"Perfectly Passable Platforming"

Before I fired up my first game of 'Pac-Man World 2,' I was sitting on my couch, flipping through a gaming magazine. I was reading an article on the upcoming PC shooter 'No One Lives Forever 2,' which detailed the game's brilliant artificial intelligence, amazing frame-rates, and deep combat featuring all manners of weaponry. And on the magazine's cover was the game's heroine, Cate Archer, a sexy super-spy with impeccable style. All in all, the article detailed the amazing promise of modern gaming. So pardon me if I laughed a little as I watched 'Pac-Man World 2' fire up, and Pac-Man himself appeared on my screen. In lieu of the perfect body of Cate Archer, there was an ambling yellow lump smiling at me, whose body is not likely to excite anyone in the near future. (Except, of course, for Ms. Pac-Man. Hey, when is Pac-Man going to make an honest woman out of her? That sly rascal.) But despite his lack of conventional good looks, Pac-Man's charm hasn't faded in these 20-plus years. He's back doing the platforming thing in 'Pac-Man World 2,' and while the game isn't especially original, it's a fun little romp with a heavy dose of old-school flavor.
One of the best aspects of the game is the way it combines the traditional elements of previous 'Pac-Man' games with modern platforming action. Pac-Man's raging pellet addiction is still in full effect, and he will gobble hundreds upon hundreds of 'em before your adventure is over. The pellets are included primarily for scoring purposes, but eating fifty will also replenish some of Pac-Man's health. Power pellets are also back, and eating one is still the only way to take down a ghost. But just as in the original 'Pac-Man,' the effects of a power pellet only last for a short while, so make sure to gobble up any offending spectres as quickly as possible. And what would a 'Pac-Man' game be without bonus fruit? Eating one of those little rascals - be it the highly profitable melon, or the not-quite-so-profitable-but-still-pretty-yummy cherries - adds some points to your score. Having a high score for every level is a great touch for us old-schoolers who fondly remember the days of trying to have the highest score in the 'Pac-Man' cabinet at the arcade. Still, if you don't give a hoot about points, you can ignore the fruit and just try to complete each stage without any fuss.
The game's control system will be pretty familiar to anyone who has ever played a platform game before. Pac-Man can jump, of course, and do a little butt-bounce in mid-air. This butt-bounce can be performed over and over again, thus turning Pac-Man into a yellow basketball of sorts. Watching him bounce all over the place is rather entertaining, especially with the requisite wacky bouncing noise Pac-Man makes when he hits the ground. Pac-Man can also land on some enemies and squash them with the butt-bouncing technique. He's also got a speed dash, which is good for zipping up hills, or making long jumps off of ramps. And what would a modern platformer be without the ability to dangle precariously from ledges, thus allowing you to either climb up, or jump down brazenly? Pac-Man does it all. He can even eat a special pellet that turns him into Metal Pac-Man, thus allowing him to walk underwater. (I guess the designers of 'Pac-Man World 2' have been playing a lot of 'Super Mario 64' lately. And can you blame them?) As you can see, there's nothing really revolutionary going on here. Sonic perfected the speed dash back on the Sega Genesis, and Mario has been jumping on enemies for eons. But hey, Pac-Man was around before both of 'em were stars, so I guess he can be forgiven for a little unoriginality. Besides, one could make the argument that Mario's coins and Sonic's golden rings are just rip-offs of Pac-Man's yellow pellets. I'm not sure why someone would want to argue about something like that, but hey, I'm just making the point.
