"Interesting Idea, Shallow Gameplay"

The Nintendo DS is a system that boasts a great feature set for use in innovative and creative video game design. The limitations for a touch screen and microphone are almost non-existent, as the player's ability to control a game can be used in countless ways. In this way, Nintendo has succeeded in creating a system that craves unique gameplay.

Namco's newest offering for the Nintendo DS is a new spin on one of its oldest and most well known games since the dawn of the video game age: Pac-Man. The title, Pac-Pix, is a good one, as the game forces the player to draw pictures, lots of pictures...pictures of Pac-Man.

Utilizing the touch-screen, the player must draw various sized pictures of the yellow muncher, which immediately comes alive on the screen. Ghosts also fill the bottom screen, and by drawing lines in front of the animated Pac-Pict, one must guide it toward the various types of ghosts to eliminate them.

While the idea is very much innovative and exciting, the problem lies within the extent one can take drawing different sized pac-mans over and over on bland backgrounds, taking out the same ghosts over and over. There are no "worlds" just different numbers of different ghosts to eat. No mazes, no modes, just you, the pen, some ghosts and pac-man, again and again.

Had there been a collection of different modes, or different key power ups the player could draw, the game might be more interesting. But how it stands now, I cannot help but think this is a slightly expanded tech-demo that was shown at E3 last year.

The graphics are simple. The pac-mans you create are usually deformed, and once you realize that there isn't anything else to do besides collect some worthless cards, the novel idea of Pac-Pix becomes increasingly mundane.

Pac-Pix feels like a quickly put together game to tide DS owners over until later this year. With the amount of quality titles on the low side for the DS, you might feel inclined to pick this one up to keep you busy, but unfortunately the fun is over faster than you can rip up $30. Save your money and just draw some pac-mans and ghosts with a pencil on a pad. I swear it is almost just as fun, and cheaper.

Reviewer's Score: 6/10, Originally Posted: 05/01/05