Seeing a piece of gaming history as the protagonist of today's review could have a strange effect, considering that we are still talking about Pac-Man, with the new version of Pac-Man Museum + of 2022. This is a collection of titles of the legendary character of the gaming world that will allow everyone is to retrace the arcade years of gaming, both to recover some of the milestones of this medium.
In addition, it's also a great way to celebrate the franchise's forty years, an event that came at a very special time for the whole world: in 2020. For this reason, the developers have decided to breathe new life into a collection that came out some time ago. We are clearly referring to Pac Man Museum, released in 2014.
Not just a museum
One of the most surprising things about this Pac-Man Museum + it is surely the fact di don't be in front of a simple collection of games. In fact, you will find yourself in front of an arcade 90's.
Each cabinet represents one of the games available:
- Pac-Man
- super pac man
- Pac & Pal
- Pac-Land
- Pac Mania
- Pac Attack
- Pac-In-Time
- Pac-Man Arrangement Arcade ver.
- Pac-Man Arrangement CS ver.
- Pac-Man Championship Edition
- Pac Motorcycles
- Pac’n Roll Remix
- Pac-Man Battle Royale
- Pac-Man 256
But not all of them will be available as soon as you launch the game. Indeed, you will have to deserve the nostalgia. How? Having fun. Exactly, you just need to reach some target to unlock other cabinets. One of the first is “Play Pac-Man 2 times”, so they aren't particularly difficult, but having a challenge certainly makes you want to play much more than other collections where you have everything right away. At the moment of the "spawn" in the game map, you are studded with sounds of the arcade being turned on, which can be very annoying.
Despite this, once the room that acts as the central hub for Pac-Man Museum + is up and running, you can enjoy unlocking every classic Pac-Man game. Furthermore, if it does not reflect your tastes, you can also customize it as you like. Once everything is to your liking, you can approach the desired cabinet and try to start a game. If the one you choose is blocked, you will be explained what you have to do to get it. At that point, you just have to insert the coin and start playing.
Also in this case a specification must be made, since they exist two types of different cabinets: a classic one, where you will need the token to start the game. While the second type will allow you to earn them. By doing so you will never run out of them.
When you have finally inserted the "virtual token", you will encounter a perfect emulation of every single title. Don't expect 16: 9, each game will have its original aspect ratio and the background will have original artwork of the title in question. There is not much to say, they are literally the most important games for the franchise, even if there are some small shortcomings, probably due to a choice between game X and Y of the developers. Last but not least, for lovers of competition, know that it will be possible to compete with players from all over the world with the world leaderboard. Get very high scores e leave your mark on the world… A bit like it was done in arcades, but bigger.
A very nice aspect of the title is that every single game in this "museum" will also tell you very briefly the story of the game you are going to start. In this way, even those who recover the game after years of its release, he will be able to frame what kind of game he is about to start. A pity that there are no other elements that better tell the story of the franchise, given the importance it had in the gaming world and how it was born almost "by chance". We can, in fact, define Pac-Man one of the most important videogame mascots ever along with Super Mario and a few others.
You call it if you want ... emulation
Obviously, seeing such an important franchise reproduced so faithfully does nothing but delight anyone who loves retrogaming. Once you launch any title in the Pac-Man Museum + collection, you will have the experience as it was intended decades ago, which we took into account in the review. There is no save state, there is no going back. This emulation is pure. Of course, it is a questionable choice, since we are now in 2022 and the use of a console game is different from that of the dear and old arcades, but on the other hand we have a desire to bring every single game to life as it was conceived, and not for "what could be" with modern technologies.
So yes, if at this point in the review you're still wondering why you should buy Pac-Man Museum +, the answer is: why not? It is clear that this is a collection created specifically for fans of the ball, but it is also true that having those games always available is a blast from the past every time. And yes, it is also an emotion to see that mascot, that videogame symbol, as it is fantastic hear the soundtrack and the "waka waka" that made Pac-Man unique and recognizable. The question you should ask yourself, rather than whether or not to buy the game, should be: am I interested in recovering Pac-Man? If the answer is yes, then know that you will find the collection available on 4 PlayStation, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch and PC. And you can choose which version to buy via the Bandai Namco official website.
Review
- Pac-Man Museum + (Tested on PS4) 7.5 Final grade
Pac-Man Museum + is certainly a game not to be missed if you love one of the most important mascots in the gaming world. The collection includes both titles from the past and more recent titles with a very high level of immersion and emulation, as the developers have focused on making the experience as close to the original as possible, and succeeding. The only downside is the absence of some classics, but on the other hand you can compete with players from all over the globe, score by score, which could keep you glued to the screen for hours. The central HUB will fill up gradually and the games in the collection will have to be unlocked by performing certain actions, in addition, the game room is fully customizable. So, it's time to take a step back in time and celebrate Pac-Man's birthday.