For reasons unknown, this game has a plot. It seems that Pac-Man's old enemies - the wily ghosts - have stolen the magical golden fruit from Pac-Village. (Which is goofier - the existence of magical golden fruit, or the fact that Pac-Man lives in Pac-Village?) This wouldn't normally be a major problem, except for the fact that the aforementioned golden fruit were keeping the great and evil Spooky in captivity beneath the village. With the fruit gone, Spooky wakes up and promises revenge on all Pac-People, enlisting the four pesky ghosts into his schemes. Oddly enough, after making this dire threat, Spooky just sort of wanders off. Wouldn't he want to stick around in Pac-Village, where his sworn enemies live? That would seem to be the best place to destroy those pesky Pac-People. But who needs logic in wacky games like these? Perhaps Spooky just knows the rules of video gaming and wants to set the stage for an epic showdown.
Okay, so the game's story is pretty lame and generic fare. And the game play - the usual stomp-the-baddies, collect-the-goodies, fight-the-occasional-boss fare - is competent but unoriginal. But both of these factors would be acceptable, so long as the game was fun. And it is, thanks to tried-and-true platforming fun, 'Pac-Man' nostalgia, and a very high charm quotient.
I'll forgive a game for borrowing elements from other titles, so long as it uses those elements well. And 'Pac-Man World 2' is a very polished title, with smooth controls and fairly clever design. Some of the bonus fruits are hidden, but they can usually be found with a little searching, which adds a little challenge without excess frustration. None of the game's jumps are as dastardly as they are in, say, 'Maximo,' which is good for more casual gamers who don't enjoy swearing at their television. (Of course, swearing is still an option, if you're into that sort of thing.) The game's only real control flaw is the pesky camera, which has a bad habit of getting stuck and leaving you out to dry on a ledge or platform. If Pac-Man has his back to a wall, the camera probably won't be able to swing behind him. This can be a major problem if you're surrounded by a bottomless chasm and can't remember where the platform is that you jumped from. Having to pick a direction and make a blind leap can be a little disheartening, especially when Pac-Man plummets to his untimely death because of a lazy camera man. Sometimes, it's best to ignore bonus fruit on far-flung ledges, and not risk a blind jump on the way back.
The graphics in 'Pac-Man World 2' aren't going to set the world on fire, but they're bright and crisp, and fit the game's light-hearted theme very well. With the gaming world heading towards 'realistic' visuals, it can be nice to bask in the traditional, colorful silliness of a platform game. Pac-Man himself is a fun little sight, and he'll splash around in the water or do little exercise routines if you stop pressing buttons for a short while. That big goofy grin of his is a little disconcerting, though. What's he always smiling about? Are there some dark secrets behind that happy facade? I guess we'll never know. Anyhow, if you dig a lot of color and a constantly high frame-rate, you'll like what you see here in 'Pac-Man World 2.'
Musically, the game offers traditional platformer tunes, of the soft and catchy variety. 'Pac-Man' fans will be happy to know that all of their favorite melodies and sound effects are here, in full next-generation glory. Pellet-munching noise? Check. Wacky death sound? Check. Old-school gamers will find it hard to hold back a smile when they hear that Pac-Man makes the same silly noise gobbling up bonus fruit as he did twenty years ago. You'll find yourself singing along to a lot of the songs in this game. You won't be proud of it, perhaps, but you'll sing along just the same.
And the fun doesn't stop, baby. There's an arcade in Pac-Village, filled with just about every 'Pac-Man' game ever made. As you collect tokens throughout the game, you'll unlock the various machines in the arcade for your nostalgic enjoyment. The original 'Pac-Man' machine seemed to have a slight lag to it, which was rather disappointing. Still, the fact that Namco included the arcade at all is a nice touch. Nothing will ever beat the experience of heading down to the arcade to play 'Pac-Man' at a genuine cabinet, but legal emulation isn't a bad substitute.
So what's the final verdict? In the end, I have to recommend 'Pac-Man World 2', despite a few flaws. While it lacks the fantasy and beauty of 'Klonoa 2' or the scope of 'Jak and Daxter,' it provides a solid dose of platforming action mixed with the timeless fun of the 'Pac-Man' universe. Fans of the platform genre or Pac-Man himself will find a lot to like here.

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 03/02/02, Updated 03/02/02