Released in 1980 as an arcade game, Pac-Man is still the little pellet muncher that we all love and the game my sister still crushes me on. In a recent Yahoo! article, we learned a few more things about our on-the-go (or on-the-run) guy. Starting with the fact that his original name was Puck Man, but they changed it because you little American heathens would potentially scratch off parts of the P and make him more relatable....
1. Chic Magnet. The reason Pac-Man was created was to attract female gamers. The arcade center was a playground for boys and it was dirty and grimey and the only way to clean it up, in essence, was to attract girls.
2. Goal-oriented Ghosts. Even though it may feel like everyone is after you, Blinky, the red ghost, is the only one who doggedly pursues you throughout the game. Pinky, the pink ghost , simply wants to position itself at a point that's 32 pixels in front of Pac-Man's mouth. The blue ghost, Inky, is seeking to position itself at a similar fixed spot. And Clyde, the orange ghost, moves completely at random.
3. Food Enthusiast. Pac-Man is completely food oriented all the way down to his design which is symbolic of a piece of pizza with one slice missing. In Japanese, "puck puck" is akin to the U.S. saying "munch munch". So the original name - Puck-Man - translated as "Munch man". (A savvy Midway Games official changed it to Pac-Man when the game hit the U.S. to discourage vandals from shaving off part of the "P," thereby creating an obscene word.)
Just because you are now more informed about Pac-Man, doesn't mean you are any better at the game. Challenge, let's go!
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