Play Pac-Man World Online

I picked up Pac-Man World on the Game Boy Advance back in 2004, a Namco release that tried something different with the character. It was a time when a lot of classic arcade mascots were getting the 2D platformer treatment on handhelds, and this was Pac-Man's turn. It felt like a natural, if slightly odd, fit for the hardware.

You control Pac-Man himself, navigating a series of self-contained levels to rescue his family from a mechanical ghost menace. The main goal is straightforward: get to the end of each stage, but you're also hunting down letters that spell PAC-MAN for extra lives. The signature moves are his butt-bounce, used to stun ghosts and break certain blocks, and the rev roll, a short dash for smashing obstacles and gaining speed. The pacing is brisk, the levels are compact, and the difficulty is fair, never feeling cheap. It feels like a competent, no-fuss platformer that gets the job done.