Pac-Man

"The arcade version is better."

When I bought this game off of eBay, I thought I would be getting near-perfect arcade port. Well, imagine my disappointment when I plugged this sucker into my 2600 and started playing. It's good, but it is nothing like its aracde counterpart.

Graphics
The graphics in this game are just flat out awful. Pac-Man himself looks awful. He looks nothing like he did in the arcade. He looks like they tried to stretch an oval a few millimeters. The ghosts look awful, too. They are all the same yellow-orange color. The dots are lines in this game. The maze is orange, and the background is blue, as opposed to the maze being blue and the background being black in the arcade game. Also, the ghosts blink a lot, which can become somewhat of a distraction. Also, the ''tunnels'' are wrong. They are on the top and the bottom, as opposed to the sides. I don't know why this game is so screwed up in the graphics department. I guess it was just rushed. Graphics: 2/10

Sound
There is no in-game music. The sound effects are done pretty well. The sounds of Pac-Man eating the dots, pardon me, lines, can get annoying, but it isn't that big of a deal. There are also sound effects for when you eat the ghosts and when you die. Both of which are not annoying. Hopefully, you won't have to hear that death music too much, though. But all in all, no complaints here. Sound: 10/10

Controls
This game really has no controls other than to move. The action button does nothing in Pac-Man. The controls are a little tight for my tastes, and it can cost you some lives if you are not careful enough. But just get used to it. It will take a while, though. Controls: 5/10

Replay
Hey, this is Pac-Man. It never gets old! Seriously, though, this game is so incredibly difficult if you get far enough in the game. You will keep coming back for more until you beat the game. Here's an interesting fact about how popular and how much replay the game has, in the arcade anyway. Although this game is almost 20 years old, in the arcade it still averages about $100 a week. Not bad, huh? Replay: 10/10

Well, I hope you enjoy this game. I suggest you pay upwards of $6 for this game. It is fun, but do not expect the classic arcade game that we all know and love so much.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 01/24/01, Updated 02/24/01