Pepsiman is an interesting figure. He was a mascot for Pepsi in Japan and appeared in many commercials for the product. In 1999, the character received a video game for the PS1 in Japan, a game that has received a lot of attention in the west. The game was an autorunner and had a surprisingly high amount of difficulty to it, but also a very addictive nature. It was very offbeat and managed to be something very different for gamers. Pepsiman had to run to deliver Pepsi or help stop major incidents, always getting into clumsy accidents along the way. While an autorunner may have been an okay full title release on the PS1 in 1999, but nowadays that would not be an easy sell. Or rather, it would not be an easy sell on consoles, since the genre is alive and well on mobile devices.
Pepsiman would be an amazing title to bring to mobile, as not only are ad based games still alive and well there, but the game itself if a perfect fit. While I detest monetization, it could be done here without getting too much in the way of the game. Perhaps offering additional continues or costumes for Pepsiman and allowing them to continue on. What’s more, is that this game is perfect for the short bursts of gameplay that is suited to mobile gaming, as well as also being suited for longer gameplay depending on how much you want to play of the game.
What’s more, is that autorunners have found new life on mobile devices. There have been numerous autorunner games that have seen success, such as Temple Run have seen success, and there have even been revivals of classic games like Pitfall in this format. Pepsiman the game is a relic of a different time, but there is still a large fandom for the game and a revival for the mobile format would be incredibly welcome. Pepsiman could do with a new coat of paint visually, or retain its classic visuals which have their own charm about them, for such a re-release.
In any event, this is something that should be considered, and more people should have a way to experience the classic game on a wide array of devices.