''Pac-Man for Mobile'' have a stage where Pac-Man must eat all the fruit in time. |
| 263 | * BootstrappedTheme: Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man's themes comes from their respective debut game's intro and intermission. ''Pac & Pal'' is unique as it has its own theme song that hasn't been used since. |
| 264 | * BrandX: The Cola fruit in ''Pac-Man Plus'' bears an obvious resemblance to a Coca-Cola can. The version found in the [=Arcade1Up=] cabinet edits it into a red can with the word [=PAC=] on the side. |
| 265 | * TheBusCameBack: |
| 266 | ** Sue and Funky & Spunky, last seen from ''Pac-Attack'' and ''Pac-Mania'', respectively, return for ''Pac-Man 256''. |
| 267 | *** They also appeared in ''The Sandbox Evolution'' as part of the ''Pac-Man'' assets. An update even added Tim from ''Jr. Pac-Man''. |
| 268 | ** Professor Pac was added as a tutorial NPC in an update for ''Pac-Man Pop'' |
| 269 | ** Professor Pac, Mr. Cookie, Super Pac-Man, Miru, and Pac-Ranger all appear as unlockable characters in the ''Pac-Man'' DLC pack for ''Minecraft''. |
| 270 | * TheCameo: [[Franchise/SuperMarioBros Mario]] is the announcer in ''Pac-Man Vs.'' |
| 271 | * CatchingSomeZs: Sleeping ghosts in ''Pac Man: Championship Edition DX'' and Spunky/Grey Common in ''Pac-Man 256''. |
| 272 | * {{Crossover}}: |
| 273 | ** Did one with Franchise/HelloKitty in the mobile app. This maze pack was later released as its own Tiny Arcade handheld game. |
| 274 | *** A similar collab was done with Red Bull; this maze pack was made into a fully fledged arcade machine. |
| 275 | ** ''Pac-Man'' and ''Franchise/SonicTheHedgehog'' appeared in each other's apps in 2018. |
| 276 | ** An individual app for ''WesternAnimation/RalphBreaksTheInternet'' features various characters in the film running around and helping Pac-Man. |
| 277 | ** The cast of the Pac-Man games appeared in the Namco-developed VideoGame/MarioKart Arcade games. |
| 278 | ** Many ''Pac-Man'' games made for Internet browsers served as crossovers. Some of these include Morinaga, Million, and anime franchise ''Literature/ThatTimeIGotReincarnatedAsASlime''. |
| 279 | * CollisionDamage: |
| 280 | ** If Pac-Man / Ms. Pac-Man touches a ghost that's not under the effect of a power pellet, it's lights out for them. Downplayed in ''Championship Edition 2'', where Pac can harmlessly bump off of ghosts, but if he hits a specific ghost train too many times, or [[HairTriggerTemper just once]] in Extreme, the leader ghost whose train he hit will temporarily turn angry and will be lethal on contact to Pac-Man as usual. |
| 281 | ** Eating a power pellet turns this against the enemies; any ghost under its effect that makes contact with Pac-Man (even if he's not facing the ghost) will be eaten and return to the respawn box. |
| 282 | * ColorCodedMultiplayer: |
| 283 | ** ''Pac-Man Arrangement (1996)'' and ''World's Largest Pac-Man'' both have Player 1 play as the normal yellow Pac-Man while Player 2 is a green one. |
| 284 | ** Pac-Man VS. assigns colors to the players currently playing as the ghosts. In order from Player 1 to Player 4, Red Blinky, Blue Inky, Pink Pinky, and Green Funky. |
| 285 | ** ''Pac-Man Battle Royale'' has a yellow, pink, blue, and red Pac-Man. |
| 286 | * ConfusionFu: Inky's behavior is somewhat unpredictable. It's based on the relative positions of both Pac-Man and Blinky, and there's a bug involved as well (normally "ahead of Pac-Man" means two tiles ahead in the direction he's moving, but when Pac-Man is moving up, the game thinks that ahead is two tiles up ''and'' two tiles left). |
| 287 | * CowardlyMooks: |
| 288 | ** While the ghosts normally chase Pac-Man down, when he eats a Power Pellet, they enter a scared state and begin to flee from him. |
| 289 | ** Clyde is programmed to be cowardly, targeting his scatter mode corner whenever Pac-Man comes near him. Due to this, the area near his corner is the only spot where Clyde can catch Pac-Man on his own. |
| 290 | * {{Cutscene}}s: Speaking of which, are therefore OlderThanTheyThink. |
| 291 | * {{Determinator}}: |
| 292 | ** Blinky always chases after Pac-Man. Once only a few pellets remain, Blinky starts moving faster than anyone else. |
