RSS Feed
Twitter
November 20th, 2014 
Carl Williams 
The “What if” column is just that, what if’s and imaginary scenarios in gaming that we find interesting and unique. One such scenario concerns Pac-Man. More directly, what if Pac-Man was released on modern platforms that have Internet connectivity (I know the Atari 2600 had a modem but that was different), multiplayer (not just locally) and micro transactions that are rampant in modern gaming (particularly the modern realm). Rich “Lowtax” Kyanka on Youtube has done just that in one of his videos. The results are pretty accurate.
The Pac-Man arcade game was an iconic title that was a very hot commodity for the home market. Atari wasted no time in getting the game ported to the Atari 2600, unfortunately the results were less than impressive, even for Atari 2600 standards. Namco Bandai have taken Pac-Man around the gaming world much the same way Nintendo has done with Mario. Pac-Man has been involved in racing games, puzzle games, action games and more.
As you can see in the video above, most of the clichés of gaming are represented quite well here. From the installing screen to the achievements, while funny this is a pretty scary-because it could really have been this way- video to watch. Funnily enough, part way through the video the player receives a friend request, loses connection to the servers and presumably has to restart the game after obtaining a more reliable connection. I liked the achievement names and how easily they were obtained (are modern games really easier than the classics?). There is even In App Purchase options mentioned, this is gold, and a sad little reminder about how modern games pester you for friend requests, social media connections, DLC, IAP and more.
Do you have a favorite video that makes fun of a gaming cliché? Tell us in the comments below.
Share this:
Posted in 
Tags: 
