The game take the same traditional maze formula the series is known for and turns it into an endless runner. In a reference to the "level 256 glitch" seen in the original arcade game, Pac-man's primary threat is a giant glitch dimension that is slowly consuming the level and will kill him if he falls behind. In addition to the standard power pellets, there are other power-ups Pac-Man can obtain and use in game.
The console version of the game was rereleased in 2022 as part of the Pac-Man Museum + Compilation Re-release. This release also marked the game's debut release for the Nintendo Switch.
Tropes used in the game
- Action Bomb: The Bomb power causes Pac-Man to turn red. If he comes into contact with a ghost or the power-up expires, Pac-Man detonates and kills all ghosts within a set radius around him.
- Advancing Wall of Doom: The 256 glitch is constantly corrupting the back part of the maze and Pac-Man is instantly killed if it catches up to him.
- Allegedly Free Game: Mobile version 1.0 used microtransactions to unlock power-ups if they were already used before and the player did not want to wait for a 24 hour pay clock. 2.0 switched over to "coins" on the console and PC versions which could be collected in game and could be used to immediately unlock these features.
- Arc Number: 256. The game is called Pac-Man 256, the Advancing Wall of Doom is known as the "256 Glitch" and eating 256 dots in a row awards the player a Smart Bomb that kills all on screen ghosts.
- Ascended Glitch: The game is an entire reference to the "Level 256" Kill Screen glitch in the original arcade game.
- Blow You Away: The Tornado and Twinado powers summon a tornado that chases and destroys ghosts. Twinado summons two tornadoes, not just one.
- Call-Back: Spunky, who starts off asleep but wakes up and aggressively chases after Pac-Man after he passes by her, mirrors the behavior of the ghosts in Pac-Man Championship Edition DX. The game also includes themes based off the original game, Championship Edition DX, and Pac-Mania.
- Difficult, but Awesome: The Power Pellet is one of the most inefficient power ups in terms of ghost-killing, and can never be upgraded due to being a default power. However, due to its unique multiplicative scoring properties, you will always score higher with a Power Pellet than with other power ups if you eat multiple ghosts in one Pellet.
- Endless Game: The game only ends if Pac-man is killed, either by the oncoming glitch dimension, or by the ghosts.
- Energy Weapon: The Laser and Optic powers cause Pac-Man to emit a continuous beam in front of him that destroys ghosts on contact. Optics takes it a step further and causes the beam to turn corners.
- Freemium: The mobile version allows players to purchase additional Themes for $0.99 US apiece if they don't want to save the coins to buy them. Otherwise, themes cost 2048 coins, making them time-consuming to grind coins for. Watching the ads and completing missions helps in this regard. Additionally, the player can pay $4.99 US for the Coin Doubler, which comes with an additional 2048 coins. The home console/PC versions of the game avert this, costing an upfront price while having all the themes unlocked on the get-go.
- Green Hill Zone: The Garden skin gives the game a lush, green aesthetic with Pac-Man navigating dirt paths, with grass acting as the maze walls. The grass includes large flowers planted within, as well as white picket fences. Pac-Man has to contend with ladybugs as enemies instead of ghosts, and the Power Pellets that allow him to counter them are replaced with yellow mushrooms.
- Guest Fighter: If the game is played using the Crossy Road skin, you play as the chicken from that game instead of Pac-Man. The chicken is also one of the characters that can be selected when playing in multiplayer mode.
- Kill It with Fire: The Fire and Pyro powers cause Pac-Man to leave behind a flaming trail that kills ghosts on contact. Pyro additionally spreads to adjacent paths and gets those ghosts too.
- Me's a Crowd: The Pac-Men power summons miniature Pac-Mans that chase ghosts and destroy them, much like the Tornado.
- Nostalgia Level: The "Classic 80's" skin replicates the look of the original Pac-Man arcade game, with Pac-Man and the ghosts having all of their original character designs.
- Ratchet Scrolling: The game's maze only moves in one direction and a big glitch dimension is eating the screen in the opposite direction of which it's scrolling.
- Smart Bomb: Eating 256 dots in a row will immediately launch a missile that kills all the ghosts on the screen.
- Spikes of Doom: The Trap power-up causes spike traps to appear in various spots surrounding the area where it is collected. Luckily, the spikes do not harm Pac-Man, only the ghosts.
- Villain Teleportation: Glitchy, a ghost exclusive to this game, tends to teleport around the map every several seconds.
- Wake Up Fighting: Spunky is asleep on the stage, but if Pac-Man gets too close, she wakes up and gives chase.
