Pac & Pal

This is another arcade entry in the Pac-Man franchise and it's one that is under the radar. Despite being a fan of the Pac-Man franchise I honestly never knew this sequel even existed at all. I never even found one arcade cabinet copy of it in any of the local arcades I've played at, it's that obscure. I finally was able to play it and I'll admit this sequel was a pleasant surprise. Yeah, this game isn't on the high rank compared to other entries in the franchise at least in my book, but despite that it not bad at all, in fact it's quite good and I feel gets better more I play it.

Once again, the franchise with its sequels takes the unfamiliar pathway, which I'm fine with in fact part of why I love the "Pac-Man" franchise is that it doesn't repeat itself. Even when the gameplay mechanic is intact, the game has a unique feature that makes it stand apart from its predecessor but most importantly shows how you can still do more with a franchise with a simple premise.

The gameplay is the usual maze action but here it's different. Instead of chomping down the dots to complete a level you have food to chomp down on. But they are contained behind doors and to open them you have these cards. Whichever card you flip over the door will be accessed but also the item to chomp will blink which means bonus points if no other card is flipped over that is. Though if it stops blinking you still get points but not as many.

One of the things that make this game truly unique is simply that you have a buddy to help you in your work, which in a way makes this game the first or one of the first co op games. There is this buddy you have whom is this cute green blob with red sneakers named Mill. She serves as two functions from acting as a decoy to draw the attention of the ghosts. But also, she fetches out some of the food that is open and carries it for you so you can come to her and chomp it down. Or simply wait for her to take it to the base which will also grant you points, so whatever way you want to gain points is up to you.

This is interesting because it gives the game a bit of a strategy on going where you need to go but also that risk reward factor in retrieving the food either from the section or you pal while the ghosts are still on your tail. One other thing that makes the chase interesting is instead of the side-to-side warp hole, you have this middle section which is your hideaway and access tunnel. When the ghost/s follow you in it slows them down as they can see what you see, which gives you the opportunity to evade them. However, this middle section can also be a trap if the ghosts have the tunnels covered, so use this section wisely.

You have a weapon, when you eat this winged object which was an homage to one of Namco's games "Galaga" you turn blue and instead of eating the ghosts you stun them with a sonic sound wave. You will gain points doing it and the ghosts will remain in their stunned state but will turn back once your back to your original color. So use it while you can and don't waste it as there are only one of these winged things to eat.

And another thing that is unique is the fact that there is music playing while you're playing the game. Not that that's really anything too special but this was the first game in the Pac series to have it. The music is actually a pretty good, pleasant tone, it's nothing that tops video game music charts, but it fits the nature of the game as where it's frantic maze action but also a nice cutesy tone that is kind of relaxing.

This obscure entry like any person that could be a good pal is worth a try.

Rating: 3 and a half stars.