PAC-LAND
©1984 Namco Ltd.
Reviewed by Robert Blakemore
"PAC - The world's most famous computer character is back. There are
many imitations but only one original PAC-LAND. This internationally
famous coin-op is not to be missed."
The Game
The computer character, Pac, is back and this time starring in his own
adventure cartoon, Pac-Land. Pac-Man is a world wide phenomenon. There
are scores of imitators in the arcade and in the home but there is
only one Pac-Land.
There are many different journeys for Pac to attempt. Set on his home
island, Pac resolves to help a lost fairy home to fairyland. To
succeed, Pac must pass through towns, forge through rugged mountains,
cross dangerous ravines and trek across deserts.
Throughout the adventure, Pac is hindered by his relentless enemies
Blinky, Pinky, Inky and Clyde. These persistent ghosts dwell in the
Pac-Land and they will do everything in their power to prevent Pac
succeeding. There is also another ghost, a female Doris, who follows
him everywhere he goes.
However, Pac has allies too. Power pills when eaten turn ghosts blue,
they start trembling and can be caught - leaving their eyes to flee
from the screen ready for a rapid regeneration. Pac has an addiction
to fruit and although he can move around the whole screen, may have to
jump in order to eat cherries, apples and other fruit which may
appear.
In the town he watches for the ghosts in bubble cars. Ravines must be
crossed, tumbling logs and moving platforms negotiated carefully.
Also, the ghosts take to the skies in their aircraft when Pac is
riding the clouds.
When Pac succeeds in getting to Fairyland, the Queen presents him with
a reward of a pair of flying shoes. These speed him on his journey
home - but, Blinky, Pinky, Inky, Clyde and Doris are still following
you and there's a long way to go!
How To Play
To achieve maximum speed, move joystick twice in direction required.
Hold joystick in position to maintain that speed.
Jumping on top of objects (such as fire hydrants) can generate fruit
that gives you more points. Jumping from the spring board with
repeated movement of the joystick in the required direction will keep
Pac in the air.
At the end of each round you reach 'Break Time'. By jumping at the end
of the house you can receive a maximum of a 7650 point bonus. Also
available are 10 points, 100 points, 300 points and 1000 points.
Getting the babies as they fall out of planes gives you points (only
if you have the helmet - explained later). After getting the Pac-Pill
you can collect these and gain score just as if they were normal
ghosts (if you do this you should get Doris fifth, not last, to get
the bonus - explained later).
Game Guide
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Trip 1
Jumping on the first three fire hydrants to generate five cherries is
quite safe as you don't have any cars until after the third hydrant.
Continuing you can see another fire hydrant just after the Pac-Pill.
Straight after getting this you can push the fire hydrant backwards
getting a helmet. This enables you to collect the babies that the
ghosts throw from their planes (you lose your hat if you run out of
time or die).
Round Two - The Forest. The first 'cheat' is achieved by pushing the
second cactus back giving you 80,000 points and transporting you to
your house at the end of level two (this only works if you haven't
died and have at least 30,000 points). However, it is often worth not
using this as continuing throughout the game without using the warps
will enable you to collect more lives.
If this doesn't work then try the second, third and fourth logs in the
woods. The machine randomly chooses one of these (pushing the logs
only work if you haven't died and you have 15,000 points). Get the
cherry that appears as it turns into another three.
Round Three - The mountains. These have no cheats - but watch out for
the plane that always flies over the first mountain (a flower
sometimes grows here and in many other places, I am sure that this
means nothing). After completing the mountains you pass two cacti.
Pushing the first one back, on earlier versions, makes you invisible
and invincible to everything except the water (which just happens to
be the next obstacle!) To jump over the water - run at full speed over
the spring board and at the edge press jump and keep on whacking the
joystick to the right - you should glide over the pool! You have then
reached Fairyland! Here the Queen gives you a gift of magic boots that
enable you to fly. You then start Round 4 going back the opposite way.
