Pac-Man anniversary machines

20th anniversary Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga machine.

Pac-Man Anniversary Machines refer to arcade machines released to celebrate the anniversary of a Pac-Man release. Machines have been made for the 25th, 30th, and 40th anniversaries of Pac-Man, and one for the 20th anniversary of Ms. Pac-Man (and Galaga). All of the machines were originally produced by Bandai Namco Amusement America (formerly Namco-America Inc.)

Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga - Class of 1981

Subtitled the 20 Year Reunion or Class of 1981 machine, Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga was released in 2000 by Namco-America. This machine features both Ms. Pac-Man and Galaga, both of which were developed in 1981 (although Ms. Pac-Man was actually released in 1982). The original Pac-Man is also an unlockable game, playable by entering a joystick combination.

The development of the Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga hardware was outsourced to a Chicago-based "Cosmodog Ltd". While the machine was originally published by Namco themselves, a subsequent "home version" - lacking a usable coin slot - was released by the Chicago Gaming Company some time around 2006. The home version is still produced to this day, though is published by the Chicago Gaming Company directly rather than by Namco. Several further machine models, such as a cocktail table model and a "home version" tabletop model, were also released.

In 2024, a "home version" machine titled Pac-Man's Pixel Bash Edition: Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga was produced. This machine is a variant of Pac-Man's Pixel Bash (see below) featuring the Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga machine artwork.

Legal issues

The Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga machine was the catalyst for a lawsuit between Namco and General Computer Corporation (or GCC). The agreement, as set in 1983, required Namco to grant royalties to GCC for any Ms. Pac-Man "coin-operated game" sold; however, no royalties were granted upon Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga's release. This resulted in a lawsuit between the parties; in the case, it was ruled that GCC was owed royalties for the coin-operated machines, but not the "home versions" without coin slots. As such, the later-released Pac-Man's Arcade Party and Pac-Man Pixel Bash only featured Ms. Pac-Man on the home version models.

Past the "home version" loophole, however, this lawsuit greatly worsened the situation for Namco (even going by the initial 1983 terms), which resulted in numerous legal issues regarding the Ms. Pac-Man property. For more information on this subject, see History of Ms. Pac-Man legal issues.

Codes

• Pac-Man: Enter Up, Up, Up, Down, Down, Down, Left, Right, Left. Blinky will turn into Pinky, and selecting Ms. Pac-Man will load Pac-Man.
• Speed adjuster: Enter Left, Right, Left, Right, Up, Up, Up, Fire. The speed will be changed to slow or fast (speed-up chip), depending on what mode is already set by default.

Pac-Man 25th Anniversary

Pac-Man 25th Anniversary machine

Pac-Man 25th Anniversary was released in 2004 by Namco-America. In terms of gameplay, this machine is nearly identical to Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga, except for Pac-Man being unlocked by default. The "speed adjuster" joystick code from Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga also works on the 25th Anniversary machine.

As with Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga, several different machine models were produced, including "home version" models. However, the home model(s) of Pac-Man 25th Anniversary were manufactured by Namco rather than being outsourced.

Pac-Man's Arcade Party

Pac-Man's Arcade Party was released in 2009 by Namco-America for Pac-Man's 30th anniversary. Features twelve games:

• Pac-Man (1980)
• Pac-Mania (1987)
• Galaxian (1979)
• Rally-X (1980)
• Bosconian (1981)
• Galaga (1981)
• Dig Dug (1982)
• Xevious (1982)
• Mappy (1983)
• Rolling Thunder (1986)
• Dragon Spirit (1987)
• Galaga ‘88 (1987)

Ms. Pac-Man is also included, but can only be accessed if the machine is set to Free Play and/or is a "home version" model machine.

Instead of being based on the "Cosmodog" proprietary hardware, Pac-Man's Arcade Party runs on Namco System 246 architecture (comparable to the hardware of the PlayStation 2). Curiously, the gamelist and game performance is nearly identical to Namco Museum 50th Anniversary; possibly indicating the games were ported over from that game's PS2 release.

Pac-Man's Pixel Bash

Pac-Man's Pixel Bash was released in 2018 by Bandai Namco Amusement America, just ahead of Pac-Man's 40th anniversary. Features 31 games:

• Pac-Man (1980)
• Super Pac-Man (1982)
• Pac-Man Plus (1982)
• Pac & Pal (1983)
• Pac-Mania (1987)
• Galaxian (1979)
• King & Balloon (1980)
• Rally-X (1980)
• Bosconian (1981)
• Galaga (1981)
• New Rally-X (1981)
• Dig Dug (1982)
• Xevious (1982)
• Mappy (1983)
• Gaplus (1984)
• Grobda (1984)
• Super Xevious (1984)
• The Tower of Druaga (1984)
• Baraduke (1985)
• Dig Dug II (1985)
• Dragon Buster (1985)
• Metro-Cross (1985)
• Motos (1985)
• Sky Kid (1985)
• Hopping Mappy (1986)
• Rolling Thunder (1986)
• Sky Kid Deluxe (1986)
• Dragon Spirit (1987)
• Galaga ‘88 (1987)
• Splatterhouse (1988)
• Rompers (1989)

Ms. Pac-Man is also included, but can only be accessed if the machine is set to Free Play and/or is a "home version" model machine.

Numerous Pixel Bash machine models were released, mainly for home use. These include a "Neon" model with different machine artwork, a "Chill" model with a built-in minifridge (in place of the coin slot), and several cocktail table designs. Unlike prior models, a countertop version was not produced. In 2024, a model was released dubbed Pac-Man's Pixel Bash For Charity; this model has all payments donated towards a charity, as set by the arcade operator.

Trivia

• While the exact number of machines sold is unknown, the Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga machine is noted as being particularly common in North America. Notably, Namco reported "strong sales" of Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga in the company's 2004 and 2005 financial reports. The machine's popularity has even led to select merchandise pieces based on the Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga machine design:
  • A handheld keychain version of the Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga machine was released in 2018, as part of the World's Smallest - Tiny Arcade line-up. The Pac-Man code is intact, but it unlocks Dig Dug instead.
  • In 2021, for both games' 40th anniversaries, Arcade1UP released a machine model based on Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga. Several further models based on the Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga branding were also released, including a 2023 "Deluxe" model. These machines do not feature the Pac-Man code or include it as a playable game.
    • Oddly, Arcade1UP also released two "Counter-Cade" models referred to as "Pac-Man/Galaga" - which mimics the design of Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga, but with the original Pac-Man game instead.
• A Pac-Man's Arcade Party machine appears in the school cafeteria in the Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures TV series; the same 3D model of the machine was also used in Pac-Man Museum.
• Several press events (including E3 2010) featured Pac-Man 25th Anniversary machines rebranded with the 30th Anniversary logo. This machine variant was never utilized outside of these events, and it is unknown if it was intended to have a proper release.
• Following the release of Ms. Pac-Man/Galaga, Namco-America produced several similar compilation machines based on other game licenses; including Space Invaders/Qix: Silver Anniversary Edition and Donkey Kong/Donkey Kong Jr./Mario Bros. (licensed by Taito and Nintendo, respectively). Oddly, some variants of these machines reuse the Pac-Man-shaped cabinet design while others do not.
• The promotional Red Bull Pac-Man arcade machines were repurposed from Pac-Man's Pixel Bash "Chill" model machines.

See also

• Pac-Man anniversary celebrations