Pac-Man Anniversary Arcade Machines
Encyclopedia
On special anniversaries
for Pac-Man
(released in 1980) and/or Ms. Pac-Man
(released in 1981). Namco
has released compilations of their classic arcade games as arcade machines.
So far, Namco has made anniversary machines for the 20th anniversary for Ms. Pac-Man, and the 25th and 30th anniversaries for the original Pac-Man.
and Galaga
(also released in 1981) which were the two main games of the compilation. The compilation also has two subtitles which are "Class of 1981" and "20 Year Reunion". The original Pac-Man
(despite being released in 1980) was also included as a secret game playable by putting in a code using the joystick. There is also have the option to play faster versions of all the games as well as the regular versions. This is one of the most commonly found arcade machines of all in North America
.
, Ms. Pac-Man
, and Galaga
again; but Pac-Man was available right from the start instead of being secret. It still had the option to play the faster versions of the games. There was also a "countertop" version made for homes without the coin slot.
). This edition includes Pac-Man
, Galaga
, Dig Dug
, Xevious
, Mappy
, Rally-X
, Galaxian
, Bosconian
, Rolling Thunder
, Dragon Spirit
, Galaga '88
, and Pac-Mania
. There is a version of the machine made for homes that also includes Ms. Pac-Man
. All of the games in this collection also appear in Namco Museum 50th Anniversary, but the machine doesn't include Sky Kid
, or Pole Position I and II
. This version still has all the faster versions of the games as well.
Anniversary
An anniversary is a day that commemorates or celebrates a past event that occurred on the same day of the year as the initial event. For example, the first event is the initial occurrence or, if planned, the inaugural of the event. One year later would be the first anniversary of that event...
for Pac-Man
Pac-Man
is an arcade game developed by Namco and licensed for distribution in the United States by Midway, first released in Japan on May 22, 1980. Immensely popular from its original release to the present day, Pac-Man is considered one of the classics of the medium, virtually synonymous with video games,...
(released in 1980) and/or Ms. Pac-Man
Ms. Pac-Man
Ms. Pac-Man is an arcade video game produced by Midway as an unauthorized sequel to Pac-Man. It was released in North America in 1981 and became one of the most popular video games of all time, leading to its adoption by Pac-Man licensor Namco as an official title...
(released in 1981). Namco
Namco
is a Japanese corporation best known as a former video game developer and publisher. Following a merger with Bandai in September 2005, the two companies' game production assets were spun off into Namco Bandai Games on March 31, 2006. Namco Ltd. was re-established to continue domestic operation of...
has released compilations of their classic arcade games as arcade machines.
So far, Namco has made anniversary machines for the 20th anniversary for Ms. Pac-Man, and the 25th and 30th anniversaries for the original Pac-Man.
20th Anniversary machine (for Ms. Pac-Man)
Released in 2000, this was made to celebrate the 20th anniversary of both Ms. Pac-ManMs. Pac-Man
Ms. Pac-Man is an arcade video game produced by Midway as an unauthorized sequel to Pac-Man. It was released in North America in 1981 and became one of the most popular video games of all time, leading to its adoption by Pac-Man licensor Namco as an official title...
and Galaga
Galaga
is a fixed shooter arcade game developed and published by Namco in Japan and published by Midway in North America in 1981. It is the sequel to Galaxian, released in 1979. The gameplay of Galaga puts the player in control of a space ship which is situated on the bottom of the screen...
(also released in 1981) which were the two main games of the compilation. The compilation also has two subtitles which are "Class of 1981" and "20 Year Reunion". The original Pac-Man
Pac-Man
is an arcade game developed by Namco and licensed for distribution in the United States by Midway, first released in Japan on May 22, 1980. Immensely popular from its original release to the present day, Pac-Man is considered one of the classics of the medium, virtually synonymous with video games,...
(despite being released in 1980) was also included as a secret game playable by putting in a code using the joystick. There is also have the option to play faster versions of all the games as well as the regular versions. This is one of the most commonly found arcade machines of all in North America
North America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
.
25th Anniversary machine (for Pac-Man)
Released in 2005, this was made to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Pac-Man. It included Pac-ManPac-Man
is an arcade game developed by Namco and licensed for distribution in the United States by Midway, first released in Japan on May 22, 1980. Immensely popular from its original release to the present day, Pac-Man is considered one of the classics of the medium, virtually synonymous with video games,...
, Ms. Pac-Man
Ms. Pac-Man
Ms. Pac-Man is an arcade video game produced by Midway as an unauthorized sequel to Pac-Man. It was released in North America in 1981 and became one of the most popular video games of all time, leading to its adoption by Pac-Man licensor Namco as an official title...
, and Galaga
Galaga
is a fixed shooter arcade game developed and published by Namco in Japan and published by Midway in North America in 1981. It is the sequel to Galaxian, released in 1979. The gameplay of Galaga puts the player in control of a space ship which is situated on the bottom of the screen...
again; but Pac-Man was available right from the start instead of being secret. It still had the option to play the faster versions of the games. There was also a "countertop" version made for homes without the coin slot.
