Pac-Man Wiki
Don't have an account?
Register
Pac-Man Wiki
Advertisement
Register
Pac-Man Wiki
Pac-Man Wiki
1,235
pages
in: Games, Pac-Man Games, Namco Games, Arcade Games

Pac-Mania

Sign in to edit
For other uses of Pac-Mania, see Pac-Mania (disambiguation).

Pac-Mania (パックマニア Pakku-Mania) is a maze arcade game in the Pac-Man series developed and manufactured by Namco in 1987.

Pac-Mania is the first original Pac-Man game to be developed for 16-bit hardware and is the final Pac-Man arcade game to be released in the 1980s. It was eventually succeeded by Pac-Man Arrangement in 1996.

Gameplay[]

220px-Pac-Mania

Screenshot of a game in progress, where Pac-Man is seen wandering in Pac-Man's Park; the second world of the game.

Pac-Mania, compared to previous Pac-Man maze games, returns to the original Pac-Man gameplay as a basis for the game's style. The goal of the game is to guide Pac-Man across alternating mazes to eat all the Dots while avoiding contact with the several ghosts that roam around the maze. A round is cleared when all Dots within the maze are eaten. If a ghost touches Pac-Man, one life is lost; the game ends when all extra lives are lost. Pac-Man will earn an extra life at 100,000 points (depending on the DIP switch settings for the machine, this can be set to 150,000 points or no extra life at all).

Across the mazes are four large dots known as Power Pills, which allow Pac-Man to gain the temporary ability to eat ghosts. Power Pills cause the ghosts to turn blue, reverse direction, and move slower; when a ghost is eaten, its eyes return to the ghost home where it is regenerated in its normal color. Blue ghosts flash to indicate a Power Pill's effect is wearing off. In later rounds, the Power Pill effects last for shorter time periods.

The most apparent difference in Pac-Mania, compared to prior Pac-Man titles, is the game's visuals; which are presented in a pseudo-3D art style, with mazes and the characters being presented at a cavalier perspective. Compared to previous Pac-Man maze games, the screen is more zoomed in and focuses on Pac-Man, with the camera moving based on his positions. Pac-Man also gains the ability to briefly jump in the air by using the Bounce button, which allows him to jump over Ghosts and Dots. After landing on the ground, Pac-Man will touch the ground twice more and then will be able to jump in the air again. The move can be used to help Pac-Man evade Ghosts (especially in later rounds) in tight situations, such as when Pac-Man is surrounded by ghosts from all corners. Pac-Man's speed is also consistent and no longer slows down while eating Pac-Dots.

Upon eating certain amounts of Dots in the maze, Fruits will appear in the center of the maze for a brief period of time, which can be eaten for bonus points; Fruits appearing are now indicated by a sound and a notification on the bottom right of the screen, above the fruit count. In later rounds, the fruits change and will be worth more points. New to Pac-Mania, "special items" have a chance of appearing in place of the Fruits, which are determined based on the current round. There are different types of Special Items that appear:

  • The Green Power Pill (Super Pellet) will increase Pac-Man's moving speed until he loses a life or the effects of the next regular Power Pill wear off.
  • The Red (Pink) Power Pill acts like a regular Power Pill, but has shortened duration compared to the regular Power Pill. Upon eating a Red Power Pill, however, the amount of points Pac-Man earns from eating consecutive ghosts are doubled, allowing the player to rack up points faster; the consecutive points values awarded are 400, 1,600 and 7,650 points, respectively. The doubled point effects will last until Pac-Man loses a life.
  • Special types of Fruit will also appear, which are worth more points than the regular stage Fruit.

Pac-Mania features four different maze layouts (Block Town, Pac-Man's Park, Sandbox Land, and Jungly Steps), which are spread across several rounds. As the player progresses through rounds, the amount of ghosts within the maze will increase. If Pac-Man remains on a single round without losing a life for a long time, Pac-Man's jumping height will periodically decrease, until he is no longer able to jump anymore unless he clears the round or loses a life.

Game settings[]

The Pac-Mania arcade game features a rather large amount of game-controlling settings. Many home console ports of Pac-Mania will be based around one specific settings configuration, which may cause confusion between different variants and set-ups. The most notable notable options that can be changed are:

  • Level Loop: The game can be set to end after either one game loop (11 rounds in Japanese version, 7 rounds in U.S. version) or two game loops (23 rounds in Japanese version, 19 rounds in U.S. version). Alternatively, the game can be set to an "Endless" mode that loops indefinitely.
    • If the game is set to a second loop, the game difficulty will remain increased while new ghosts remain in the second loop; though Ghosts like Funky and Spunky will not be able to jump until the player reaches Sandbox Land.
    • If the game is set to "Endless" mode, it will restart at the second Sandbox Land round after completing the second Jungly Steps loop.
  • Selection Screen: This setting allows the player to choose from any of the first three worlds on startup; can be turned on or off.
    • In the U.S. version, Jungly Steps is unselectable from this screen, and must be reached manually. However, starting the game from either Pac-Man's Park or Sandbox Land will grant the player a special "courage bonus" upon completing the first round, which is usually worth a grand amount of points.
  • Continue Screen: Allows the player to continue by inserting another quarter; can be turned on or off.

