Once the gaming industry's most recognizable mascot character, Pac-Man was a dominant force in the arcades during their golden age. The original game's main strength was that it perfected the arcade formula of making a game simple yet addictive and punishing, encouraging players to keep putting coins in as they're convinced they can top their high score with their next try.
Unfortunately for the circular hero, he hasn't reached anywhere near the same success on home consoles as he did on arcades. In fact, Pac-Man was partially responsible for the gaming industry's crash in 1983, thanks to the awful, yet high selling, Atari 2600 port of the arcade game, which is still considered one of the worst games of all time.
Suffice to say; the Pac-Man franchise has had a few highs and lows. With the release of Pac-Man 99, fans looking to try some other games from the series may want to see where they rank among the rest according to critics and gamers everywhere.
18 Pac-Man Fever - 54
Not to be confused with the album and song by Buckner & Garcia, Pac-Man Fever is a 2002 party game that was released on PlayStation 2 and GameCube. Much like Mario Party, players compete on a virtual board and in a selection of minigames. Besides Pac-Man, players can also play as popular Namco characters such as Tiger Jackson and Astaroth.
17 Pac-Man World Rally - 57
From a game that took inspiration from Mario Party to one that looked to emulate the success of Mario Kart. Pac-Man World Rally has everything one would expect from a kart racing game, such as power-ups, shortcuts, and multiplayer, though it did little to differentiate itself from the many other games in the genre.
16 Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures - 58
Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures is a 3D platformer based on a TV series of the same name. The gameplay didn't blow anyone away, though it did turn heads with its visuals which were impressively close to the animated series. Ghostly Adventures performed well commercially, resulting in a direct sequel.
15 Pac-Man Party - 59
The second party game on this list, Pac-Man Party initially released on the Nintendo Wii in 2010 before coming to the Nintendo 3DS the following year.
Namco Bandai Games' release was part of the franchise's 30th anniversary. Consequently, it offered players a few extra treats, such as a Classic Games mode, which included the original Pac-Man game, Dig-Dug, and Galaga.
14 Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures 2 - 60
The aforementioned sequel to Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures wasted little time releasing, as it hit stores just under one year after its predecessor. As one would expect with a game released so quickly, Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures 2 did little to stand out from the first game, hence the similar scores.
13 Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions - 60
Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions released exclusively on the Nintendo 3DS in 2011 and was essentially a greatest hits of the Pac-Man and Galaga franchises.
Along with four classic titles, the game also featured two new games: Pac-Man Tilt and Galaga 3D Impact, two games that require players to move the 3DS to play physically to control their character.
12 Pac-Man - 62
The classic Pac-Man game receiving just a 62 on Metacritic is a shame, as the original title likely would have surpassed the 95 mark if the review aggregator was around in 1980. This score is for the Xbox Live Arcade re-release from 2006, which disappointed critics with its lack of new features.
11 Pac-Man Museum - 66
As the name suggests, Pac-Man Museum is similar to the previous two entries on this list in the sense that it simply features some of Pac-Man's classic games in their original state. The game launched with nine different games, followed by a tenth game from the Ms. Pac-Man franchise as DLC.
10 Pac-Man Dash! - 67
Pac-Man Dash! is an endless-runner mobile title developed by M2. The game does little to stand out from the many other endless-runner platformers available on mobile. However, it succeeds in appealing to fans of the Ghostly Adventures TV series and games by implementing a similar art style and numerous key characters.
9 Pac-Man World 2 - 74
The Pac-Man World trilogy was Namco's attempt at bringing the classic franchise into the era of 3D platformers. Consequently, the game implements many popular features at the time from games like Super Mario 64 and Banjo-Kazooie.
The first game wasn't scored on Metacritic, which is unfortunate as it's considered the trilogy's best. Pac-Man World 2 wasn't far off its quality, though, impressing fans and critics with its level-design and boss fights.
8 Pac-Man World 3 - 74
Pac-Man World 3 was released in 2005, a time where mascot platformers were starting to be left behind in favor of more mature and action-heavy titles such as Resident Evil 4 and the original God of War, which both hit stores the same year. To account for this, Pac-Man World 3 implements more combat mechanics than its predecessors, though it still sticks to the trilogy's platforming roots.
7 Pac-Man Championship Edition 2 - 80
Much like its predecessors Pac-Man Championship Edition and DX, Championship Edition 2 takes the franchise's classic maze formula and tries to spice it up in numerous ways. New features from the original game include sleeping ghosts, jump pads, and bombs that will take players back to the maze's start. The game received an updated Plus edition in 2018, which added 2 player co-op to the mix.
6 Pac-Man vs. - 78
Pac-Man vs. puts an interesting spin on the iconic franchise by having one player control Pac-Man while up to three others control the ghosts trying to take him down. The idea was positively received, though many missed out on the game as it required a GameCube, GameBoy Advance, and GameCube – Game Boy Advance link cable to play.
Thankfully, the game has since been released on Nintendo DS and Nintendo Switch through Namco Museum, making the game more accessible.
5 Pac-Man: Adventures in Time - 79
Although Pac-Man: Adventures in Time initially looks vastly different from the classic arcade game, the core gameplay is very similar. However, visual differences aren't the only change that Adventures in Time makes from the original. The game also includes online multiplayer mini-games and a vast range of worlds and levels with areas that can be unlocked through collecting pellets.
4 Pac-Man Collection - 79
Pac-Man Collection was released on the Game Boy Advance in 2001. As the name suggests, the game takes some of the mascot character's classic games and puts them together in one neat handheld package.
Pac-Man Collection includes the following games: Pac-Man, Pac-Attack, Pac-Man Arrangement, and Pac-Mania.
3 Pac-Man 256 - 80
A modern game being inspired by its franchise's original release is certainly not a new concept, though not many games drew inspiration from a glitch like endless runner Pac-Man 256 did.
The Map 256 Glitch refers to an infamous occurrence in the original Pac-Man where the level would become impossible due to the right side of the screen turning into a collision of numbers and letters.
2 Pac-Man Championship Edition - 83
Following the lackluster reception of the aforementioned Pac-Man port to Xbox Live Arcade, Namco decided not to rest on their laurels and offered a new game that would look to reinvent the classic formula. Pac-Man Championship Edition includes a faster pace, six different game modes, and numerous new gameplay mechanics to differentiate it from its predecessor and ultimately make the game more engrossing.
1 Pac-Man Championship Edition DX - 93
Pac-Man Championship Edition DX tops this list by a significant margin with a whopping score of 93, which puts the game alongside critically acclaimed titles such as Braid, Paper Mario, and Hades. In a year headlined by expansive RPGs such as Mass Effect 2 and open-world adventures like Red Dead Redemption, Namco's Championship Edition DX proved that the gaming industry still has a place for classic arcade gameplay.