Pacman is 25 Years Old Article

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http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/fun.games/06/15/pac.man.25.ap/index.html

Brent

 

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"This was the first time a player took on a persona in the game.
Instead of controlling inanimate objects like tanks, paddles and
missile bases" Is that true?
I mean, what about Frogs?
http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?letter=F&game_id=7858 although it
could be argued you're just playing different frogs, not one specific
one with a name.
I guess Snoopy Pong doesn't really count since you're not playing
Snoopy http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?letter=S&game_id=9598
How about Warrior?
http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?letter=W&game_id=10408

Any of you Pac aficionados care to comment? Was Pacman really the first
character-driven game?

 

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I think it was the first game with a named character that was
controlled by the player. Pac-Man was also given some personality
through the little between-level intermissions. In my opinion, that's
why he's considered the first "character" in video games.

Undeniably, Pac-Man (as a character) was quite a phenomenon. Everybody
tried to jump on the character-driven game bandwagon after that--some
successfully (Donkey Kong, Q*Bert), others not so much (Pengo,
Kangaroo, Venture).

You're right, though--the article's author could have been a bit more
precise in his/her wording. Certainly, as you've pointed out, there
were games before Pac-Man where the player wasn't a tank, paddle, or
missile base. I believe Berzerk was also released before Pac-Man, for
instance. I think what the author really meant to say was that the
player's "character" in games like Warrior or Berzerk was really little
more than a missile base or paddle with legs. Actually, the Warrior
guys didn't even have legs!

-Dave Ellis
http://www.davesclassicarcade.com

computerspacefan@hotmail.com wrote:
> "This was the first time a player took on a persona in the game.
> Instead of controlling inanimate objects like tanks, paddles and
> missile bases" Is that true?
> I mean, what about Frogs?
> http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?letter=F&game_id=7858 although it
> could be argued you're just playing different frogs, not one specific
> one with a name.
> I guess Snoopy Pong doesn't really count since you're not playing
> Snoopy http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?letter=S&game_id=9598
> How about Warrior?
> http://www.klov.com/game_detail.php?letter=W&game_id=10408
>
> Any of you Pac aficionados care to comment? Was Pacman really the first
> character-driven game?

 

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Personality because of the intermissions? Maybe so, but the whole damn
game drips personality if you ask me. Each of the enemy monsters has
thier own set of character traits and a different way of "thinking"
given the same situation. Those of us who have played the game
extensively without the aid of patterns have been aware of this.
Damn fine game. Still the best game ever created in my opinion.

 

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Yes I think I would agree with you that Pacman is the greatest video
game ever made. Not to sound like a Pac-Maniac or anything (there are
other games I have a higher personal fondness for) but if I was asked
by someone what is the all time greatest video game ever, I would have
to agree that Pacman wins the vote. Highly influential, highly
successful, highly enjoyable by gamers of all ages, skill levels, and
both sexes, highly distinctive, without a doubt a cultural icon. Alas I
think the "most copied" title goes to Space Invaders but that's about
the only thing Pacman loses out in.

 

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The article on MSN that I'm reading today calls Billy Mitchell Billy
Williams. Hmmm...

BrentRadio wrote:
> http://www.cnn.com/2005/TECH/fun.games/06/15/pac.man.25.ap/index.html
>
> Brent
>
>