While the Japanese version does feature the Selection Screen and Continue Screen, they cannot be enabled simultaneously; this is not the case for the North American version. In the U.S. version, the player can enter their initials on a high score table, which is not present in the Japanese release.

Ghosts[]

Pac-Mania features the original four ghosts - Blinky, Pinky, Inky, and Clyde - along with Sue from Ms. Pac-Man and the newly-introduced "Commons", Funky and Spunky. The first five ghosts have similar traits to their personas in Pac-Land and past appearances; while Funky and Spunky can jump when in Sandbox Land and Jungly Steps.

The ghosts behave differently when attempting to reach a target position compared to other arcade games; rather than always taking what they perceive to be the optimal route, the ghosts will never turn at an intersection until they either have to or reach/pass their target. This means that if a ghost were following Pac-Man but not closely pursuing him, the player could make two quick turns into a different, parallel hallway traveling in the same direction, and the ghost would most likely keep going down the same hallway.

Ghost Name Behavior First round appearance
Blinky - Pac-Mania Blinky* Blinky is the leader of the ghosts, which makes it difficult for him to avoid. Blinky tends to chase Pac-Man directly, but will occasionally scatter. If there are few Dots remaining in the maze (which takes effect in later rounds) or the player remains in the same round for too long, Blinky will become angry and will speed up, also no longer scattering and taking a direct path to Pac-Man. In later rounds, Blinky will become angry earlier. 1
Pinky - Pac-Mania Pinky Pinky is the swiftest of the ghosts, often trying to position herself in front of Pac-Man. 1
Inky - Pac-Mania Inky Inky is the most bashful of the ghosts, usually tending to place himself inbetween the positions of ghosts and Pac-Man. 1
Clyde - Pac-Mania Clyde* Clyde is the slowest of the ghosts, and tends to chase Pac-Man less frequently compared to the other ghosts. 1
Sue - Pac-Mania Sue Sue tends to be the most persistent of the ghosts, always targeting Pac-Man from behind. Unlike other ghosts, Sue never scatters across the maze and is in constant pursuit of Pac-Man. 2 (1 in the US version)
Funky - Pac-Mania Funky
Common
 Among the new ghosts, Funky is a slightly shorter green-colored ghost that tends to follow Pac-Man from behind like Sue. In Sandbox Land and Jungly Steps, Funky will gain the ability to jump whenever Pac-Man jumps in the air, making it difficult to avoid him; Funky however, jumps slightly shorter than Pac-Man, which makes it possible for Pac-Man to jump over Funky with a properly timed jump. In certain rounds, pairs of Funkys appear within the maze. Funky also does not scatter, similar to Sue. 4 (3 in the US version)
Spunky - Pac-Mania Spunky
Common (Grey)
 Another new ghost, Spunky is a slightly shorter gray-colored ghost acts mostly identically to Funky, usually chasing Pac-Man from behind, and is able to jump in Sandbox Land and Jungly Steps. Compared to Funky however, Spunky is able to jump at the same height as Pac-Man, making it impossible for Pac-Man to jump over Spunky. In certain rounds, pairs of Spunkys appear within the maze. Like Funky and Sue, Spunky does not scatter. 8 (5 in the US version)

* Promotional material and certain re-releases for Pac-Mania refer Blinky and Clyde as Clyde and Blinky respectively, making use of the Clyde and Blinky error.

Scoring System[]

  • Dot - 60 points
  • Power Pill - 300 points
  • Vulnerable Ghosts (normal):
    • #1 in succession - 200 points.
    • #2 in succession - 400 points.
    • #3 in succession - 800 points.
    • #4 in succession - 1,600 points.
    • #5 in succession - 3,200 points.
    • #6+ in succession - 7,650 points.
  • Vulnerable Ghosts (Pink Power Pill):
    • #1 in succession - 400 points.
    • #2 in succession - 1,600 points.
    • #3+ in succession - 7,650 points.
  • Fruit
    • 🍒 Cherry: 1,000 points.
    • 🍓 Strawberry: 2,000 points
    • 🍊 Orange: 3,000 points
    • 🍎 Apple: 4,000 points
    • 🍌 Banana: 5,000 points.
    • 🍑 Peach: 6,000 points
    • 🔔 Bell: 7,000 points
    • 🔑 Key: 8,000 points
    • 🍬 Candy: 4,000 points
    • 🍏 Green Apple: 6,000 points
    • ☕ Coffee: 5,000 points
    • 🍦 Chocolate Ice Cream: 8,000 points
    • 🍦 Vanilla Ice Cream: 8,000 points
    • 🔔 Silver Bell: 9,000 points
    • PM Galaxian Galaxian Boss: 7,650 points
    • 🗝️ Silver Key: 1,0000
    • 🍔 Hamburger: 7,000 points
    • PM Galaxian Silver Galaxian Boss: 9,000 points

Worlds[]

Pac-Mania has four worlds, each with their own intermission cutscenes and design attributes.

