The first MGA Pac-Man handheld, released in 1992
MGA's Pac-Man handheld series refers to a line of handheld LCD games based on the original Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man arcade games. The handheld line was launched in 1992 by Micro Games of America (later known as MGA Entertainment), and continued production well into the 2000s.
The series is noted as being very ubiquitous, with over 25 different models released in total. Despite the numerous model variants, the majority of consoles run the same game software; with a few earlier units running a different gameplay variant.
Overview[]
Gameplay, version 1[]
Gameplay of MGA's first Pac-Man port
The first software revision of MGA's Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man handhelds are a rather loose adaption of the arcade originals. This variant was first released in 1992; while succeeded by the second gameplay revision in 1995, the "version 1" ROM was still used on certain MGA Pac-Man consoles up until 1998.
Each level of the game features nonlinear maze layouts with 20 dots; Pac-Man (or Ms. Pac-Man) must eat all dots to complete the stage. There are areas that are not walled off on the sides of the screen; if the player exits through these areas, the maze layout will change, with any previously eaten dots remaining collected. There are six levels total; later levels feature moving or invisible maze walls, and some stages reportedly allow the ghosts to move through the walls (while Pac-Man cannot).
The game features "Energy Fruits" that appear at random; these act as Power Pellets, allowing the player to eat the Ghosts. The Energy Fruits include pears, strawberries, oranges, and heart-shaped cherries. Confusingly, a separate type of normal-shaped cherries also appear that are only collected for points, behaving the same way as standard Pac-Man fruit.
The Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man versions of the game appear to be identical in gameplay. The Ms. Pac-Man version merely changes the player and ghost graphics; unlike other ports, Ms. Pac-Man has her arms and legs in-game.
Gameplay, version 2[]
The second software revision of the games are much closer adaptions of the original Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man arcade games. This variant was first released in 1995, and is seen on the majority of MGA's Pac-Man systems released from 1998 onward.
The game's rules are fundamentally the same as the original arcade games; with the oddly-implemented functions of the first port (e.g. the changing maze walls and "Power Fruits") being fully redone. The maze is split into eight "sections", displayed on a 2-by-4 grid; the maze layout is a close approximation of the original Pac-Man maze (or the first maze in Ms. Pac-Man). As the game instantly cuts to the next screen without scrolling, however, it is possible to run into a ghost on the other side without warning.
One small oddity with the second version's rules is that, if a fruit is on screen, it must be eaten to complete the level (even if all dots are eaten otherwise). The game features six levels total, which only differ in gameplay speed; the starting level can also be selected by moving the joystick up/down on the "New Game" screen.
The Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man variants only differ in graphics and maze layout. Oddly, some Pac-Man releases appear to erroneously use the Ms. Pac-Man maze design, and vice-versa.
Color FX and Color FX2[]
"Color FX" and "Color FX2" are brand names used for variants of MGA's handhelds that play in color rather than black-and-white. Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man received colorized variants in this line, both of which are based on the second game revision.
The initial Color FX line was released in 1999;[1] the consoles in the series use a light sensor to project the screen onto a mirror. The Color FX models were manufactured by Hiro, and used a patent licensed from Nintendo for the consoles' technology (U.S. No. 4589659). The Color FX2 line debuted in 2000, and used standard color screens without a light sensor.
The actual color choices in-game vary between models, though is usually limited to 2 or 3 displayed colors maximum. Most Pac-Man versions color Pac-Man a dark orange, with the ghosts and maze walls colored green.
List of Pac-Man handheld variants[]
Each MGA handheld model has its own numerical ID, generally shown on the packaging and/or written above the barcode. As Ms. Pac-Man variants were released in pairs with original Pac-Man consoles, they are indented below their matching Pac-Man counterpart. Note that most identified game "versions" are based on the screenshots shown on the packaging, and have not been 100% verified on all units.
Standard retail models[]
- MGA-210 - Pac-Man (version 1); dated 1992, B&W, rounded design w/ sticker. Reissued in 1993 with different packaging, and sometimes a different sticker. Console plastic is sometimes black and other times light gray. Also released under ID "MGA-210B" in a boxed format (as opposed to clamshell packaging).
- MGA-208 - Ms. Pac-Man (version 1); dated 1992, B&W, rounded design w/ sticker. Reissued in 1993 with different packaging and sticker. Console plastic is sometimes black and other times light gray. Also released under ID "MGA-208B" in a boxed format (as opposed to clamshell packaging).
- MGA-210N - Pac-Man (version 2); dated 1995, B&W, flat blue design. Reissued in 1996 with a flat white design and different packaging (derivative of "60-2665" RadioShack model).
