Pac-Man comes home from work in anticipation of his 20th
anniversary party, two decades since he became a video game superstar. But
someone has kidnapped all of his friends - Ms. Pac
Man, Jr. Pac-Man, Baby Pac-Man, Professor Pac-Man, and even the dog, along
with Pac's neighbor, Pooka of Dig Dug fame.
Now Pac-Man is hot on the trail of the ghosts, led by the Toc-Man, a hideous
mechanical parody of Pac who hopes to assume his identity. Pac has to rescue
his family and friends and defeat his new arch-nemesis.
(Namco, 1999)
Wow, who would've thought to attach a narrative to Pac-Man?!? This
new Playstation game from Namco updates the original game significantly, though
the basic rules are still the same - Pac still eats dots, power pellets still
give him the ability to munch ghosts, and he can still grab fruit and other
items for extra points. There are also new abilities, such as the rev-roll and
the butt-bounce (!).
Pac-Man World was the first game I bought for myself to play on my
fianceè's new Playstation, and after watching her struggle through the
Xena and Phantom Menace games, whose
visual perspectives shift almost uncontrollably, leaving the player disoriented,
I was delighted to play a game whose 3-D perspectives are not confusing,
do not veer wildly from one side to another, and do allow one to
have fun with the game.
This updated Pac-Man game is also incredibly faithful, including sound
effects from the original games in abundance, as well as numerous visual
references. The "theme song" from the main menu is an incredible, New
York-style jazzy rendition of the first intermission tune from Ms.
Pac-Man blended in with the original opening tune from Pac-Man. And the opening movie is gorgeous - brilliant
colors, smooth movement, and a Warner Bros.-cartoonish sense of fun that sets
the story and induces belly laughs.
If you're looking for a Retro Revival of one of your favorite Phosphor Dot
Fossils, and yet don't want the basic game play to be changed so much that you
barely even recognize the game, I highly recommend Pac-Man World. For
those interested, it also includes a Classic Arcade mode, which is basically the
same emulation of Pac-Man that was featured on Namco Museum Volume
1 for the Playstation a few years ago.
Rating:
One dollar - top of the line. Go trade it in for more quarters, you'll
want to play this game several times.
Reviewed by Earl Green
theLogBook.com editor/webmaster
One dollar - top of the line. Go trade it in for more quarters, you'll
want to play this game several times.