| 293 | ** In ''Pac-Mania'', Sue does not have a scatter mode, so she's always on Pac-Man's feet. Even then, Blinky outruns her. |
| 294 | * DamnYouMuscleMemory: |
| 295 | ** The difficulty selections in ''Pac-Man Adventures in Time'' affect the duration of the stamina meter for jumping. This can affect players' abilities to expect when to jump. |
| 296 | ** ''Pac-Man for Mobile'' includes lots of mazes with dead ends. In any other version of Pac-Man that happens to include dead ends (including ''Champ Ms. Pac-Em'', ''Ms. Pac-Man: Quest for the Golden Maze'', ''numerous'' mazes in ''World's Biggest Pac-Man'', and the Google maze), they will teach you that they are extremely dangerous unless they contain a Power Pellet at the end thanks to a lone Ghost being all it takes to trap you and costing you a life. In ''Pac-Man for Mobile'', on the other hand, ghosts are programmed to never enter (most) dead ends, thus turning them into safety nets to temporarily escape the Ghosts' onslaught. ''Pac-Man Hats'' distinguishes these safety gaps with deep clouds that Ghosts can't see through. |
| 297 | * DifficultyByAcceleration: In many games in the series, especially the maze games, all characters gradually get faster as the player clears more stages. |
| 298 | * DistaffCounterpart: Ms. Pac-Man is Pac-Man's female counterpart, with most of the same characteristics, but sporting more feminine features like lipstick and a hair bow. |
| 299 | * DivergentCharacterEvolution: Sue in ''Ms. Pac-Man'' is basically Clyde. The cartoon series includes both as separate characters and changed Sue's color to purple. She is further evolved in ''Pac-Land'' and ''Pac-Mania'' where her characteristic is actively pursuing Pac-Man regardless of what the other ghosts are doing. |
| 300 | * DolledUpInstallment: ''Ms. Pac-Man'', technically, sort of. Originally, the game was a GameMod for ''Pac-Man'' titled ''Crazy Otto''. Midway, which wanted a sequel to ''Pac-Man'' and couldn't wait for Namco to make one, bought the rights to ''Crazy Otto'', and changed it to ''Ms. Pac-Man''. |
| 301 | * DubNameChange: |
| 302 | ** An interesting version, as not only were the original Japanese names for the ghosts (understandably) changed for the American market, but so were the descriptors cluing in the player to each ghost's particular movement style. They were: |
| 303 | *** Akabei/Blinky - Chaser/"Shadow" |
| 304 | *** Pinky - Ambusher/"Speedy" |
| 305 | *** Aosuke/Inky - Whimsical/"Bashful" |
| 306 | *** Guzuta/Clyde/Sue/Tim - Playing dumb/"Pokey" |
| 307 | ** This could potentially be considered a DubInducedPlotHole, as the new descriptors for the latter three ghosts don't really match their movements. In fact, despite Pinky being called "Speedy" in the localized version, it's actually Blinky who is the quickest of the ghosts, increasing his chase speed at various stages of progress through the maze. |
| 308 | ** A booklet published not long after the game was released, called ''How to Win at Pac-Man'', took the name "Bashful" literally, based on the fact that Pac-Man can sometimes go through him without harm, and other alleged quirks such as their claim that he tends to run away from Pac-Man. In fact, the pass-through ability is a glitch in the game's collision detection and not unique to Inky, and the other "quirks" have been disputed. |
| 309 | ** For the other ghosts in the series, there is: |
| 310 | *** Green Common/Funky |
| 311 | *** Gray Common/Spunky |
| 312 | *** "Kinzo"/"Kinky" - Hinekure/????? |
| 313 | * EarlyBirdCameo: In ''Pac-Man Museum +'', alongside the ghosts and Professor Pac appearing in-person, trophies are available of four characters replacing legally troubled characters- Pac-Mom, Pac-Sis, Pac-Boy and Pac-Buddy. These four would make their first appearance proper in ''Pac-Man World Re-Pac'', announced the same month of ''Museum+''’s release. |
| 314 | * EarlyInstallmentWeirdness: Going by the maze games alone, ''Super Pac-Man'' and ''Pac & Pal'' are oddities. Unlike Midway's sequels that expanded on Pac-Man's dot eating gameplay, Namco's sequels added gates & keys onto the mazes, bonus stages, largely altered the ghost movements, and dots were now fruit. Later Namco games largely forego most of these elements. |
