| Pac-Man Vs. | |
|---|---|
 North American cover art | |
| Developer(s) | Nintendo EAD |
| Publisher(s) | Namco |
| Designer(s) | Shigeru Miyamoto |
| Series | Pac-Man |
| Platform(s) | GameCube,Nintendo DS,Nintendo Switch |
| Release | |
| Genre(s) | Maze |
| Mode(s) | Multiplayer |
Pac-Man Vs.[a] is a 2003maze video game developed byNintendo and published byNamco for theGameCube. In the game, one player takes control of Pac-Man, who must eat all of the pellets in the maze, while the others control the ghosts to try to catch them. The objective is to be the first to reach a set number of points, selected before the game begins. The player controlling Pac-Man uses theGame Boy Advance to play, while the others use the television to control the ghosts. The game requires theGameCube - Game Boy Advance link cable in order to play.
Pac-Man Vs. was designed byShigeru Miyamoto andNintendo EAD, created as a tech demo to show off the capabilities of the GCN link cable. First shown at the Games Convention in Germany, under the working titlePac-Man for Nintendo GameCube, it was then presented toNamco, who took interest and agreed to publish it as a full game.Pac-Man Vs. was met with generally favorable reviews from critics, who praised its interesting concept, multiplayer and addictive gameplay. Criticism was directed towards its small amount of content and lack of memory card support. It was ported to theNintendo DS throughNamco Museum DS (2007) and theNintendo Switch throughNamco Museum (2017).
Pac-Man Vs. is a maze video game. The game requires aGame Boy Advance, theGameCube - Game Boy Advance link cable peripheral, and one to three GameCube controllers to play. Before the game begins, a predetermined score value can be set to either 7,000, 10,000 or 15,000 points; the first player to reach this score wins. One of the players will be assigned as Pac-Man, the others being the ghosts. The player controlling Pac-Man uses the Game Boy Advance to play, the objective being to eat all the dots in the maze without being caught by a ghost. Eating large flashing "Power Pellets" will cause the ghosts to turn blue, allowing Pac-Man to eat them to steal points and send them back to the regeneration box in the middle of the maze. If Pac-Man is caught by a ghost, the person that caught him will become Pac-Man in the next round. Eating a certain amount of pellets will cause a fruit to appear underneath the regeneration box, which Pac-Man or the ghosts can eat for bonus points.
The remaining players will take control of the ghosts on the television screen, who must catch Pac-Man before he eats all of the pellets in the maze. If Pac-Man consumes a Power Pellet, the ghosts will turn blue and become slower, and must avoid contact with Pac-Man. The ghosts have a limited field of vision, which can be increased for a limited period of time by eating fruit that appears in the middle of the stage. If there are fewer than four players in the game, uncontrolled ghosts will become gray-colored CPUs that are harmless to Pac-Man — however, a ghost can touch him to tag it with his or her color, which can kill Pac-Man and count towards that player's score.
Pac-Man can earn points by eating pellets, vulnerable ghosts and fruit, while ghosts can earn them by eating fruit and catching Pac-Man. Should Pac-Man clear the stage of pellets, the person controlling him will earn 1,600 point bonus and will continue to play as him in the next stage, however Pac-Man will also lose that same amount to a ghost who catches him.Mario (voiced byCharles Martinet) appears as an announcer and will commentate on the game, such as when Pac-Man eats a Power Pellet or when a fruit appears in the stage. Six different mazes can be selected, each having different layouts and music.
Pac-Man Vs. was designed byShigeru Miyamoto andNintendo Entertainment Analysis & Development (EAD) for theGameCube.[1] A fan of the originalPac-Man arcade game, Miyamoto designed a tech demo to show off the capabilities of theGameCube - Game Boy Advance link cable peripheral, where one player controlled Pac-Man and three others controlled the ghosts.[1] A shortdemo was shown off at the Games Convention in Germany, simply titledPac-Man for Nintendo GameCube, where it gained a sizable amount of attention.[2] The game took a month to complete,[3] where it was then shown toNamco, who took interest and agreed to publish it as a full game.[1] It was presented at the 2003Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3), withPac-Man creatorToru Iwatani invited to the presentation as a guest. The game was released in Japan on November 27, 2003, in North America on December 2, 2003, and in PAL regions on April 2, 2004.
In Japan, the game was released as a prize for members ofClub Nintendo. In North America, the game was released as a pre-order extra with the GameCube versions ofI-Ninja andR: Racing Evolution, and bundled with the player's choice re-release ofPac-Man World 2.[4] In Europe, the game was bundled withR Racing, with the game's distributorElectronic Arts announcing this in February 2004.[5]
A remake of the game was released for theNintendo DS in 2007 as part ofNamco Museum DS, using the system's Download Play function for multiplayer. A version for mobile phones was also released that utilizedBluetooth for multiplayer.[6] A high-definition remake of the GameCube version was released in 2017 for theNintendo SwitchNamco Museum compilation, requiring two systems to play (one must have the full game while the other must also own either the full game or a free Pac Man VS download app). A single-console mode is also included, where players controlled the ghosts to catch a computer-controlled Pac-Man. The multiplayer aspect of the original GameCube release was re-used for the online battle mode inThe Legend of Zelda: Phantom Hourglass (2007).[7]
| Aggregator | Score |
|---|---|
| Metacritic | 78/100[8] |
| Publication | Score |
|---|---|
| GamePro | 4/5[9] |
| IGN | 8/10[10] |
| Nintendo World Report | 8/10[11] |
| Nintendojo | 7/10[12] |
Pac-Man Vs. was met with generally favorable reviews from critics, who praised its clever take on the core gameplay, multiplayer and replay value. It holds a 78/100 onMetacritic.[8]
Nintendo World Report called it "a must-have for parties",[11] whileGamePro said it was worth owning for its "posterity" alone.[9]IGN,GamePro andNintendojo praised the game's interesting take on thePac-Man gameplay,[12][9] withIGN in particular noting that it is "intuitive for anyone regardless of their gaming skill levels".[10]Nintendo World Report highly praised the game's multiplayer aspect for keeping the gameplay frantic and fast-paced.[11] A similar response was echoed byIGN, who called it "incredibly fun" and said it added to the overall experience.[10] In their review forNamco Museum DS,Retro Gamer magazine said the package was worth it forPac-Man Vs. alone, praising its addictive gameplay and multiplayer focus.[13]Polygon called it one of the bestPac-Man games.[14]
Despite its praise, the game was criticized for its small amount of content and lack of memory card support.Nintendojo criticized the game's lack of depth and for not being able to save high scores to a memory card.[12]Nintendo World Report had a similar response, also criticizing its limited availability to consumers.[11] WhileIGN andGamePro found the commentary from Mario to be annoying,[10][9]Nintendojo said that it was helpful for when something happens outside the player's vision, although commented that it was largely unnecessary.[12]GamePro disliked Pac-Man's slow movement and controls.[9] Several critics would argue that the game being a free extra dismissed much of its criticism, withNintendo World Report even saying that there is "not much reason to be disappointed with a lack of features".[11]
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