One Nintendo gamer finds a long-out-of-printGame Boygame while cleaning out their apartment:Ms. Pac-Man. Many gamers might be familiar with the retro game and the titular character of Namco’s franchise. Unlike most games inthePac-Manfranchise,Ms. Pac-Manwasn’t made by Namco, but by a completely different developer.
Ms. Pac-Man’s history is complicated. Following the success of the originalPac-Man, a sequel starring Pac-Man’s wife was developed by General Computer Corporation, having a lot of the same gameplay with some tweaks. Despite being made without Namco’s consent, the project was officially released, with Namco president Masaya Nakamura even providing feedback on the character’s design. The game was released on a variety of consoles, including theGame Boy. This eventually led to a variety of legal ownership issues between Namco and General Computer Corporation, kicking off a lawsuit in 2019 between Bandai Namco and AtGames. One gamer recently found a version of the olderMs. Pac-Mangame.
Posted on the r/gaming subreddit, user azurianlight posted how they found aMs. Pac-ManGame Boy cartridgewhile cleaning an apartment. The apartment’s tenants have already moved out, according to the user, and were cleaning up whatever mess they left behind.Ms. Pac-Manwas released on both the original Game Boy and Game Boy Color, getting a “Special Color Edition” as well. This cartridge is a bit of a lucky find, as it is a piece of gaming history that has the character’s older design.
The game isn’t that rare, as listings on eBay show the game being available for sale at a reasonable price. However, considering the tumultuous history of Ms. Pac-Man, it’s still a good find while cleaning out an older tenant’s apartment. Many users commented on azurianlight’s post, commenting on howthe Game Boy cartridge brings a wave of nostalgiafor older gamers like them. One noted that while the game wasn’t always fun, it’s still worth trying out nowadays if only for the nostalgia and history behind it.
What Happened to Ms. Pac-Man?
Following the AtGames and Bandai Namco court proceedings, the lawsuit was ultimately dismissed in 2020. However, the original Ms. Pac-Man never showed up again in her original guise, as the character was replaced with a new one known as Pac-Mom. This new character, like Ms. Pac-Man, is Pac-Man’s wife, and she has appeared in games like the ones included in thePac-Man Museum+re-release collection (e.g.Pac-Land), along withthe 2022Pac-Man World Re-Pacremake.
Nintendo Game Boy
Nintendo’s original Game Boy was part of the fourth generation of consoles and was the first time the company attempted to create a handheld gaming system. It was beloved by players and managed to spawn a successful line of upgraded Game Boys in the future.