| 315 | * EatingTheEnemy: Pac-Man gains the ability to eat the ghosts after devouring a "power pellet". |
| 316 | * EdibleCollectible: The TropeMaker for bonus fruits, though after the eighth board the fruits are replaced by non-food items, such as the ''VideoGame/{{Galaxian}}'' ship (or the Atari "fuji" symbol in the Atari 5200 and 8-bit computer version). Of course, Pac-Man's goal in each stage is to eat all the dots, and the energizers let him chomp on the ghosts for more bonus points. |
| 317 | * EndlessGame: As planned, but there is a KillScreen after 255 mazes. However, every maze past 20 is exactly the same. |
| 318 | * EveryTenThousandPoints: Despite the trope name, only the first 10,000 points nets an extra life.[[note]]Depending on the machine's DIP switch settings, the arcade version can give you the extra life at 15,000 or 20,000 points... or even force you to play with no point-based extra life whatsoever.[[/note]] ''Pac-Man for Mobile'' does use this system but only for the new mazes. |
| 319 | * ExtremeOmnivore: Besides pellets, power pellets, and ghosts, Pac-Man can eat fruit, ''VideoGame/{{Galaxian}}'' flagships, bells, keys, and much more. The port for Platform/Atari8BitComputers substitutes an Atari logo for the ''Galaxian'' ship. |
| 320 | * EyesAreUnbreakable: Whenever Pac-Man eats a ghost, their bodies are consumed, with only their eyeballs remaining. The eyes then fly back to the ghost box to regenerate the ghost's body. |
| 321 | * FanRemake: These do exist, whenever they be in small or large numbers. ''Champ Pac-Em'' is one of the earliest known that attempted to replicate and expand the original game. |
| 322 | * {{Freemium}}: ''Pac-Man for Mobile'' has a boat load of new maze sets that each cost a varying number of Tokens to unlock. [[PlayEveryDay Completing a maze set, finishing the daily missions, and logging in each day gives the player Tokens]], or one can go the faster route and pay for Tokens. The aversion is the Classic maze which is free, and Tokens can be used to continue from a Game Over. |
| 323 | * TheFuture: Set in ''Adventures in Time'', the last stage of Quest Mode. |
| 324 | * GameMod: |
| 325 | ** Besides ''Ms. Pac-Man'', there was ''Hangly-Man'', ''Piranha'', and quite a few others that popped up in the arcades. |
| 326 | ** The Atari 2600 version of ''Ms. Pac-Man'' got a mod in the form of ''Pac-Man Arcade'', in effect being the reverse of how arcade ''Ms. Pac-Man'' came into being. |
| 327 | ** The Atari 7800 version of ''Ms. Pac-Man'' got modded into ''Pac-Man Collection'', which features ''Pac-Man'' and some other game mods. |
| 328 | * GameplayGrading: Several mobile games give the player a rating out of three stars per completion of a level. |
| 329 | * GenderFlip: Pinky, who became female as of ''VideoGame/PacManWorld'' and has remained so ever since. |
| 330 | * GhastlyGhost: Blinky, Pinky, Inky, and Clyde are a quartet of ghosts who serve as the main enemies. Their motive is to prevent Pac-Man from eating all the Pac-Dots that send him to the next level, and if they touch Pac-Man, he loses a life. |
| 331 | * GoroawaseNumber: 765 is the number for Namco. Certain games give out 7650 points after maintaining a large combo. |
| 332 | * GraphicsInducedSuperDeformed: Rather radical example. In the cabinet art, Pac Man is drawn with legs and eyes. In-game, he's very stylized so only a pie chart remains. This image soon stuck with the audience. |
| 333 | * HatOfPower: The hats in ''Pac-Man Hats'' activate their powers when a certain amount of pellets are eaten. |
| 334 | * HitboxDissonance: In the original games, Pac-Man and the ghosts all have hitboxes that are based on what "tile" of the maze they are currently in, rather than the exact position of their sprites, allowing them to sometimes brush past each other while not actually coming into contact. There is even a rare glitch where Pac-Man can seemingly pass right through a ghost if they switch tiles at the exact same time. |
| 335 | * TheHunterBecomesTheHunted: Most of the time, Pac-Man is defenseless against the ghosts and has to run away from them at all costs. Any time he eats a Power Pellet, however, he can turn the tables, as now he can eat them instead to score bonus points. (Mr. Burns even quotes the Trope by name while playing ''Ms. Pac Man'' in an episode of ''WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons''.) |
