Pac 'n Roll

Nintendo exclusive

In Pac'N Roll, the inhabitants of Pac-World have been turned into spheres by the evil monster Golvis' Ghost Light. Pac-Man must roll his way through Ghost-Land, collecting pellets and confronting Ghosts to save his family and restore peace to Pac-Land. Introducing an innovative new control scheme, Pac'N Roll lets players control Pac-Man with the Nintendo DS stylus. Players can roll and dash around the environment as well as execute maneuvers such as hairpin turns, immediate stops and precision rolling with effortless strokes of the stylus.

Released: 28 July 2005
Platforms: Nintendo DS Wii
Genres: Platformer
Developers: Namco
Publishers: Namco
Modes: Multiplayer Single-player
Perspective: Bird view / Isometric
Themes: Action
Country: Japan
Age ratings: PEGI 3 ESRB E

About

Pac 'n Roll is a 2005 puzzle platformer video game developed and published by Namco for the Nintendo DS. The player is tasked with controlling Pac-Man through different levels, with its controls centered around using the touch screen. The harder the player swipes on the screen, the faster Pac-Man goes in the respective direction. In each level, the player must navigate Pac-Man from the beginning to the end while dodging different obstacles, such as ghosts, and collecting enough "pellets" to unlock the next area. The game also features boss fights and additional unlockable challenges on each stage.

The game was first showcased at E3 2004 as one of the first games showcased for the then-newly announced Nintendo DS. It was then formally announced in early 2005 and released throughout the latter part of that year, starting with July 28, 2005 in Japan. It received mixed reviews from critics, who were generally positive of the gameplay mechanics, but divided on its difficulty and depth, and generally criticized the story. It was later re-released as Pac 'n Roll Remix, a remake originally included as part of the Namco Museum Remix compilation for the Wii in 2007. Pac 'n Roll Remix was later included as part of Pac-Man Museum+, another video game compilation that was released for several platforms in 2022.

Keywords

touch controls

Media

The articlegameplay, story, development, reception

Gameplay

Pac 'n Roll is a single-player puzzle platformer game. It has the player controls Pac-Man via the bottom touch screen of the Nintendo DS, with a control scheme similar to that of a trackball. The harder or the more the player swipes the screen, the faster Pac-Man goes in the direction the player swiped. Harder, abrupt strokes allow Pac-Man to quickly dash, and simply tapping the middle of the screen will cause Pac-Man to immediately stop. The game features two power-ups that adjust Pac-Man's control scheme: a suit of armor that allows Pac-Man to sink to the bottom of flooded areas and break open metal crates at the cost of making him harder to move, and a feather cap that makes him lighter and able to fly over short distances.

In each level, the player must navigate Pac-Man from the beginning to the end while traversing platforming sections, avoiding ghosts and other obstacles, and collecting pellets. Levels are further divided into several enclosed areas, which require the player to collect to a certain amount of pellets in order to unlock. The player can also find unique "power pellets" that allow Pac-Man to consume ghosts that would otherwise damage and eventually kill him. While the player is not required to find every power pellet in a level, doing so will award the player with a perfect "rating" on that stage.

Story

Pac 'n Roll takes place during Pac-Man's youth, where he spends a summer at the home of Pac-Master, who serves as his tutor. During Pac-Man's training, Pac-Master's family goes to the Power Pellet Harvest Festival with Pac-Man. During the family's trip, the Ghosts, plotting a way to kill Pac-Master and his family, decide to summon Golvis, a ghost that was considered so powerful that he was banished to space. Golvis then interrupts the festival and, despite Pac-Master's efforts to stop him, turns all residents of Pac-Land, including Pac-Master's family, into balls with the assistance of his sentient guitar, Jack. He then kidnaps all of Pac-Master's family except for Pac-Man, who is saved by his guardian fairy, Krystal.

Pac-Man travels across Pac-Land to save Pac-Master's family from Golvis, freeing them one by one. After saving most of them, Golvis attempts to strike Pac-Man from his UFO; Pac-Man and Krystal give chase to Golvis to his UFO and defeat him one last time. Afterwards, Pac-Man and Krystal escapes from Golvis' crashing UFO alongside Pac-Master. With Golvis defeated, Golvis' curse on the people of Pac-Land is broken, restoring the Pac-Man and his friends back to their original forms.

Reception

Pac 'n Roll received mixed or average reviews from critics. On review aggregator website Metacritic, it holds a score of 72 out of 100 based on 35 critic reviews. On Famitsu, four critics assigned the game an average score of 29 out of 40.

The gameplay was generally received well, with many praising its design and controls, though some felt that it lacked depth. Craig Harris of IGN described it as well designed and a good fit for the handheld gaming market. Thomas Bowskill of Nintendo Life described it as addicting and "perfect for casual play" based on its simple, short levels controls that he believed were easy to understand. John Walker of Eurogamer shared similar thoughts, though felt that it lacked enough elements to become a "grandiose of a gaming classic".