Developer: Namco (PlayStation Original) Mass Media (N64 Port) Publisher: Namco

Released: November 13, 2000 Rated: E 7/10

With expectations largely tempered by prior examples of classic arcade revivals on the N64, and in the era altogether, Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness and its admittedly goofy title probably doesn’t look like it has much going on. And when you pop it in the console and realize that it’s much more within the confines of the original arcade game’s mechanics – grid-based movement across 2D mazes, utilizing transporters and power pellets to avoid ghosts and snatch up fruits and pellets before heading for the exit – you could be forgiven for thinking this title was thrown together quickly after the strong sales of titles like Pac-Man World and the Namco Museum series. 

Hopping right into the campaign, however, it quickly becomes clear that the Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness actually offers a fairly consistent set of well-executed gameplay concepts – ones almost specifically designed to act as a foil to the 3D platforming of Pac-Man World and revitalize the classic 2D maze style. Probably owing largely to an in-house development by Namco themselves, the mishandling of trying to push their flagship Pac-People into other genres and leave the original style of the smash hit titles in the arcades is left behind. Returning to the maze concept that Pac-Man originated and Ms. Pac-Man herself improved upon the most, Maze Madness builds itself around sprawling, multi-sectioned maze levels that bounce back and forth between exploration, puzzle-solving, and classic arcade-style pellet-munching. Each level, grouped into worlds with different visual styles, including ancient Egypt, ice and lava-filled caverns, an odd sort of Chinese harbor/shipyard with a space backdrop, and lastly, a Halloween-themed zone based on the campaign’s big bad. Ms. Pac-Man travels across these worlds, fighting off ghosts and other minions of the evil witch Mesmerelda, collecting fruits, pushing blocks, and meticulously hunting down pellets in an overarching quest to recover some Infinity Stone-looking magic gems and save Pac-Land.

It’s certainly not much to write home about from a presentation standpoint. A simple story, right out of the ancient cartoons intended to cash in on the popularity of the original arcade titles, some pretty basic music and familiar sound effects, and some typical concessions for the N64 port we have in front of us, such as no FMV cutscenes. Most of what gets Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness by without feeling outright cheap is an inherent sense of charm that can only be forfeited if say, Ms. Pac-Man herself looks too rough, which she doesn’t, or the gimmicks throughout the levels run dry too quickly, which they don’t, either from a gameplay standpoint or a visual one. The only real drawback is that in an already fairly short game, the N64 port is actually missing a few levels. A few boss fights and a bonus level also mix things up, but it’s actually kind of weird how limited this variety is in the end. Though there’s some added length by making the player essentially 100% the game, including time trials and obtaining every item, before getting to the second version of Mesmerelda’s boss fight, the lack of campaign content might be one of the only real drawbacks. 

In a game I admittedly have a little trouble describing why it’s so enjoyable, other than referencing back to the original Ms. Pac-Man (you don’t have to press a single button to play, just move Ms. Pac-Man like in the arcade game), I have just as much trouble picking out anything that’s really that offensive about it other than this short length. It’s too simple a game to laud with real praise, but just as difficult to fault for things other than some enemies that get particularly annoying (little dynamite stick bastards that mob you relentlessly) or a niggle about the camera, which I think scrolls a bit too slowly sometimes and can make you take hits that don’t seem fair. It isn’t as hard to deal with as in, say, Pac-Mania, or any version of Pac-Man that requires a lot of scrolling (looking at you, Neo Geo Pocket), but it’s one issue that I felt came up more than a few times.

Surprisingly, Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness even comes through with a pretty decent multiplayer mode to fill out the package, not to mention, of course, the original Ms. Pac-Man arcade game. Even if it’s already available via Namco Museum 64, for example, it’s good to have – it is, after all, the best Pac-Man game – and couldn’t have been too hard to include, considering Mass Media already made it work on the console in Namco Museum anyway. The multiplayer, meanwhile, is the type of game that feels like it was added in quickly near the end of development, though not because it’s bad. It’s just fairly simple, which can still make for some great fun with a full group of friends, though you can also play it with only a single player against bots. Three pretty simple game modes are easy and fun to pick up and play – a free-for-all pellet munching race, a similar mode but one where only one player can collect pellets at a time, and a bomb-tag last-man-standing mode. It’s actually pretty obvious that this whole mode is lacking in polish, as it’s choppy, frantic, and a little tough to make out what’s going on. But damn if that doesn’t make for some real havoc that local multiplayer can get by on. Definitely worth a try, just like everything else about this game.

Although the disc-based versions have a slight edge on this release due to not having any cut levels, Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness is, all around, a lot of fun. Not quite at the levels to earn that coveted “must-play, hidden gem alert” status that we all like to make a big deal of here in retro gaming land, but it’s pretty cool to think that Pac-Man, as a franchise, had both a successful 3D platforming transition and a sweet little close-to-home update like we have here. Although it would be nice to have gotten both on the N64, Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness is easily one of the better examples of the arcade titles to get a fresh coat of paint in this era. Check it out if you’re a fan of the Pac-Classics.

Continuing Legacy

Following something of a direct sequel on the PC the following year, Ms. Pac-Man: Quest for the Golden Maze (and an odd port of Maze Madness in 2004 to the GameBoy Advance), this is one of the last times we would see the true Pac-Mistress in a starring role. While she would make appearances in future titles like Pac-Man World Rally, her last official depiction in was in the mobile game Sonic Dash in 2018. As of 2023, there have been multiple instances of legal issues surrounding royalties for Ms. Pac-Man as a game and a character, stemming from the fact that the original arcade game was made by American company GCC and published by Midway, rather than being a Namco product like the rest of the franchise. As a result, Namco has introduced Pac-Mom in titles like Pac-Man Museum+ and Arcade Archives releases, and telling all of us kids to get used to it, rather than they themselves facing the problem head-on and resolve things with our real mom. In other words, you can have all the Pac-Man you want, but Ms. Pac-Man has moved permanently out of state and taken the good china with her.

Additional Information

Saves: Controller Pak

Compatible With: Rumble Pak

Players: 1-4

Print Guides: Prima

Aggregate Critical Reception (GameRankings): 73.77%, based on 6 reviews

Other Releases: N/A

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