| 336 | * IdiosyncraticDifficultyLevels: |
| 337 | ** Tengen's ''Ms. Pac-Man'' has their difficulty sorted as: Easy, Normal, Hard, and Crazy. |
| 338 | ** The new mazes in ''Pac-Man for Mobile'' have their difficulty categorized from Relaxed, Challenging, and Elite. Averted for the Classic Maze, it's simply Easy, Medium, and Hard. |
| 339 | * ImAHumanitarian: One of the ways to defeat an opponent in ''Pac-Man Battle Royale'' and ''Pac-Man Mega Tunnel Battle'' is to grab a Power Pellet and eat them. |
| 340 | * IndyEscape: In ''Adventures in Time'', Pac-Man ends up escaping a whole bunch. One instance is from [[Film/RaidersOfTheLostArk a giant boulder]]. |
| 341 | * InMediasRes: The Plug-N-Play version of ''Pac-Man 256'' starts the game in the 255th stage. Beating it leads to the Kill Screen. |
| 342 | * InvincibilityPowerUp: Power pellets. |
| 343 | * KidHero: ''Junior Pac-Man'' stars Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man's young son, who proves to be just as much of a ghost-chomper as his parents. |
| 344 | * KillScreen: |
| 345 | ** Perhaps the most famous example. It makes an in-game appearance as the AdvancingWallOfDoom in ''Pac-Man 256''. |
| 346 | ** As part of a marketing gimmick, one of the games in the 35th Anniversary Plug-N-Play lets the player access the Kill Screen without playing over 254 stages. |
| 347 | ** ''Pac-Man for Mobile'' doesn't have a Kill Screen; the final 256th stage is actually beatable. Completing all stages earns an achievement. |
| 348 | * LaterInstallmentWeirdness: Mazes have traditionally been taller than they are wide due to the games being designed for vertically-oriented monitors. Even in games for consumer platforms, the games still often still do this, shrinking the mazes down to fit on a horizonally-oriented screen and simply using the unused space for the game's HUD. The ''Championship Edition'' games and ''Battle Royale'' do away with this, instead having mazes designed explicitly for 16:9 screens. |
| 349 | * LeadTheTarget: Pinky doesn't target Pac-Man's actual position, but rather four spaces in front of him. |
| 350 | * MarathonLevel: |
| 351 | ** The Game Boy Advance version of ''Pac-Man World 2'' has a lot of these. |
| 352 | ** [[http://worldsbiggestpacman.com/ World's Biggest Pac-Man]], which strings ''thousands'' of different user-generated mazes into one gi-freaking-gantic mega-maze. Good luck completing it in your lifetime. |
| 353 | * TheMiddleAges: One of the time zones in ''Adventures in Time''. Expect it to be [[IncrediblyLamePun somewhere in the middle of the game.]] |
| 354 | * MissionPackSequel: While containing new mazes and some graphical updates, ''Ms. Pac Man'' was otherwise the exact same game as the original ''Pac Man''. |
| 355 | * MoodWhiplash: Jungly Steps in ''Pac-Mania'' uses an unsettling theme for its level, compared to the rest of the game's cheerful music. In the 23rd and final round, [[SoundtrackDissonance this theme is mixed in with a bright pink maze]]. |
| 356 | * NighInvulnerability: Along with ''VideoGame/MsPacMan'', starting with the 19th level, where eating a power pellet does nothing to faze the ghost monsters. The monsters will reverse direction, but Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man must avoid their pursuers at all costs. |
| 357 | * NintendoHard: |
| 358 | ** ''Jr. Pac-Man'', with double-width scrolling mazes, bonus items that will mutate dots into larger dots that slow you down (and will even '''destroy power pellets''' if Jr. doesn't eat them) and long corridors. |
| 359 | ** ''Pinball/BabyPacMan'', with more aggressive ghosts, laser-guided AI, and ''no power pellets'' to start off with... until you (hopefully) gain some in the pinball portion of the game. |
| 360 | ** ''Pac-Mania'', being a late 80s arcade game, cranks up the difficulty as you play through the mazes after beating "Jungly Steps". |
| 361 | ** ''Adventures in Time'', eventually in some of the later mazes and difficulty levels. The ghosts might end up just as fast as Pac-Man on some levels, and the jump meter refills more slowly on harder settings. |