- MGA-208N - Ms. Pac-Man (version 2); dated 1995, B&W, flat pink design. Reissued in 1996 with a flat white design and different packaging.
- 231073 - Pac-Man (version 1); dated 1997, B&W keychain model, flat blue design.
- 231462 - Pac-Man (version 1); dated 1997, B&W, curved yellow design. Reissued in 1998 with the "version 2" ROM and different packaging.
- 231479 - Ms. Pac-Man (version 1); dated 1997, B&W, curved pink design. Reissued in 1998 with different packaging; both revisions appear to use the "version 1" ROM.
- 236641 - Pac-Man (version 2); dated 1999, Color FX, silver and black-colored clamshell. There is an alternate version under this ID with a completely different case mold in orange coloring.
- 237433 - Ms. Pac-Man (version 2); dated 1999, Color FX, pink and white-colored clamshell.
- 237471 - Pac-Man (version 2); dated 1999, Color FX keychain model, cyan and black-colored clamshell.
- 243977- Pac-Man (version 2); dated 2000 (w/ Pac-Man 20th Anniversary branding), Color FX2, translucent orange design. Reissued in 2001 and 2003 with different packaging.
- 243984 - Ms. Pac-Man (version 2); dated 2000, Color FX2, translucent purple design. Reissued in 2001 with different packaging.
- 248019 - Pac-Man (version 2); dated 2001, B&W, solid orange design (derivative of "60-2706" RadioShack model). Reissued in 2003 with different packaging. Also released under ID "F294711" in 2004, which was oddly sold in a plain white box.
- 248262 - Ms. Pac-Man (version 2); dated 2001, B&W, solid purple design.
- 248316 - Pac-Man (version 2); dated 2003, B&W, "Pen Arcade" version built into a purple pen.
- 303077 - Pac-Man (version 2); dated 2005 (w/ Pac-Man 25th Anniversary branding), B&W, arcade machine-shaped design w/ screw-in joystick.
- 349525 - Pac-Man (version 2); dated 2006, Color FX2 (though is branded as just Color FX), translucent horizontal design.
- 349938 - Pac-Man (version 2); dated 2006, B&W, yellow and black-colored horizontal design.
- Unknown ID - Pac-Man (version 2); unknown date, B&W keychain, blue-colored chamshell.
RadioShack models[]
The following IDs were exclusively manufactured for RadioShack stores; all three SKUs seem to predate other retail equivalents with similar designs.
- 60-2665 - Pac-Man (version 2); dated 1995, B&W, flat white design.
- 60-2706 - Pac-Man (version 2); not dated, B&W, translucent orange design.
- 60-2831 - Pac-Man (version 2); not dated, Color FX, white and blue-colored clamshell.
Unreleased systems[]
Pac-Man and Space Invaders "Video Game Watches"
- Pac-Man Video Game Watch - Appears to be a fully-reprogrammed version built into a digital watch, similar to the Pac-Man Game Watch line from the 1980s. A stock image of the watch (alongside a Space Invaders version) is known to exist, though no further details of either console have surfaced. Likely created post-2005.
Trivia[]
- MGA released handheld LCD adaptions of three additional Namco games: Rolling Thunder and Mappy, both in 1992, and Galaxian in 2007. Each game only had one SKU variant, making them much rarer than the Pac-Man titles.
- The Pac-Man MGA handhelds were often released within "sets" of other games; which often had similarly large amounts of variants. The most commonly-produced titles include Space Invaders and four Atari ports (Asteroids, Centipede, Missile Command, and Super Breakout); alongside generic games such as Solitaire, and a rebranded "brick game" console titled Blockade.
- Console IDs "248019" (Pac-Man) and "248262" (Ms. Pac-Man) are part of a loose "series" of seven consoles that form a rainbow in their plastic coloring. The set colors Asteroids red, Pac-Man orange, Super Breakout yellow, Centipede green, Missile Command blue, Space Invaders indigo, and Ms. Pac-Man violet.
- The vast majority of MGA's Pac-Man handhelds use Greg Martin-based artwork on their console designs and/or packaging, which are adapted from the 1992 "Characters and Logo Style Guide". Exceptions include the first two units released, which use Tadashi Yamashita designs from the 1980s U.S. "Character Manual", and the last few consoles released (from 2005 onward), which use Hideki Tanaami assets from the 1999 Character Manual.
- Some MGA Pac-Man releases were distributed in Canada by Irwin Toy, including the Color FX series (which received a TV commercial in the region).[2]
Gallery[]
Standard retail models[]
RadioShack models[]