Maze World Name Description Rounds
BlockTown1 Block Town The first world, Block Town is compromised of several brick blocks, with an appearance similar to LEGO bricks. In this maze, Blinky, Pinky Inky and Clyde appear, with the introduction of Sue in the second round (or instantly on the first round in the US version). This maze does not have warp tunnel paths. 1, 2, 12, 13, 14 (1, 8, 9, 10 in U.S.)
PacMansPark Pac-Man's Park The second world, Pac-Man's Park takes place in a tube maze with concrete-like paths in a grassy area, structured like the original Pac-Man maze. A warp tunnel path is present, which splits into two different paths within it. Funkys show up in this world, but lack the ability to jump. 3, 4, 5, 15, 16, 17 (2, 3, 11, 12, 13 in U.S.)
Sandbox Land 1 Sandbox Land The third world in the game, taking place in a location featuring pyramid walls, a sand floor, and water surrounding it. One wide warp tunnel appears with multiple branching paths, also having Dots within it. Spunky will show up, and along with the Funkys, they gain the ability to jump in this world. 6, 7, 8, 18, 19, 20 (4, 5, 14, 15, 16 in U.S.)
JunglySteps1 Jungly Steps The fourth and final world in the game, Jungly Steps takes place in a massive set of metal stairs supported by square beams. Like Block Town, there are no warp tunnel paths. A second Spunky can show up. All Funkys retain their jumping ability from the previous world. 9, 10, 21, 22, 23 (6, 7, 17, 18, 19 in U.S.)

Regional differences[]

Several notable regional differences appear between the Japanese and U.S./international versions of the game:

  • The amount of rounds within the first game's loop are shortened significantly in the international releases, with some rounds only appearing after the second game loop. The change makes world progression much shorter.
  • In the international releases, the player automatically earns bonus points if starting from Pac-Man's Park or Sandbox Land (on the level select screen). In the Japanese version, no extra points are awarded.
  • The Continue and Round Select features can be enabled simultaneously, whereas it was not possible to have both enabled at once in the Japanese version.
  • The overseas version features a high score initials screen, while the Japanese version does not.
  • Upon getting a game over, the international version darkens the background.
  • The Japanese version features a bug where tiles of several solid blue colored sprites appear on the ending screen instead of the staff credits; this is corrected in the international version.
  • Various minor graphical and audio differences.

Home Ports[]

