Played one of the PC ports of the 1980's PAC-MAN. This isn't the first. nor the last time I'll be seeing it. That's for sure. Some unsorted thoughts...
It's PAC-MAN! It feels so distinct and interesting even quite some years later. Sure after it we'll see many games like it, many that try to copy or improve on how it feels...but nothing is quite like that original.
Having originally played a flash version of the title waaay back it's interesting to return to the game now many years later. Some things I notice now: The loud grainy sounds of the pacman such as that of eating the little dot and the 'sirens' were probably made that way to break through the walls of sound reverberating within an arcade setting. Even the music has that kind of high toned nature.
I also think the reason the game ends up working so well is that it is an amalgamation of great signals and indicators. The sirens are a great way to signify danger and pressure, it turns pacman into a kind of Cops and Robbers game. But of course it isn't exactly that. I mean PAC-MAN is eating after all. So this is the first contrast between elements, the loud sirens as though the ghosts were cops (they are not) the eating of pacman as though he were collecting gold to steal on the street (level/stage) (he is not stealing, merely eating) These contrasts are what makes the game so distinct feeling. There are a lot of signals we get from the machine and these signals are each clashing with eachother to create a unique experience.
There's also something neon to Pac-Man. It's loud primary colors in a mostly blacked out screen with blue borders give out this distinct look.
While the main core of the game is to 'capture point' and 'don't get caught' with the way it builds interesting signals around this point, distinct antagonists who go after you, each their own personality, it stands out among the rest and can still be enjoyed today. Sure you might not feel the will to put multiple hours in it but i'd imagine nobody in the arcade was constantly putting hours into the game.
I'm glad to own a digital version so I can open it up every so often, but a few 'coins' in and give it a go :)
It's PAC-MAN! It feels so distinct and interesting even quite some years later. Sure after it we'll see many games like it, many that try to copy or improve on how it feels...but nothing is quite like that original.
Having originally played a flash version of the title waaay back it's interesting to return to the game now many years later. Some things I notice now: The loud grainy sounds of the pacman such as that of eating the little dot and the 'sirens' were probably made that way to break through the walls of sound reverberating within an arcade setting. Even the music has that kind of high toned nature.
I also think the reason the game ends up working so well is that it is an amalgamation of great signals and indicators. The sirens are a great way to signify danger and pressure, it turns pacman into a kind of Cops and Robbers game. But of course it isn't exactly that. I mean PAC-MAN is eating after all. So this is the first contrast between elements, the loud sirens as though the ghosts were cops (they are not) the eating of pacman as though he were collecting gold to steal on the street (level/stage) (he is not stealing, merely eating) These contrasts are what makes the game so distinct feeling. There are a lot of signals we get from the machine and these signals are each clashing with eachother to create a unique experience.
There's also something neon to Pac-Man. It's loud primary colors in a mostly blacked out screen with blue borders give out this distinct look.
While the main core of the game is to 'capture point' and 'don't get caught' with the way it builds interesting signals around this point, distinct antagonists who go after you, each their own personality, it stands out among the rest and can still be enjoyed today. Sure you might not feel the will to put multiple hours in it but i'd imagine nobody in the arcade was constantly putting hours into the game.
I'm glad to own a digital version so I can open it up every so often, but a few 'coins' in and give it a go :)