Pac-Man 256 delivers a modern approach to this arcade classic as it is now placed in a mobile platform for easier access to that Pac-Man formula. Available for the iPad, this takes inspiration to the original yellow pizza-looking mascot that’s missing a slice. So what can be expected in this mobile version of the familiar yellow dot gobbler? Well, there’s the dot-munching experience and it has an endless structure made in retro 3D styling.
Pac-Man 256 Pays Tribute to the Original Arcade Masterpiece
Instead of looking at things in top-view, Pac-Man 256 is now made into an isometric type of view, similar to what you can see on Crossy Road. Getting into Crossy Road’s graphical ideas may be thought of as nothing more than an attempt to get into the value and elements of both gaming properties. You will still navigate yourself in blue-walled mazes and try to earn high scores by eating dots, while evading those pesky ghosts. There are the occasional fruits and powered-dots that are also all-too familiar with Pac-Man games.
Why does it have 256 in its title? Because in Pac-Man 256 (iPad), there are256 levels that you have to try and beat. In the original arcade classic, when you reach level 256, there will be a “kill screen” that will enable the game to glitch and crash. The same can be said about this mobile version, but at least you will get a more beautiful death.
This glitch, is rendered in a large mass of colorful numbers. This is perhaps the most visually impressive part of the game as it already has outstanding visuals of 3D, neon, chunky aesthetics. It is akin to a beautiful dream found in the 1980s that has been placed in a device worthy of the 21st century.
As like the original version of the game, you will be forced to think on your feet. Taking a moment to think things through will only get you eaten by those ghosts. However, this also means that deaths do tend to feel a lot cheaper than what in the original game. This level of frustration can only be rectified by the sole reason that the game is free-to-play. Hence, you don’t have to spend a single cent on this, that is of course if you spend on the game through micro-transactions.
Players can also purchase the full version of Pac-Man 256, in which it adds a host of power-ups and introduce more strategies into the formula. However, this may only be for diehard fans of Pac-Man. After all, there are a lot of mobile gamers who would not bother taking out their credit card just to pay for something that’s already free.