| 362 | * NoEnding: Most ''Pac-Man'' arcade games go on until the Kill Screen. ''Pac-Mania'' can be ended by using DIP switches (causing it to end after two "laps", one lap, or go on indefinitely) and ''Pac-Man Arrangement (1996)'' has a final boss after World 5. Oddly, the ''Namco Classic Collection Vol. 2'' version of ''Pac-Man'' ends at the 21st level [[note]]as well as the other games in both volumes[[/note]] and any left over lives are counted as points. |
| 363 | * NoPlotNoProblem: The original game really had none: You send this little yellow guy around the maze to eat all the dots while avoiding the monsters, and you could eat the monsters if you ate a power pellet. Then again, there were those cut-scenes. Still, popular to the point of addictive. |
| 364 | * NonIndicativeName: |
| 365 | ** As said above, Pac-Man is known as "Puck-Man", but nonetheless is almost always depicted with a spherical body. |
| 366 | ** Some of the Bonus Fruit aren't fruit and others are not even food at all (keys, bells, etc.). |
| 367 | ** Ms. Pac-Man should be called ''Mrs.'' since she's married. |
| 368 | * NonLinearSequel: There are three sequels to Pac-Man: the official ''Super Pac-Man'', the unofficial bootleg turned canon ''Ms. Pac-Man'', or the [[OddballInTheSeries 16-bit point and click action game]] ''Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures''. |
| 369 | * NostalgiaLevel: The original maze pops up in almost every game in the series in some form. |
| 370 | * OddNameOut: Most of the ghosts follow a ThemeNaming, except for the orange one. |
| 371 | ** In the English version, we have [[RhymeThemeNaming Inky (red), Blinky (blue), Pinky (pink)]], and... Clyde (or "Sue" in ''Ms. Pac-Man'', and "Tim" in ''Jr. Pac-Man''). |
| 372 | ** The original Japanese names of the ghosts were "Akabei" (from "Akai", Japanese for "Red"), Pinky (the only one who never went through a DubNameChange), "Aosuke" (from "Aoi", Japanese for "Blue"), and Guzuta (from "guzuguzu", an onomatopoeia for sluggishness, and [[MeaningfulName referencing]] the fact that he's always the last one to leave the ghost pen at the start of each level). Even here, Guzuta is ''still'' the OddNameOut due to breaking the ColorfulThemeNaming of the three others. |
| 373 | * OlderThanTheNES: Pac-Man was born in 1980, a year before Mario even existed. He's one of the oldest video game mascots in the videogame industry, and still going. |
| 374 | * OneHitPointWonder: In most of the maze games, Pac-Man cannot afford to touch the ghosts at all without losing a life. |
| 375 | * OnlyKnownByTheirNickname: The more iconic names for the ghosts are actually considered their nicknames in the original game. According to the attract screen, Blinky, Pinky, Inky and Clyde's real names are respectively Shadow, Speedy, Bashful and Pokey. |
| 376 | * OurGhostsAreDifferent: The intermission scenes in the original game imply that the ghosts may actually be some other kind of creature hiding under colored bedsheets. Most future games seem to ignore this, however. |
| 377 | * OverflowError: The famous KillScreen was caused by attempting to proceed to Stage 256 -- the game keeps track of the stage number by the fruit icons in the corner, and there's always supposed to be at least one. |
| 378 | * PlayerCharacter: |
| 379 | ** In most games, it's Pac-Man, obviously. |
| 380 | ** Occasionally, Ms. Pac-Man will take center stage in this regard. |
| 381 | ** On three separate occasions, it's been Pac-Man's children. |
| 382 | ** Exaggerated in Pac-Man VS and Pac-Man Party Royale, where every character in the maze is a Player Character fighting for dominance. |
| 383 | * PictorialLetterSubstitution: Many ''Pac-Man'' games like to use a Pac-Man-shaped wedge in place of the letter "C", such as in ''VideoGame/PacManWorld''. |
| 384 | * PieEyed: When shown with arms, legs and a face, Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man have eyes like these. Appropriate since their pupils are shaped like they are. |
| 385 | * PinballSpinoff: |
| 386 | ** First was ''Pinball/MrAndMrsPacManPinball''. It was a more conventional {{Pinball}} game, with a five-by-five bank of lights in the playfield. During the game, the player could move Pac-Man (represented by a yellow light) by tapping flipper buttons for direction[=/=]movement to avoid the ghost (represented by a red light). |
