I remember being a kid and seeing the PAC-MAN World games in stores. I always wanted to play them, but never really had the chance. As I got older, the games just weren't prevalent enough in my mind for me to pick them up, or even emulate them. When PAC-MAN World Re-Pac was announced, I saw this as my opportunity to finally begin playing these games. While it certainly isn't the best platformer ever made, I enjoyed my time with it overall.
I can't say if the gameplay has really changed since the original release, but it felt pretty solid here in this remake. Its mostly 2D platforming with some 3d elements. The only issue I ran into was some depth perception issues, though that could just be me and not the game's fault. Enemies can be defeated by utilizing PAC-MAN's bouncing abilities, or by eating power pellets to defeat ghosts.
PAC-MAN also has a few unique moves. There is a running charge move that PAC-MAN can use to get over steep inclines, jump over great distances, and activate certain platforms to get them to move. It works alright, but it can cause some frustrating, inaccurate jumps across big gaps.
Aaaaaand thats kind of it? The platforming is serviceable, the combat is standard platformer fair (with some added PAC-Man flair to show off its identity), and the game has lots of PAC-MAN references and vibes to it. Its nothing really different or spectacular in terms of the core gameplay. But, I will say that there are a few things that up the game's quality from average to decent, imo.
For starters, the boss fights were all pretty great. They either build on mechanics that the main platforming introduces, or gives the player a completely unique experience outside of the platforming. For example. the kart-racing boss and the Galaga-esc boss were both really damn fun, and provided more variety in the gameplay.
The player can also go through different mazes throughout the levels. They're pretty fun, albeit simple and nowhere near as fun as PAC-MAN games where the mazes are the star of the show. They help the player gain more to their overall score, but other than that, they're completely optional. They can feel a bit pointless at times.
After levels, if the player collects all of the PACMAN letters in the level, you get the chance to play a bonus stage where you collect fruit and tokens. This also helps the player with their score, as well as help increase their completion rating. When you first play the bonus section for a world, its really cool and fun. But then, the world's bonus stage stays the same for each level in the world. I would've liked to have seen more variety in bonus stages so it felt like I was seeing more and more new things.
The game just has a real charm to it too. Maybe its because I am a big fan of PAC-MAN and the Bandai Namco Arcade games, but I couldn't help but really love and appreciate the visual aesthetic of this title. I can honestly say that if any other generic platforming mascot starred in this game, I probably wouldn't have liked it as much.
I just felt that PAC-MAN world lacked any super memorable levels or moments. I'll remember the level themes for sure, but I won't remember any specific sections or level moments. The game is just...missing something. I can't exactly put a finger on what that something is, but the game is just missing an "it factor" that you would see from other 3D platformers from this era.
All this being said, I still enjoyed my time with PAC-MAN World Re-Pac. I thought that it was a decently fun platformer that had a good amount of charm to it. While its nothing groundbreaking, I'd say it was worth the $30 that I spent on it. If you're a platforming fan or a PAC-MAN fan like myself, then I'd say its worth your time, or possibly wait for a sale.
I just hope the game does well enough for Bandai Namco to remake the second PAC-MAN World game, as I've heard that is the fan favorite of this series. I'm sure that if I played this game as a kid, as I always had wanted to, I would enjoy this remake more. But as it stands, this is a decent platformer starring one of the most famous gaming mascots.
I can't say if the gameplay has really changed since the original release, but it felt pretty solid here in this remake. Its mostly 2D platforming with some 3d elements. The only issue I ran into was some depth perception issues, though that could just be me and not the game's fault. Enemies can be defeated by utilizing PAC-MAN's bouncing abilities, or by eating power pellets to defeat ghosts.
PAC-MAN also has a few unique moves. There is a running charge move that PAC-MAN can use to get over steep inclines, jump over great distances, and activate certain platforms to get them to move. It works alright, but it can cause some frustrating, inaccurate jumps across big gaps.
Aaaaaand thats kind of it? The platforming is serviceable, the combat is standard platformer fair (with some added PAC-Man flair to show off its identity), and the game has lots of PAC-MAN references and vibes to it. Its nothing really different or spectacular in terms of the core gameplay. But, I will say that there are a few things that up the game's quality from average to decent, imo.
For starters, the boss fights were all pretty great. They either build on mechanics that the main platforming introduces, or gives the player a completely unique experience outside of the platforming. For example. the kart-racing boss and the Galaga-esc boss were both really damn fun, and provided more variety in the gameplay.
The player can also go through different mazes throughout the levels. They're pretty fun, albeit simple and nowhere near as fun as PAC-MAN games where the mazes are the star of the show. They help the player gain more to their overall score, but other than that, they're completely optional. They can feel a bit pointless at times.
After levels, if the player collects all of the PACMAN letters in the level, you get the chance to play a bonus stage where you collect fruit and tokens. This also helps the player with their score, as well as help increase their completion rating. When you first play the bonus section for a world, its really cool and fun. But then, the world's bonus stage stays the same for each level in the world. I would've liked to have seen more variety in bonus stages so it felt like I was seeing more and more new things.
The game just has a real charm to it too. Maybe its because I am a big fan of PAC-MAN and the Bandai Namco Arcade games, but I couldn't help but really love and appreciate the visual aesthetic of this title. I can honestly say that if any other generic platforming mascot starred in this game, I probably wouldn't have liked it as much.
I just felt that PAC-MAN world lacked any super memorable levels or moments. I'll remember the level themes for sure, but I won't remember any specific sections or level moments. The game is just...missing something. I can't exactly put a finger on what that something is, but the game is just missing an "it factor" that you would see from other 3D platformers from this era.
All this being said, I still enjoyed my time with PAC-MAN World Re-Pac. I thought that it was a decently fun platformer that had a good amount of charm to it. While its nothing groundbreaking, I'd say it was worth the $30 that I spent on it. If you're a platforming fan or a PAC-MAN fan like myself, then I'd say its worth your time, or possibly wait for a sale.
I just hope the game does well enough for Bandai Namco to remake the second PAC-MAN World game, as I've heard that is the fan favorite of this series. I'm sure that if I played this game as a kid, as I always had wanted to, I would enjoy this remake more. But as it stands, this is a decent platformer starring one of the most famous gaming mascots.