{"id":2625,"date":"2015-12-11T21:29:00","date_gmt":"2015-12-12T02:29:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/armchairarcade.com\/perspectives\/?p=2625"},"modified":"2015-12-14T10:03:41","modified_gmt":"2015-12-14T15:03:41","slug":"review-pac-man-connect-and-play-35th-anniversary-edition-includes-videos","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/armchairarcade.com\/perspectives\/2015\/12\/11\/review-pac-man-connect-and-play-35th-anniversary-edition-includes-videos\/","title":{"rendered":"Review: Pac-Man Connect & Play 35th Anniversary Edition (includes videos)"},"content":{"rendered":"

Bandai’s Pac-Man Connect & Play 35th Anniversary Edition<\/a> is one of those rare TV Games that sports an incredible low price with minimal sacrifice in quality. While not perfect, it does set a high standard for other TV Games to try and match. For those who just want to see videos of how each of the 12 included games performs, you can skip straight to the Menu and Games section<\/strong> of this review. Otherwise, start with Console and Control<\/strong> and read on from there to get the complete picture.<\/p>\n

\"The

The console is self-contained and certainly looks interesting.<\/p><\/div>\n

Console and Control<\/h2>\n

The Pac-Man Connect & Play 35th Anniversary Edition<\/a> is a highly portable, self-contained unit. Pull apart the two pieces of the case and you’ll find the attached composite cables and a battery compartment. Four AA batteries<\/a> are required, but not included, and there is no provision for using an AC adapter. The mono composite cables (yellow for video, white for audio) are fairly short at about 6 feet (1.8 meters), so you’ll either want to get extensions<\/a> or settle for playing close to your TV.<\/p>\n

\"You

You pull the console apart to replace batteries and get at the audio\/video cables.<\/p><\/div>\n

I’ve read reports that the previous versions of this product had poor joysticks. That seems to have been addressed with this edition branded with the 35th Anniversary markings<\/a>, so you’ll want to be sure to specifically get that model (assuming there was an issue in the first place). With that said, because of the interesting looking, yet unfortunate, shape of the shell, this is not really great for handheld use. If you use it on a table top like I’ve been doing, then you’ll find the joystick and buttons incredibly responsive for each of the 12 included games. It really does have a nice arcade feel.<\/p>\n

\"Do

Do yourself a favor and play this like you would a tabletop console.<\/p><\/div>\n

Menu and Games<\/h2>\n
\"That's

That’s a nice selection of games.<\/p><\/div>\n

The colorful menu screen appears to be in an unusual resolution, but looks nice enough and packs in a good amount of information. The nice thing about the menu is that all 12 game titles fit on one screen, so it’s easy to select your game of choice with the joystick and A button. What follows then is an alphabetical listing of the 12 games and a short, direct feed video showing each one in action:<\/p>\n

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  • Bosconian<\/strong>\u2014Although little known today, this 1981 free-roaming scrolling shooter was technically impressive for its time.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n