Round Four - You first encounter cacti that you must jump over. If at
any point you see the letter 'S' in a Pac bubble flying about - get it
- it's an extra life. There is also another letter in a Pac bubble
that flies around the screen - the letter 'L' - this can be achieved
after getting a Pac-Pill, getting four ghosts and then Doris fifth
(Doris is the one that chases you and the only one that has no hat
after eating a Pac-Pill).
The last cactus that you jump over is very tall. Try pushing the lower
section of it backwards as this generates 7 balloons. Six of which are
worth 100 points but one is worth 7650 points. Get this and don't
bother with the others.
Continue going home once you reach the town, jump on all fire hydrants
as this always generates cherries. If pushing the cactus back didn't
do anything then try pushing the second to last fire hydrant back -
this will generate the balloons.
When you arrive home you can still jump to get 7650 points.
Trip 2
Round Five - The Town. Jump on the fire hydrants to generate cherries.
Push the third hydrant back to give you the hat. If you pass two fire
hydrants on top of each other then jump on top of these. The blue
things that push you along (water jets) can also push you on top of
the houses. This is advisable as it keeps you away from any double
decker buses! If the second fire hydrant didn't give the helmet then
the fourth fire hydrant along will.
Round Six - The water pool area. You have two short(ish) pools to
clear, followed by more ghosts on pogo sticks (here appears another
floating cherry). The last pool is the longest of these and must be
judged carefully to clear.
Round Seven - The water jets. You have three different platforms to
jump on (always try to stay on the highest one). If a flying water jet
happens to hit you then whack the joystick everywhere and press fire
as it is possible to escape. Not much on this round, just collect
loads of strawberries. After this you reach fairyland again, you
receive the boots again, and have to return home.
Round Eight - The trip home. Firstly, you have to cross the long pool
- backwards. Jump to the top of the screen straight away to get the
cherries and clear the planes. There are stumps sticking out that you
can land on and get cherries. After this there is the forest to
complete. The first or second to last log will give the balloons.
Trip 3
Round Nine - The Water Pool Area. You leave your house and go straight
into the water pool area. There are three cacti on this round. Pushing
either the first (before the pool), second (before the skeleton) or
third (before the Pac-pill) back will give you the helmet. The pool is
slightly different as it has a stump sticking out of the water that
has an extra spring board you can land on. After this there is a
skeleton (that drags you down into the ground) and must be jumped
over.
Round Ten - The forest. Pushing one of the logs back will make you
invincible to the ghosts. This works even if you have died. When you
start flashing, the invincibility is about to ware off.
Round eleven - The logs and clouds. Much like the one on Trip 1 except
after jumping the logs, you have to jump onto clouds (although not
essential as Pac can clear all the cloud jumps in one). After this you
reach fairyland yet again and you receive the boots.
Round twelve - The trip home. First collect the three cherries. Then
you have to jump backwards over a large pool - with no stumps. After
this you reach the town. One of the few fire hydrants gives the
balloon's.
Trip 4
Round 13 - The Town. This level has many double hydrants. Jump on
these and wait for the water jet to push you up onto the houses.
Walking along the houses gives you some cherries. On many versions
there is no helmet on this round.
Round 14 - The cavern. You have to collect the keys to open the doors.
The first key is on the top layer. Jump up there to get it. Keep going
right and fall down the hole. Keep going right and fall down the next
one too (you should now be on the bottom layer). Keep going right
(staying on this level) and open the door. Keep going right. Jump up
through the next hole and get the apples. Continue right, fall down
the hole and get the key. Use this immediately to open the door.
Keep going right, do not jump through the first hole and stay on the
lowest level. You can then get two apples, jump through the hole and
get a key, and then fall through another hole to get another two
apples. Continue right and after opening the door, jump through the
holes to get from the bottom level to the top. Open the door you reach
and go through. Fall through the next two holes (so that you are back
on the lowest level). Open the door you reach and get the two apples.
