PAC-MAN Lite – Review
By App Type: Uncategorized
Our rating: 
By: PAC-MAN Lite
Version #: 1.0.0
Date Released: 2008-10-14
Developer: Namco Networks America
Price: 0.00
User Rating:
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What can I say about PacMan that hasn’t been said a thousand times before over the last 25 years (yes, its been that long). This free version of the game is your original PacMan title on the iPhone and iTouch (version 2.0 only).
The game play is exactly the same as the old standup arcade version, except for one small detail (which i find to be a deal breaker). It doesn’t have a physical controller, and instead relies on a virtual onscreen directional pad, a unique implementation of using the accelerometer to tilt your way to movement, or a swipe of the finger on screen to determine the direction you want to go. I know, there are no buttons on the iPhone or iTouch, but I’m talking about the whole experience of the game, which in my book includes the joystick and its ability to control PacMan to make immediate changes in movement. Out of the three options Namco provides for controling PacMan, the finger swipe is my favorite, since it has the fastest response time (a must for those immediate change of direction decisions) and allows me to swipe anwhere on the screen. The directional pad is my next choice for moving PacMan, but it requires a more specific position for your finger on the screen since you only have the lower center portion of the screen in which to move your finger around. And although its fun at first, I found myself over rotating much of the time and unless i kept the iphone in the exact 0,0,0 axis point (center position), i wasnt fast enough to make changes in the direction that i wanted PacMan to go.
I still perfer a physical joystick for this game over any of those options, but you have to hand it to Namco for giving you a lot of different ways to control the little yellow muncher.
Finally, the only other comment I have on this version is the fact that they only let you play the first screen for the Lite edition. I understand why they want to tease you with this, but obviously, unless you are into PacMan or want to check out the varying controls I mentioned above, either buy the full version, or don’t bother, since after a few restarts and single screen plays, this Lite app isnt going to stay on your iPhone/iTouch very long.
Quick Take
Would I Buy Again: No.
Learning Curve: Just getting used to the controls is the biggest learning curve.
Who is it for: PacMan lovers.
What I Like: The version is exactly the same as the original.
What I Don’t: Only one screen of play.
Final Statement: Love PackMan? Buy the full version. Otherwise, don’t waste your time playing a 1 screen only demo.
Relive this classic with PAC-MAN Lite, a full-featured FREE demo of PAC-MAN’s first stage! Who can forget the countless hours and quarters spent avoiding pesky ghosts while chompin’ on dots and gobbling up the fruit for bonus points?
Guide PAC-MAN with three new control modes. Dodge pesky ghosts by tilting or rotating your iPhone in Accelerometer Mode. Navigate through the mazes by touching the onscreen Directional Pad in D-Pad Mode. Chomp on dots with the swipe of a finger in Swipe Mode.
Munch fruits and other items for big points! Gobble blinking Power Pellets to weaken ghosts temporarily and eat them up before they change back. Avoid Blinky, the leader of the ghosts, and his fellow ghosts Pinky, Inky and Clyde, or you will lose a life. Get an extra life when you reach 10,000 points!O U R T A K E . . .
