Pac-In-Time

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Pac-In-Time

Developer(s)	Kalisto
Publisher(s)	Namco
Release date(s)	^JPN January 3, 1995 ^NA December 31, 1995^[1]
Genre(s)	Adventure
Mode(s)	Single player, Two player
Rating(s)	ESRB– Kids to Adults
Platform(s)	Mega Drive/Genesis, Super NES, Game Boy, PC

Pac-In-Time is a video game developed by Namco, featuring the popular arcade character Pac-Man. It was released in 1995 for the PC, Super Nintendo, Sega Genesis, and Game Boy. It was released shortly after Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures, which brought about the change from the classic arcade versions of Pac-Man to the development of more-complex and adventurous games.

This game was an offshoot from the normal variety of Pac-Man games, in that it does not confine Pac-Man to a maze-like board. Rather, you play as Pac-Man and go through various side-scrolling levels, obtaining many different items along the way; the plot does take elements from the earlier Pac-Man games, such as your objective to collect a certain number of pellets before you can exit the level. The game allows you to access completed levels via passwords that are given every five levels.

1 Official story
2 Gameplay
3 Reaction
4 References

[edit] Official story

Pac-Man's archenemy, the Ghost Witch, has cast a vicious spell on Pac-Man and has thrown him back in time to when he was just a Pac-Boy. Only you can save him. Down some Pac-Pellets and get ready to battle your way through a totally supersonic side-scrolling adventure. Journey through snowy mountains and forests, collect fireballs and bubbles, crush Pac-Bats and ghosts, swim like a fish and swing like a monkey... and ultimately get Pac-Man back to the real world!

[edit] Gameplay

The gameplay in this game varies greatly from previous Pac-Man games.

You control Pac-Man as you must find your way through five different world, each with 10 different levels. Each level contains about 30 different Pac-Pellets that you must find in order to complete it. The end of the level is marked with a door that is only opened once you have collected all of the required pellets. Along the way, Pac-Man will run into many enemies— most of which are just native to the environment of the level, such as bats, birds, rats, worms, carnivorous plants, ram-like creatures, etc. Pac-Man also runs across his long-time enemies, the ghosts, who appear frequently in every level and chase after Pac-Man. Fortunately, there are Power-Pellets along the way, and Pac-Man can use these to devour the ghosts in his typical fashion.

Unique to this game, Pac-Man can also acquire four different abilities that will help him finish his quest and defeat his enemies. Each of these abilities can be obtained by jumping through one of four different colored rings. Although you can hold all four abilities at once, you can only use one at a time by rotating between them.

Green ring: Jumping through this will give Pac-Man a Magic Rope, which will allow him to swing to areas that he cannot normally jump or to avoid falling in places that are harmful. By using it, Pac-Man will shoot a rope upward and cling onto the ceiling above him. While doing this, he can swing himself to higher platforms or swing gracefully through the air.
Yellow ring: This will give Pac-Man the ability to shoot fire at his enemies. Fireballs can also be used to destroy blockades that could be preventing him from advancing. By holding down the button, Pac-Man will shoot a larger fireball with the capabilities to destroy anything in its path.
Red ring: The red ring will give Pac-Man a sledgehammer, and he can use this to hammer his enemies. In addition to that, he can pound in stakes that will reveal hidden areas, as well as pounding the floor beneath him in certain places, allowing him to fall through to collect secret items or to advance through the level. This is one of the harder items to hit enemies with, because it required Pac-Man to get really close to them.
Blue ring: The only purpose of passing through the blue ring is so that Pac-Man can acquire the bubble, which will allow him to swim underwater. You must have this ability to enter the water; otherwise, Pac-Man will just float on the surface and be unable to swim beneath the surface. While swimming underwater, Pac-Man can blow bubbles that can repel fish or discover hidden areas. It can also be used to surface certain underwater items.

There are many other items that will help Pac-Man out in his quest. He can find many food items that will replenish portions of his health, as well as extra lives along the way. There are also the Power-Pellets to use when there are approaching ghosts. Certain elements and levels vary slightly from system to system.

[edit] Reaction

The game was successful in part due to its branding of the Pac-Man name, as well as bringing about a new genre of Pac-Man games, which would continue to be successful in later generation game systems. The graphics were colorful and pleasant, and the games simplistic gameplay make it fun for Pac-Man fans and non-fans alike. Pac-Man's evolution in this game helped it become successful in later games, as gamers wanted more than just a yellow ball going across the screen.