Review: Pac-Attack (Sega Genesis)

In this review, we munch on some ghosts in the Sega Genesis game Pac-Attack. We find out if this puzzle game is worth playing.

This game was released in 1993. We previously played this game in the multi-game pack, Pac-Man: Special Color Edition for the Game Boy Color.

Since this game and the Pac-Attack game in the Game Boy Color version are so similar, this review will focus on the differences. Well, normally I would focus on the differences, but these games are pretty much identical.

One thing to note right away is the release date. By this point in time, The Genesis is already maturing as a console. In addition to this, the SNES has already been out by a couple of years as well. Both systems are competing and both have a number of hits out by this point in time. So, as a result, this game has to really shine just to gain some kind of visibility in this competitive console market.

Unfortunately, this game simply takes a back seat and simply relies more on brand recognition rather than pumping out a high quality game to match market expectations. If you are just exploring the different game modes, this game will take you about an hour to try it out. If you are somehow into this game, you are looking at maybe a couple of hours of repetitive play before you are finally moving on to the next game.

While this game does offer a sense of unique gameplay at first, the novelty will wear off in pretty short order. To make matters worse, if you are like me and played another version of this game, this one will simply not be of any surprise and you won’t even get that sense of novelty coming out of the gate. As a result, gameplay is also very short.

Generally speaking, if you’ve never played Pac Attack before, you’ll probably have the best chance at getting your best bang for your buck. If you happen to have played another version of this, you’ll probably be left disappointed because there is hardly anything that differentiates this version and other versions. Given this is also on a console in the year it was released, this game just does nothing to stand out in the crowd. So, a fairly bland play if you ask me.

Graphics is probably this games biggest strength. Different modes of play feature different pictures. Weirdly enough, puzzle mode features the most variety of graffiti style graphics. Every couple of levels, you’ll get a different background picture that really adds to the visual variety. While the art in the backgrounds in other modes is fairly decent, the variety is quite lackluster. The pieces are pretty average and the animation sequences are OK. There is some variety in animations with the ghosts, but chances are, you won’t really notice it as you are freaking out trying to survive near the top.

The audio is just like the other version of this game. You have almost no variety in music. In fact, you have the general Pac-Man music and the panic music when you get too close to the top. If there were other tracks along with this one, this wouldn’t be that bad. Unfortunately, the music is quite repetitive after a while and adds little to the game. The sound effects are OK, but nothing special.

Overall, this game is just as disappointing on this system as it was on the handheld. While there is novelty to be had at first, the novelty wears out after a while. From there, you are left with a boring and repetitive game. since this game was released in a more powerful system, it is easy to have higher expectations for this game. All you are left with is disappointment. The graphics do feature some interesting variety in puzzle mode, but the audio is disappointing. An overall sub-par game.

Overall
Furthest point in game:
Easy:
25,780
Level 15

Medium:
153,728
Level 25

Hard:
522,412
Level 45

Hyper:
2,028,600
Level 105

Puzzle:
Level 20

General gameplay: 14/25
Replay value: 5/10
Graphics: 7/10
Audio: 2/5

Overall rating: 56%

Drew Wilson on Twitter: @icecube85 and Facebook.

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