30th Anniversary machine (for Pac-Man)
Released in 2010, this was made to celebrate the 30th anniversary of Pac-Man and goes by the name "Pac-Man's Arcade Party" (Not to be confused with the party video game known as Pac-Man PartyPac-Man Party
Pac-Man Party is a party game by Namco Bandai Games for the Wii and Nintendo 3DS...
). This edition includes Pac-Man
Pac-Man
is an arcade game developed by Namco and licensed for distribution in the United States by Midway, first released in Japan on May 22, 1980. Immensely popular from its original release to the present day, Pac-Man is considered one of the classics of the medium, virtually synonymous with video games,...
, Galaga
Galaga
is a fixed shooter arcade game developed and published by Namco in Japan and published by Midway in North America in 1981. It is the sequel to Galaxian, released in 1979. The gameplay of Galaga puts the player in control of a space ship which is situated on the bottom of the screen...
, Dig Dug
Dig Dug
is an arcade game developed and published by Namco in Japan in 1982 for Namco Galaga hardware. It was later published outside of Japan by Atari. A popular game based on a simple concept, it was also released as a video game on many consoles.-Objective:...
, Xevious
Xevious
is a vertical scrolling shooter arcade game by Namco, released in 1982. It was designed by Masanobu Endō. In the U.S., the game was manufactured and distributed by Atari. Xevious runs on Namco Galaga hardware. In Brazil the arcade cabinet was printed with the name 'COLUMBIA' for the game, while the...
, Mappy
Mappy
is a 1983 arcade game by Namco. In the United States, it was manufactured and distributed by Bally/Midway. Mappy is a side-scrolling platformer that features cartoon-like characters, primarily cats and mice. The game's main character itself is a mouse. Mappy runs on Namco Super Pac-Man hardware,...
, Rally-X
Rally-X
Rally-X is a maze driving arcade game that was released by Namco in 1980. It runs on Namco Pac-Man hardware, and was the first Namco game to feature "Special Flags", which would become a recurring object in later games .It was the first game to ever feature a "bonus round." The object is to...
, Galaxian
Galaxian
is an arcade game developed by Namco in 1979. It was published by Namco in Japan and was imported to North America by Midway in 1980. A fixed shooter-style game in which the player controls a spaceship at the bottom of the screen and shoots enemies descending in various directions, it was designed...
, Bosconian
Bosconian
is a free-roaming multi-directional scrolling shooter arcade game that was developed by Namco and released in 1981. In contrast to the more linear shooter games of its time, Bosconian allows the player's ship to freely move across open space that scrolls in all directions. The game also features a...
, Rolling Thunder
Rolling Thunder (arcade game)
is a side-scrolling action game produced by Namco originally released in as a coin-operated arcade game which ran on the Namco System 86 hardware. It was distributed internationally outside Japan by Atari Games. The player takes control of a secret agent who must rescue his female partner from a...
, Dragon Spirit
Dragon Spirit
Dragon Spirit is a 1987 vertical scrolling shooter arcade game released by Namco and Atari Games . It runs on Namco System 1 hardware, and was later ported to the Nintendo Entertainment System, Amstrad CPC, Commodore Amiga, Commodore 64, DOS, Atari ST, Sharp X68000, TurboGrafx-16 and ZX Spectrum...
, Galaga '88
Galaga '88
is a 1987 fixed shooter arcade game by Namco. It is the third sequel of Galaxian . It features significantly improved graphics over the previous games in the series, including detailed backgrounds, larger enemies and more ship details. Although it was well received, fewer units of this game were...
, and Pac-Mania
Pac-Mania
is an arcade video game in the Pac-Man series, released by Namco in 1987 and distributed by Atari Games in the United States and Europe. It is a pseudo-3D interpretation of the classic maze game genre using an isometric view and features most elements of the original Pac-Man, as well as several new...
. There is a version of the machine made for homes that also includes Ms. Pac-Man
Ms. Pac-Man
Ms. Pac-Man is an arcade video game produced by Midway as an unauthorized sequel to Pac-Man. It was released in North America in 1981 and became one of the most popular video games of all time, leading to its adoption by Pac-Man licensor Namco as an official title...
. All of the games in this collection also appear in Namco Museum 50th Anniversary, but the machine doesn't include Sky Kid
Sky Kid
is a horizontal scrolling shooter arcade game that was released by Namco in 1985. It runs on Namco Pac-Land hardware but with a video system like that used in Dragon Buster. It is also the first game from Namco to allow 2 players to play simultaneously...
, or Pole Position I and II
Pole Position II
Pole Position II is a racing arcade game that was released by Namco in 1983 as the sequel to Pole Position, which was released the previous year. As with the original, Namco licensed Pole Position II to Atari for US manufacture and distribution...
. This version still has all the faster versions of the games as well.
See Also
- Namco Classic Collection Vol. 1 and Vol. 2 - Two arcade machines, each one with of 3 Namco arcade games that also contain updated variants of each game.
- Namco MuseumNamco MuseumNamco Museum refers to the series of video game compilations released by Namco for various 32-bit and above consoles, containing releases of their games from the 1980s and early 1990s...
- Home collections of Namco arcade games for consolesVideo game consoleA video game console is an interactive entertainment computer or customized computer system that produces a video display signal which can be used with a display device to display a video game... - List of Namco games