Pac-Man World Re-Pac is a remake of one of the earliest mascot 3D platformers. Originally on the first PlayStation, Namco was successful in reinventing their long-enduring hero of the arcade for the 90s.
Some 2D characters failed to make the 3D transition, but Pac-Man World managed to wow gamers with its imaginative level design and easy approach to 3D gameplay. At the time, the rules of 3D games still hadn’t been established.
Namco’s ingenuity was making a camera system that took players out of the equation, being more like Super Mario 3D World than Super Mario 64. In a way, Namco was ahead of their time with their take on 3D gameplay. How does the rest of it hold up when it is reimagined for a new generation? Find out in this Pac-Man World Re-Pac review!
Pac-Man World Re-Pac
Developer: Now Production
Publisher: Bandai Namco Entertainment
Platforms: Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S (reviewed)
Release Date: August 25, 2022
Players: 1
Price: $29.99 USD
Pac-Man has a problem: it’s his 20th birthday and on his way to the party, the ghost gang kidnaps his pac-son, pac-dog, pac-daughter and his pac-wife. Why would anyone do such a thing? Pac-Man World Re-Pac is a 90s style 3D platformer and the protagonist always has to save someone, that’s why.
These kinds of games were always about collectibles and negotiating challenging level design. Pac-Man’s gameplay is evocative of Super Mario 3D World’s school of gameplay. The stages are 3D and the player character can move in 3D, but the design and layout unfolds in a linear, gauntlet style course.
Pac-Man himself plays like a mixture of many characters. He is able to do something like a Sonic-style spin-dash and can do a Yoshi-esque flutter-jump for added control while airborne. Like Kirby, Pac-Man can eat and eat and eat, but he won’t gain new abilities; Pac-Man finishes his quest the same way he begins it.
He can do all the things a Pac-Man can. Jumping on enemies is more involving than hopping and bopping. He has to also do a butt-slam to actually make the jump count as an attack.
This touch gives the platforming a cathartic sense of momentum. Pac-Man is able to gain a lot of air-time as he goes from precarious surface to surface or from threat to threat.
Most of the time, Pac-Man World Re-Pac‘s challenge is not falling into an instant death pit.
Since Pac-Man World Re-Pac is based on a game that was from a generation of hardcore design, limited lives meant something and they were a “failure allowance”. In Re-Pac, lives are more plentiful and some tweaking to the level design has made the game somewhat easier.
Thankfully, the overall experience is still fairly challenging for a cartoony mascot 3D platformer. Re-Pac doesn’t go to Crash Bandicoot 4 heights of absurd difficulty, but gamers will find that the challenge does have a noticeable climb and stays consistent.
Boss battles have been revamped and in some instances are totally different than before. The changes are for the best, especially in the case of the Chrome Keeper which unfolds in a puzzle-like fight. Control is improved; Pac-Man has full 360 analogue movement instead of eight-way d-pad control.
If there is one thing Pac-Man World Re-Pac does well is offer a variety of gimmicks. There are lots of bonus games where Pac-Man resorts to his traditional arcade gameplay of mazes and munching. The mazes come in many themes and have multiple layouts, always keeping players on their toes.
There is even a kart-racing stage with enemy racers and a fully realized track that keeps the player’s best time. Pac-Man Championship Edition gets a nod where Pac-Man grows to a massive size to devour all things.
Not everything is perfect. Pac-Man World Re-Pac cuts the blooper animation during the credits and some of the character redesigns are inferior.
The voice acting is replaced with gibberish, which is disappointing because there was a lot of charm that got lost. There should have at least been an option for either.
By far the best change in Pac-Man World Re-Pac is that there are now two endings. In the original, players had no choice but to rescue every single member of the family. This is now optional and gamers get a different ending should they choose to not save everyone.
Much of the game design in Pac-Man World Re-Pac is very standard and is what you would expect from a early 3D platformer from the PlayStation. What makes it unique and still interesting is the distinct Pac-Man-isms, stage gimmicks, and theming. Without that, this would be a plain 3D platformer.
Pac-Man World Re-Pac needed some optional retro filters for long-time fans to give it some of that chunky PlayStation flavor. Klonoa Phantasy Reveries Series had this in spades and was two games in one package. It is curious that Re-Pac only is just the first Pac-Man World and doesn’t include any of the sequels – perhaps we’ll get more later.
Pac-Man World Re-Pac was reviewed on Xbox Series S using a copy provided by Bandai Namco. You can find additional information about Niche Gamer’s review/ethics policy here. Pac-Man World Re-Pac is now available for Windows PC (via Steam), PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S.