| 387 | ** Five months later came ''Pinball/BabyPacMan'', which combined a ''Pac-Man'' video game with a pinball table, in a video-game-sized cabinet. Unfortunately, the small playfield was a challenge for most players, and the maze game was NintendoHard to the point where finishing the first maze was an accomplishment. |
| 388 | ** 1990 saw ''Family Pinball'' for Famicom. It wasn't primarily a Pac-Man game, but it did feature ''Pac-Man'' as a playable character, and there was a ''Pac-Man''-themed table. |
| 389 | ** ''Pac-Man Pinball Advance'' was released in 2005 for, you guessed it, Game Boy Advance. It received unenthusiastic reviews. |
| 390 | *** There was a ''Pac-Man Pinball'' series for mobile devices; the first game came out in 2003, and the second followed in 2008. |
| 391 | ** A competitive multiplayer pinball game debuted in Japan in 2019 named ''Pac-Man Panic''. It eventually came to the USA at the beginning of 2020. |
| 392 | * PoisonMushroom: Power Pellets in ''Pac-Man Plus'' have a random chance of making the maze invisible, or having one of the ghosts remain unaffected by the pellet. |
| 393 | * PowerUpFood: Power Pellets aside, ''Pac-Man Plus'''s Bonus Fruits turn the ghosts edible (and invisible) and are worth double points. |
| 394 | * PowerUpMotif: The Bonus Fruits. |
| 395 | * PromotedToPlayable: |
| 396 | ** The Tengen versions of Ms. Pac-Man have the original Pac-Man as the 2nd player when playing a co-op game. |
| 397 | ** Multiplayer modes of games like ''Adventures in Time'' and ''Maze Madness'' let players control Pac-Jr. and Professor Pac. |
| 398 | * {{Retcon}}: |
| 399 | ** Namco hasn't made very many mentions of ''Ms. Pac-Man'' since the 30th anniversary of the original arcade game. It hasn't been in any ''Namco Museums'' since ''Virtual Arcade'', and ''Pac-Man Museum'', a compilation based on ''Pac-Man'', does not include ''Ms. Pac-Man''. It probably doesn't help that ''Ms. Pac-Man'' was developed by Midway rather than Namco. Then again, Namco did buy the full rights to the game and character. It should be noted that ''Ms. Pac-Man'' is available in ''Pac-Man Museum'' as DownloadableContent and Ms. Pac-Man herself cameos in ''Super Smash Bros for Platform/WiiU'' (which Namco co-created alongside Hal Labs and Sora Ltd.). |
| 400 | ** There is also strong evidence that Pac-Man's other family members (Pac-Jr, Baby Pac, Professor Pac) were retconned out of the series after ''Pac-Man World 3''. |
| 401 | ** Unrelated to the last three: Blinky and Clyde had their names switched in ''Pac-Man Arrangement (1996)'' and the ''Pac-Man World'' series. Their naming scheme returned to normal after ''Pac-Man World 3''. |
| 402 | * RhymeThemeNaming: The red, pink, and blue ghosts are given rhyming names in the English translation of the game: Blinky, Pinky, and Inky. |
| 403 | * ScoreMultiplier: Present in ''Pac-Man for Mobile'' but only in the new mazes. The multiplier increases whenever Pac-Man eats a fruit or eats two or more Ghosts under one Power Pellet. A larger score bonus is given if Pac-Man clears the maze without dying. |
| 404 | * ScoringPoints: Eating ghosts in succession usually follow the 200, 400, 800, 1600 model. Certain power ups and combo systems allow this point combo to increase up to 3200 or 7650 points. |
| 405 | * ScreenCrunch: |
| 406 | ** The Game Boy version--on top of being impossible to tell which ghost is who (without understanding their individual A.I.) thanks to the lack of colors--has a giant, unnecessary gray border on the right side of the screen that eats up nearly ''1/3'' of the resolution. |
| 407 | ** The GBA port, ''Pac-Man Collection'', was an interesting case. In ''Pac-Man'' & ''Pac-Man Arrangement (1996)'', only one half of the maze can be on screen at once, though using the shoulder buttons will allow you to see the other half. |
| 408 | ** Perhaps because of all of this, the ''Championship Edition'' games instead [[LaterInstallmentWeirdness have mazes designed specifically for 16:9 screens, rather than the traditional taller-than-is-wide mazes]]. |
