Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures

"Not your regular Pac Man; an adventure game that's not too bad"

Pac Man is usually associated with navigating through mazes and eating dots while avoiding monsters. Pac Man 2: The New Adventures thrusts the yellow guy into a completely new situation. This is not a maze game, it's an adventure game, and unique at that. You don't actually control Pac Man; you do things to make him move where you want him to. For instance, you can't make him fly up in the air, but you can hit him with a slingshot which will probably make him fly up. Pac Man experiences mood swings; sometimes he gets angry and anything you do during that time he ignores. He also gets sad and happy at various points too. Pac Man explores his town, rides a hang glider and more in this one player game. In the third level, you can play the original Pac Man in the arcade.

Graphics: 8/10

Cartoony, but nice. Pac Man has tons of funny animations, such as getting crushed by a door, and of course all his reactions to everything you do to him.

Sound: 7/10

Nice. Nothing special, but it's OK for this type of game.

Gameplay: 8/10

One major complaint: the game is much too short. There are a total of four levels. Granted, they are pretty big, but the game still doesn't take very long to finish. The control is good, but it does take some getting used to. Once you get used to the fact that you don't control Pac Man directly, you'll be fine. The game isn't particularly hard. You might run into some minor difficulties later on, but nothing major. The Pac Man game in the arcade is a nice touch. It's classic Pac Man, the maze game with the dots, monsters and power pills.

Replay: 7/10

Even though it's much too short, the game is still fun to play again because you can experiment with Pac Man's reactions. You could finish the game without seeing half of Pac Man's reactions. The Pac Man game in the arcade is also fun to play.

Overall: 7/10

Obviously nothing like other Pac Man games, but a unique game in its own right. It didn't just use the Pac Man name and create a game with all hype and no susbstance. This is a solid game that is held back by its short length. Because of that, I can't recommend a purchase, but a rental is suggested, because you'll see most of what the game has to offer in that time anyway.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 11/01/99, Updated 11/01/99