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Pac-Man's free on Google Play!
Monday 25th March 2013 | Osh
Love Pac-Man? Got an Android device? Well you’re in luck, as Namco has released Pac-Man + Tournaments on Google Play (sorry iOS fans, it’s Android-exclusive, at least for now). Having launched late last week, the app includes the classic arcade game, and also introduces a new tournament mode which brings in new mazes and a leaderboard feature.
Gameplay is simple - you basically swipe across the screen, and Pac-Man moves in the direction you swiped. While the app is free, it should be noted that the tournament feature steers towards the freemium route, and runs on micro-transactions. How this works is that you register for the tournament, and 10 tokens are automatically awarded to you upon completing registration. Entering a tournament costs 1 token, and once you run out of them you’ll have to purchase more in-app. The cheapest deal starts at $0.99 for 10 tokens, and goes up to $99.99(!) for 3500 tokens, if you’re feeling particularly generous. Each tournament runs for 7 days, and at the end of each tournament a new maze is released.
When asked about its decision to launch on Google Play instead of iTunes, Namco stated that “Android is the biggest OS in terms of installed base today. While Pac-Man is already very present on iOS, it can benefit from a lot more visibility with Android users. Additionally, Google’s recent initiatives on games have really won us over, and it was a logical step for us to launch this new title first on Google Play.” This is decidedly an odd decision, as the fragmentation of the Android OS (Jelly Bean – the latest version of Android – accounts for less than 10% of Android web traffic) may lead to compatibility issues. Nevertheless, it is refreshing to see something other than Apple have the spotlight.
So if you’re dying to bask in 1980s nostalgia or if you’re too young to have never heard of Pac-Man and want to check it out, give the app a try! You can download it here.
by Chase Chung
Source: Forbes
