Pac-Man Plus: the harder Midway remix nobody talks about
Released the same year as Ms. Pac-Man and overshadowed by it, Pac-Man Plus was Midway's own attempt to make the original unpredictable again.
Why Midway made it
By 1982 pattern players were monopolising cabinets, playing for an hour on one coin. Midway's response was a conversion kit: new ROMs that kept the maze layout but changed the rules enough that memorised routes stopped working. The problem it solved is described in how pacman patterns work, and the same problem produced the randomised ghosts of Ms. Pac-Man, compared in original pacman versus ms pacman.
What changed
- Green maze with the same walls as the original, so the layout in pacman maze tiles and tunnels still applies.
- New bonus items replacing the fruit: a cocktail glass, a can of cola and other novelty icons alongside some of the original fruit.
- Unpredictable power pellets. Eating one may turn all four ghosts blue as usual, turn only three of them blue, or make the maze walls invisible for the duration.
- Bonus items with side effects. Eating a bonus item can also turn the ghosts blue, sometimes with the maze invisible, giving the player a second kind of power-up.
- Faster ghosts and shorter blue times on early levels.
How it plays
The randomness is small but decisive. Because you cannot know in advance whether a pellet will affect all ghosts or leave one hunting you, the ghost-grouping tactic from pacman strategy tips becomes a gamble, and the invisible-maze effect punishes anyone who has not memorised the corridors. Experienced players describe it as the original with the safety rails removed.
Legacy
Pac-Man Plus sold modestly and was quickly eclipsed by Ms. Pac-Man. It survives in compilations and emulation, and its invisible-maze idea reappeared decades later as a visual theme in Championship Edition. It is also, confusingly, one of the games people have in mind when they search for a "Mr." version, as explained in mr pacman versus ms pacman explained. The full catalogue of official releases is in list of pacman games.
More from the guides
- the man who designed pacman — Who created Pac-Man: designer Toru Iwatani, programmer Shigeo Funaki and composer Toshio K…
- pacman tips for higher scores — Pac-Man strategy for higher scores: cornering, ghost grouping before power pellets, patter…
- fastest perfect pacman games — Pac-Man world records explained: the first perfect game in 1999, the fastest perfect games…
Frequently asked questions
What is Pac-Man Plus?
A 1982 Midway conversion of the original with a green maze, new bonus items and power pellets with random effects.
Is Pac-Man Plus harder than Pac-Man?
Yes. Random pellet effects and an invisible-maze mode defeat patterns and punish mistakes.
Is Pac-Man Plus an official game?
Yes, it was released by Midway under its Namco licence and appears in official compilations.