  • Acorn 32-bit
  • Amiga
  • Amstrad CPC
  • Antstream
    • Streaming service available on various platforms; uses the original arcade version.
  • Arcade1UP Machines
    • Many Arcade1UPs featuring Pac-Mania have been released (see this page for full list). There has been a directly Pac-Mania-themed machine produced as part of the "Legacy Edition" series. The game has also been included as an extra on other Pac-Man and Ms. Pac-Man cabinets.
  • Atari ST
  • Commodore 64
  • Famicom/Nintendo Entertainment System
    • Developed by Westwood Associates and published by Tengen. While the game was licensed by Namco, it was not licensed by Nintendo and was sold as an unlicensed game.
  • Game Boy Advance
    • Included in Pac-Man Collection.
    • All of the music tracks are heavily shortened. Additionally, "Jungly Steps" doesn't play its proper music track, instead playing the theme for "Block Town" again.
  • GameCube
  • iOS (iPhone, iPad, etc.)
    • A standalone app released in 2010; it was removed from the App Store on March 30th, 2015.
    • Features an additional "Scramble Mode" set in Pac-Man's Park. In this mode, players are given two minutes to get as many points as possible.[1]
  • Mobile
  • MSX
  • MSX2
  • Nintendo Switch
    • Two versions were released. The game was featured in Pac-Man Museum +, as well as being released standalone as part of the Arcade Archives series.
  • PlayStation
  • PlayStation 2
    • Three versions were released, all of which are unlockable "bonuses" in other titles. The game was included in Namco Museum and Namco Museum 50th Anniversary, and was featured as a bonus game in Pac-Man World 2. In the Japanese version of 50th Anniversary (Namco Museum Arcade Hits!), Pac-Mania is unlocked by default.
  • PlayStation 3
    • Two versions were released. The game was included in Pac-Man Museum, and was featured in the PS one Classics release of Namco Museum Vol. 5.
  • PlayStation 4
    • Two versions were released. The game was featured in Pac-Man Museum +, as well as being released standalone as part of the Arcade Archives series.
  • PlayStation Portable
    • Featured in the PS one Classics release of Namco Museum Vol. 5.
  • PlayStation Vita
    • Featured in the PS one Classics release of Namco Museum Vol. 5.
  • Plug & Play TV Games
    • Several Plug & Plays featuring Pac-Mania have been released (see this page for full list). These consoles - being released past the Jakks Pacific era - generally feature the NES version of the game.
  • Pocket Player (My Arcade)
    • Included on the Pac-Man Pocket Player. Features the Sega Genesis version; for unknown reasons, the title screen is removed.
  • Sega Master System
    • Developed by TecMagik; only released in Europe and Australia.
    • If the player completes the first level without eating any Power Pills, a coin will appear in place of the Fruit. Eating this coin will reveal a secret "Coin World" which has the same layout from Block Town; this level is not seen in any other versions of the game.
  • Sega Mega Drive/Genesis
    • Developed by Sculptured Software and published by Tengen.
    • This version of the game adds a "Pac-Booster" feature to the game, which allows the player to speed up Pac-Man by using a button toggle. A similar feature had appeared in Tengen's NES version of Ms. Pac-Man.
    • The Pink Power Pill's score multiplier only lasts on the round its obtained on, rather than lasting throughout the game.
  • Sharp X68000
    • Released exclusively in Japan (as was the X68000 platform as a whole), this port is dubbed "Pac-Mania - Extended Version for Superior Pacmaniacs". The subtitle was reportedly added due to the game incorporating certain features of the international arcade release (including the high-score table), while retaining all of the Japanese version's levels.[2]
    • A bonus port of the original Pac-Man is included with the game.
  • Wii
    • Included in Namco Museum Remix and Namco Museum Megamix. The game was also released standalone as part of the Virtual Console Arcade line; this release was exclusive to Japan.
  • Wii U
    • Included in the Virtual Console release of Pac-Man Collection.
  • Windows PC
    • Pac-Mania has been released for Windows platforms in several forms: being included in titles such as Pac-Man World 2, Namco Museum 50th Anniversary, and Pac-Man Museum +.
  • Xbox
    • Three versions were released, all of which are unlockable "bonuses" in other titles. The game was included in Namco Museum and Namco Museum 50th Anniversary, and was featured as a bonus game in Pac-Man World 2.
  • Xbox 360
    • Included in Namco Museum Virtual Arcade and Pac-Man Museum.
  • Xbox One/Xbox Series
    • Included in Pac-Man Museum +.
  • Zeebo
    • Appears to be based on a preexisting mobile port (though it is unclear which). Oddly, it features similar UI to Namco All-Stars: Pac-Man, a Pac-Man PC port from around the same time period.
  • ZX Spectrum

The majority of 80s and 90s home computer ports (save for the MSX2 and Sharp X68000 releases) were produced by Grandslam, and were only released in Europe and Australia (including Australasia territories).

Play Online[]

These versions of Pac-Mania are either listed in the public domain or are considered abandonware. Clicking the game title will lead you to a playable online version of it from archive.org (mobile compatibility may vary).

Trivia[]

  • This is the first and only Pac-Man game to be designed for Namco System 1 hardware.
  • This is the first Pac-Man arcade game to not be distributed in North America by Bally Midway, as the distributor's rights had expired earlier that year and returned to Namco America.
  • Much of the music that plays in the game interpolates tracks originally from Pac-Man and Pac-Land.
  • Promotional material for the game internationally refer the red and orange ghosts as Clyde and Blinky respectively instead of Blinky and Clyde, marking the first instance where Blinky and Clyde's names would be swapped.
  • The Sega Master System version of Pac-Mania was advertised in Europe on Supertext, a satellite TV channel that could only display Teletext. Due to the channel's inability to display actual video, a custom 8-bit sprite of Pac-Man was used.[3]
  • An arrangement of the game's Block Town and Pac-Man's Park themes appears in the Super Smash Bros. series, first debuting in Super Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS / Wii U. It reappears in Super Smash Bros. Ultimate.

Gallery[]

Mazes[]

Screenshots[]

Machine and Box Art[]

Character Artwork[]

References[]

  1. ↑ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Y0z2vZSpRw
  2. ↑ http://gyusyabu.ddo.jp/MP3/1989/pacmania.html
  3. ↑ https://forums.sonicretro.org/index.php?posts/896975/
[v · e · ?]
Community content is available under CC-BY-SA unless otherwise noted.
Advertisement

Fan Feed

More Pac-Man Wiki