| 409 | * ShownTheirWork: The playable Google doodle for Pac-Man's 30th anniversary. While the maze is obviously different, the game mechanics are accurate to the original to an absurd degree. Everything from the ghost behavior to the infamous [[GoodBadBugs "pass-through" glitch]] to even the KillScreen at level 256 (though unlike the original, the game simply ends at that point) is replicated to near pixel perfection. |
| 410 | * SocializationBonus: ''Pac Man vs.'', originally bundled with ''Pac-Man World 2'', is only playable in multiplayer and requires one GBA and the special cable. The Nintendo Switch version requires a second console with a separate app, however three players can play a solo console mode where they only capture Pac-Man for points. |
| 411 | * SomethingPerson: Pac-Man, natch. |
| 412 | * StarCrossedLovers: Pac-Jr.'s relationship with Blinky's daughter Yum-Yum in ''Jr. Pac-Man''. Blinky clearly objects to the bond, chasing Jr. whenever he tries to go near her to the point that Ms. Pac-Man has to jump in on both occasions to prevent Blinky from catching and potentially killing her son. |
| 413 | * StockFoodDepictions: The bonus fruits, where applicable, take on stock appearances to make their appearances obvious within graphical limitations. Even when graphics were no longer an issue, their appearances remain faithful to the original. |
| 414 | * StockSoundEffects: The Atari 2600 version's sound effects were used extensively well into the mid-90's to depict "video game sounds". |
| 415 | * StrippingSnag: In Coffee Break 2, Blinky gets his sheet stuck on a pole, and it rips, revealing his inner layer. By the time of Coffee Break 3, Blinky's sheet has been hastily stitched back up. |
| 416 | * SuddenEyeColour: Pac-Man went from PieEyed to having blue eyes starting with ''Pac-Man Party''. Later redesigns would go back to the him-shaped eyes. |
| 417 | * SuperEmpowering: |
| 418 | ** In ''Pac-Man Arrangement (1996)'' from ''Namco Classics Collection Volume 2'', a fifth ghost named [[AccidentalInnuendo Kinky]] who could [[FusionDance fuse]] with one of the four other ghosts to give them special powers fitting their personalities: Blinky gains a [[UseYourHead dashing headbutt]], Pinky gains the ability to jump to and from any location in the maze, Inky gains a DoppelgangerAttack, and Clyde gains the ability to lay down Pac dots in empty portions of the maze (forcing you to revisit those sections). Initially, the ghost house will only spawn one Kinky, but later levels will have it spawn more copies, until the final world which will spawn Kinky until every ghost is transformed. |
| 419 | ** The official Namco sequel to the original Pac-Man was "Super Pac-Man".[[note]]"Ms Pac-Man", although (at the time) endorsed by Namco, was ''created'' by Bally/Midway and was basically just a hack of the original game, making it more "Pac-Man 1½" than "Pac-Man 2".[[/note]] It includes the original four energizers in the corners, but also two new Super energizers in the middle of the maze, which transforms Pac-Man into a giant (supposedly he's flying above the maze, but he's still constrained by the maze's paths), makes him immune to the monsters, and gives him super-speed and the ability to eat through doors that normally require a key to open. The Super pellet's duration is short, but it can be refreshed by eating an energizer. |
| 420 | ** In ''Pac & Pal'', eating a special symbol doesn't turn the monsters blue, but instead makes Pac-Man slightly larger and turns ''him'' blue, and gives him the ability to shoot a short-range projectile to stun the monsters. The exact projectile depends on the special symbol. |
| 421 | * SupportPartyMember: Kinky in ''Pac-Man Arrangement (1996)'' from ''Namco Classics Collection Volume 2''. He's the only ghost that cannot harm Pac-Man directly at all, as he's ''always'' vulnerable. However, he acts as support by powering up the other Ghosts to give them much more dangerous abilities. |
| 422 | ** ''Quest for the Golden Maze'' features Baby Ghost, who functions similarly to Kinky but grants powerups if collected. |
| 423 | * TimedPowerUp: The majority of the power-ups in the series only last for a short time after they are collected. The Power Pellets are the most famous, but other examples include the Super Pellets from ''Super Pac-Man'', the Green Pellet from ''Pac-Mania'', and all of the power-ups from ''Pac-Man 256''. |
