Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions Review

Pac-Man is right up there with gaming's most recognisable mascots, and Galaga has some definite history of its own. And realising the pulling power that both of these franchises have, Namco Bandai has decided to team them up to create Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions. But before you get carried away with the possibilities, this isn't some weird hybrid game where Pac-Man flies around in space shooting up aliens. No, this is a collection of three games from each franchise: some old, some new.

Let's start off with the old. There are four games here. First up, you've got the original arcade versions of both Pac-Man and Galaga. They are faithfully recreated on the Nintendo 3DS and if you enjoyed them in their original form, then you'll have great fun here.

Next up, you've got Pac-Man Championship Edition and Galaga Legions - both great titles. However, it's a bit disappointing that they were included in the package as there are better versions out there that Namco Bandai could have included. For example, Pac-Man Championship Edition DX. It's quite disappointing, but not because Pac-Man Champion Edition is a bad game - far from it. It's disappointing because there was a better option available and Namco chose to go with the original.

What separates Pac-Man Championship Edition from the original isn't just the vibrant colours, it's also the increased speed and amended layout. It doesn't work in waves like the original. Now you have to complete each side of the maze to continue going - once you collect a bonus item, dots re-appear with things getting progressively harder. It's a load of fun and there are lots of different modes to try out.

With Galaga Legions, the same thing scenario is again applicable. Since this released, Galaga Legions DX has been released, yet Namco chose to include the original the package instead of the follow-up.

Legions saw the gameplay of Galaga renovated in a huge way. It was still a fixed shooter, but the enemy patterns and gameplay were quite different. It also added the ability to fix gun positions at certain points on the map for strategy. Not only did this lead to a more tense gameplay experience, it also allowed the developers to be more creative with how waves of enemies entered in the fray.

To try and sweeten the deal, Namco did include two original titles - Pac-Man Tilt and Galaga 3D Impact. The problem is, they aren't that great compared to Pac-Man Champion Edition or Galaga Legions.