Return through the door you've just come through, jump to the middle
layer and continue right. You will now be out of the cavern and have
reached 'break time'. So long as you don't waste time and keys it is
actually easy.
Round 15 - The water jets. I think that pushing one of these fire
hydrants may give the helmet, but I'm not too sure. Watch out for the
planes at the very end of the level. Try to jump on them.
Round 16 - The trip home. The first gives the balloon's. Next it's the
mountains. The is normally an extra life lurking around the second
mountain so go backwards once for it if it doesn't come (an 'S' in a
Pac). Then is the forest. The first log encountered gives the
balloon's if the cactus didn't.
Trip 5
Round 17 - A forest level. On some versions of the machine the very
first cactus will give the helmet. Just before the water is a Pac-Pill
and it is quite easy to get the time bonus. After the pool, there is a
short forest, following that is a spring board that must be used to
clear a second pool that cannot be seen from that point.
Round 18 is the cavern, but you only have limited sight. The first key
is on the lower level. Go right, then jump up to the middle level,
then jump up to the top layer. Keep going right and fall down a hole
to the middle layer (you'll be in between two doors). Jump back up to
the top level (making sure you don't open either of these.
Once back on the top level, keep going right and you'll reach a door.
Open it and get the key directly behind. Keep going right, fall down
to the middle layer, get the key, fall down to the lower level,
collect the fruit. Open the door you come across. Don't jump through
the next hole, but through the one after that. Jump to get the key
(fall straight back down again). Keep going right. Jump up through the
next hole, go right, and fall down the next.
Open the next door (you're still on the bottom level) and jump through
the next hole. Then jump up to the top level, open the door and get
the fruit. Go through on the top and open the end door. Fall through
the holes and go to the bottom level. Go right and collect the fruit
there. finally, go to the middle level and exit to 'Break Time'.
Round 19 - The mountains. Clear these and the clouds as usual, but
watch out for the planes at the end (over the part with three sets of
moving logs). Enter fairyland.
Round 20 - The return home. This is very easy. Keep on going left, You
first hit a forest. Watch out for the ghost near the end. This is
followed by a pool, get all the cherries on the way, but _don't_ stop
for anything. Then you reach another forest, then another pool, then
the last forest (watch out for another ghost here) and then the town.
By the time you reach the town you will be out of time and must run
full speed from Doris. Try to get the Pac-Pill but if you miss it,
don't go back for it!
Trip 6
Round 21 - The town. This is hard as there are so many ghosts. It is
pointless jumping onto the double hydrants as getting on top of the
houses may involve hitting a plane. Try to stay on the top of the
double-decker busses, jumping from one to another. This will stop you
needing a run up. The Pac-Pill at the end can only be got by first
jumping onto a ghost. Don't bother with it unless you are already on a
ghost. Go straight for 'Break Time'.
Round 22 - The mountains. As well as the clouds, you meet a new
section - four logs in water that must be jumped onto and crossed.
Careful judgement is needed here. Get the Pac-Pill afterwards as
you'll need it. Time is short so don't stop for anything.
Round 23 - The water jets. This gets hard towards the end as there are
many ghosts around. Try to stay on the planes. You then reach
fairyland.
Round 24 - The trip home. First are the water jets to cross. This is
quite easy as there aren't many ghosts and enables you to collect a
lot of fruit. Then you enter the town. The last part of this is very
hard. Just jump for the Pac-Pill when you see it and hope you get it
before you are killed! Don't wait around.
Trip 7
Round 25 - The woods. There are two woods split up by a load of
skeletons. Don't use the spring board or you will hit one of the
planes. All of the skeletons are fake apart from the first and last.
So don't worry about touching them. When you enter the first wood,
look for the helmet at the fourth log. I think it is hidden in there.
Round 26 - The mountains - again! This time you don't have many logs
to jump on and there are very few clouds. Most of the mountains have
to be jumped without any clouds. This level also contains the logs in
water and is the furthest that I've ever got.
My high score is 517,670
End