| 424 | * TitleConfusion: There's a ''lot'' of this. |
| 425 | ** The arcade game is ''Junior Pac-Man''; the unlockable game in the [[Platform/SegaGenesis Genesis]] version of ''Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures'' is ''Pac-Man, Jr.'' They are not the same game. |
| 426 | *** Adding to that, there are unrelated handheld LCD games named ''PacMan2'' and ''Pac-Junior'' |
| 427 | ** ''Pac-Man Panic'' is not the same thing as ''Pac-Panic'' |
| 428 | ** ''Pac-Man Pinball Advance'' is completely different from the ''Pac-Man Pinball'' on mobile devices. |
| 429 | ** ''Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures'' is known as ''Pac-World'' in Japan, in no relation to ''Pac-Man World''. |
| 430 | ** Two games released under the Catalog IP project label are ''Pac-Run'' and ''Pac-Man Run''. They are from separate development teams. |
| 431 | * TurnsRed: |
| 432 | ** Well... Blinky is already red to begin with, but when a certain number of dots remain (20 in the first level, up to ''120'' in later levels), he moves faster and becomes even more of a {{Determinator}}. And once you've eaten half that number of dots, he'll speed up even '''more'''. Fans have dubbed this behaviour "Cruise Elroy". |
| 433 | ** In ''Pac-Mania'', the player is given a visual indication when Blinky goes "Cruise Elroy" -- he gains angry eyes. Later, ''Namco Classics Collection Volume 2'''s version of ''Pac-Man Arrangement (1996)'' kept this for Blinky (unless he is in his fused form), [[https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/pacman_arr_cruiseelroy_547.jpg as well as raising his arms]]. |
| 434 | *** To add to this, as a [[StalkedByTheBell timeout mechanic]] in ''Arrangement'', '''all''' of the ghosts would become angry ''and'' gain Blinky's AI.[[note]]This only lasts until you die, though.[[/note]] |
| 435 | * UnderTheSea: World 2/Water World in ''Pac-Man Arrangement (1996)''. |
| 436 | * UpdatedRerelease |
| 437 | ** ''Pac-Man Plus'' (created by Namco and Bally Midway) is a more difficult version of the original with the Power Pellet having different effects depending on the stage. |
| 438 | ** The 2005 version of ''Pac-Man Arrangement'' received a PSP-exclusive re-release that gives the game a coat of Namco fanservice. |
| 439 | ** ''World's Largest Pac-Man'' is the original game on an enormous LCD screen. Gameplay differences include: simultaneous 2-player co-op, the bonus fruits move similar to ''Ms. Pac-Man'', gameplay keeps moving even if Pac-Man dies, the ability to continue the game at a Game Over rather than starting over, and shifting maze colors. |
| 440 | * UrExample: The original arcade game was the first game to feature enemy AI rather than enemies that move in a set pattern. |
| 441 | * VersionExclusiveContent: |
| 442 | ** ''Pac-Man for Mobile'' is full of this. |
| 443 | * VideoGameRemake: ''Pac-Man Arrangement (1996)'' in ''Namco Classics Collection Volume 2'' featured two-player co-op play, new power-ups, new stage elements such as dash arrows and jump panels, and a fifth ghost that could give the four other ghosts [[SuperEmpowering special powers]]. It is available in ''Pac-Man Collection'' for the Platform/GameBoyAdvance, ''Namco Museum'' for the Platform/PlayStation2, Platform/GameCube and Platform/{{Xbox}}, and ''Pac-Man Museum+'' for the Platform/PlayStation4, Platform/XboxOne, Platform/NintendoSwitch, and Platform/{{Steam}}. |
| 444 | * WesternRattlers: In ''Adventures in Time'', rattlesnakes appear as dangerous obstacles in levels themed after TheWildWest. |
| 445 | %%* TheWildWest: One of the time zones in ''Adventures in Time''. |
| 446 | * WouldHitAGirl: The ghosts are not above attacking Ms. Pac Man. Also, you can eat Pinky and Sue. |
| 447 | * WouldHurtAChild: |
| 448 | ** The ghosts are not above attacking Pac Man Jr. |
| 449 | ** Baby Ghost in ''Quest for the Golden Maze'' is edible without eating a Power Pellet. |
| 450 | * WrapAround: There's two tunnels on the side. Ghosts may chase after Pac-Man if they're close enough, otherwise they'll head through the maze. |
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