Pac-Man is back! Well, he’s back again for the umpteenth time at least. PAC-MAN WORLD Re-PAC from Bandai Namco is a re-release of the original PAC-MAN WORLD for the Playstation. Yeah, that’s Playstation 1. That in itself is a 3D reimagining of Pac-Man, so you kind of have an idea of what you’re in for.
In PAC-MAN WORLD (and yes, the title is officially capitalized, apologies), you’ll find that as Pac-Man, you show up late to a party and the entire Pac family has been kidnapped by Toc Man’s ghost minions. Why, you might ask? Because Toc Man was worried that Pac-Man might interrupt his party (he’s quite serious about parties) and so he told his hench-ghosts to capture him. Unfortunately the ghosts couldn’t tell the difference between members of the Pac family and so they nabbed them all, thus ensuring Pac-Man’s eventual arrival and party disruption. Perhaps Toc Man should have just had his party and left well enough alone. Definitely some deep scripting there!
As PAC-MAN WORLD begins, you’ll have your choice of the first three worlds to play. Each world consists of stages couched in a hub world, letting you choose what order you want to play through in. Beat a stage and you unlock the next until you end up facing the boss. It’s a simple recipe and one that should be familiar to most gamers. There are six worlds, each with multiple stages and a variety of oddly colorful settings such as circuses, pirate ships, and space.
Gameplay consists largely of running and jumping Pac-Man about each stage. He moves in 3D, as you might expect but his primary attack is a butt bounce, literally happily pounding his buttocks onto the tops of enemies with a gleeful grin. You can bounce off of the environment that way too, a handy dual purpose use for your butt. It’s honestly a bit odd, but hey, when you’re a yellow anthropomorphic pellet, it seems anything goes.
As you play through each level, you’ll collect pellets for points, letters that spell your name for bonuses, and a variety of fruits which are used as keys to unlock doors and areas. Butt bouncing on switches unlocks them and lets you into gated areas where you find hidden items as well. Veteran gamers will note that PAC-MAN WORLD feels a lot like old PS1 and N64 platformers, notably the kind of stuff that Rare used to crank out. It’s a collect-a-thon mixed with weird jumping puzzles and platform edges that seem a bit hard to stay centered on.
The 3D is rudimentary here but thankfully the controls have been updated so the game is actually more playable, unlike its PS1 predecessor. Sadly, aside from controls and graphics, there are no other significant upgrades to PAC-MAN WORLD (everyone must suffer this capitalization). A lot of timed jumps and backtracking means tedious levels and weird falling deaths and honestly a fair bit of frustration with game design that’s a good 20 years out of date.
There are some positives here of course. If you manage to unlock the maze gate, you get to play a top-down 3D version of Pac-Man that lasts for a single level. One is hidden in each level and they’re fairly fun, even if they’re not the best version of Pac-Man, especially with stuff like Championship and 256 out there. You can also get a pellet that turns you into a giant 3D Pac-Man and lets you eat a bunch of ghosts. It only lasts for a minute or so each time, but it’s certainly a fun minute.
There are special pellets that turn you to impervious metal too, and some that let you fly around collecting pellets, but it’s not enough to really make PAC-MAN WORLD as enjoyable as one might hope. Some boss fights shake things up too, tossing you into a kart race and the like, which is kind of neat. Completing a stage lets you the chance to try your luck at a digital slot machine but it’s time-consuming, not very fun, and mandatory. There’s no skipping the slots and they throw off the moderate fun derived from the game itself. Their inclusion is a bit weird but hey, maybe some people really like Pac-Man themed slot machines.
Visually, PAC-MAN WORLD Re-PAC is quite nice. The update to HD really does the simple vibrant graphics justice and while the texture mapping is certainly old, the game’s visual design makes it work well. The bright colorful stages simply shine and aside from a few remarkably dark areas, everything looks good. This is actually a bit unfortunate because the visual appeal of the game is targeted at younger players and the difficulty level, while not high, is not exactly friendly to your average grade-schooler. Adults aren’t going to be drawn to this one without a healthy infusion of nostalgia, but kids might find it a bit more challenging than they’d like.
As for extras, if you manage to make it all the way through the main game of PAC-MAN WORLD Re-PAC, your prize is unlocking the original game. Sadly, that’s a readily available title that’s more fun than PAC-MAN WORLD. It’s nice to have it included but it seems like it shouldn’t be an unlockable game. Everything about PAC-MAN WORLD feels dated and odd and the game just isn’t all that fresh. There’s been no tweaking of the level design or physics parameters, no real modernization aside from the excellent graphics upgrade, and the entire experience feels like a rip-off of other similar games, channeling Banjo-Kazooie and Crash Bandicoot vibes.
For those of you that love the PS1/N64 platforming era, PAC-MAN WORLD Re-PAC is going to be a solid trip down memory lane with a nice visual rework. For modern gamers, this one might be a bit stale with repetitive gameplay and some pointless design choices that really keep the player from fully immersing themselves in a Pac-Man experience like other offerings. It’s certainly a mixed bag, as many re-releases are and at $30, one that makes players think twice before buying. If you’re a Pac fan, this might be for you but for the vast majority of gamers, chances are you might want to wait for a sale. PAC-MAN WORLD Re-PAC isn’t a bad game, but it’s definitely an old one.
This review is based on a digital copy of PAC-MAN WORLD Re-PAC provided by the publisher. It was played on a Nintendo Switch in both docked and undocked modes and played equally well on both. PAC-MAN WORLD Re-PAC is also available on Xbox One, PS4, and PC on Steam.