"Half Pac-Man, half pinball. A unique game."

Yeah, I know. You're thinking, ''Hey, if this is a real Pac-Man game, why haven't I seen it on arcade emulation sites??'' Well, probably not that exactly, but this little game is really quite rare. It's a shame, really - this game is quite a good one. Why has it not been converted to any other system? Why can't you find it on M.A.M.E.? Read on, fellow Pac-Maniac...
Pac-Man and his wife, Ms. Pac-Man (Ms.?) had two kids; Pac-Man Jr. and Baby Pac-Man. Both of them had their own video games, and were on the Pac-Man show, but were neither very popular in their own right. Each game followed in their mommy's and daddy's footsteps, but had enough unique elements to have their own game. Jr.'s mazes were twice the size as the normal Pac-Man maze, while the baby (this is why the game can't be emulated) had a pinball machine. Well, half arcade screen and the other half a pinball machine, but even so, a game like this was very rare.
The first part of each level was like a normal Pac-Man maze. You run around the maze eating dots and avoiding the ghosts, but at random times, two exits opens at the bottom of the screen. These are the only ones, so no gates in the middle. The exits at the bottom take you to a small pinball machine, where you can earn bonuses. The pinball machine is very bright and colorful, and offers many bonuses you can earn. When you lose the ball, you go back to the maze and eat the rest of the dots.
Graphically, the game is a lot like the others. The mazes are reduced to about half the size, but that's alright, considering the pinball. If you consider the pinball machine graphics, it's very elaborate and colorful. There are many bumpers to hit and ghosts to ''chomp''. The dots are a little bigger (awww!) and Pac-baby has a pacifier (awww!).
Beside the different cutscene music and ''insert coin'' diddies, the sound is the same. The pinball machine, though, has some neat ''Ping!'''s and ''Ding!'''s that go with pinball like peanut butter and jelly.
Until they make M.A.M.E. for pinball machines, or a ''Namco Pinball Museum'' videogame, there aren't many places you can find this little thing. If you do, you'll probably want to pop in a quarter. If you like Pac-Man (who doesn't?) and pinball (who doesn't?) you'll like this game. (who doesn't?)

Reviewer's Score: 8/10, Originally Posted: 01/05/01, Updated 01/05/01