Pac-Man has grown into one of gaming's most iconic franchises since the titular character first stormed into arcades in the early 1980s. Throughout the 40-plus years since Pac-Man's arcade debut, the character has found himself in countless video games, animated series, and even in the Comic-Con Character Museum's Hall of Fame. While many fans remember the iconic arcade game, Pac-Man has also featured in countless spinoffs, from puzzle games to becoming a Super Smash Bros. mainstay. Now, today's Nintendo Partner Showcase officially revealed that 3D platformer Pac-Man World is getting a remaster.
Pac-Man World was originally released for the PlayStation in 1999, later seeing a port to the Game Boy Advance in 2004. Pac-Man World was the first 3D platformer in the Pac-Man franchise and would go on to spawn multiple sequels with Pac-Man World 2 releasing in 2002 and Pac-Man World 3 in 2005. Pac-Man World was praised by critics for its unique gameplay and vibrant graphics with the game also including a port of the original Pac-Man. Now, Pac-Man World: Re-Pac will bring the Pac-Man platformer to modern consoles for the first time.
Bandai Namco officially revealed the Pac-Man World remaster during Tuesday's Nintendo Direct Partner Showcase, showing off a variety of gameplay segments from the remaster. Pac-Man will have a variety of techniques at his disposal, from being able to throw "Pac Dots" to defeat enemies and using the "Rev Roll" to launch himself over obstacles. The trailer also shows off several mini-games with different control schemes, including a racing and space shooter segment, likely inspired by other classic Namco arcade games.
The trailer concludes with a release date reveal for Pac-Man World: Re-Pac, with the remaster set to launch later this summer on August 26th. While the announcement came through Nintendo's third-party-focused presentation, Namco's own trailer confirms Re-Pac will be a multiplatform release with the game coming to PlayStation, Xbox, and Steam. Pre-orders for Pac-Man World: Re-Pac through Bandai Namco's official website will also come with a special "Pac-Man Chogokin" figure available in limited quantities.
Pac-Man World: Re-Pac will come as the franchise's first foray into 3D platformers in almost a decade. Pac-Man's last 3D adventure came in 2014 with Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures 2, a sequel to the 2013 platformer. The Pac-Man franchise has traditionally seen a limited number of 3D entries with many new games instead looking to innovate on the series' classic arcade formula. Pac-Man's return to 3D platformers with Re-Pac looks to be a colorful re-visiting of one of the franchise's most popular spinoffs when it releases in August.
Pac-Man World: Re-Pac is scheduled to release on August 26th, 2022 for PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.