The year was 1982. The San Fransisco 49ers won the Superbowl, Michael Jackson released Thriller, Rocky III was in theaters, Knight Rider was on television, and Midway released Ms. Pac Man as a sequel to the uber-popular arcade classic Pac Man. ,
Ms. Pac Man Tabletop for Sale
I was pleasantly surprised to learn that classic arcade machines like Ms. Pac Man are making a huge comeback and are reasonably priced for those looking to buy. Games and activities like this are great for get-togethers office parties, and birthday parties. Nostalgia for 80s memorabilia is back in fashion. If you’re like me, you’ve always dreamed of owning your own arcade cabinet with your favorite games.
The Inception of Ms. Pac Man
It seems funny now but early arcade games like Pac Man and Ms. Pac Man were revolutionary. Before video games, pinball, dart, and bowling were the games people choose to play.
Ms. Pac Man was originally developed by MIT students Kevin Curran and Doug Macrae as an add-on to the original Pac Man. However, originally she was not a she.
Crazy Otto was the original game character but was later changed to Ms. Pac Man. Midway was granted permission to release the title from Namco, a Japanese company who originally produced the predecessor.
One major selling point of Ms. Pac Man was to entice or encourage more young women/girls to play video games. Since there is a huge audience of loyal ladies playing video games these days, this little tidbit seems odd but it was true in the 80s.
Memories of Ms. Pac Man
Back in 1982, I was your typical 11-year-old kid. I had not yet been jaded by the cruel corporate world
I had two loves in life, classic 80s arcade games, and pizza. Luckily enough, we had a God Father’s Pizza restaurant in the town I grew up in that provided both of these loves to me at the same time.
Godfather’s had a Ms. Pac Man cocktail table. For those younger readers out there, an arcade machine was either a standup or sit-down model. The sit-down models are sometimes called cocktail arcade cabinets.
As a child of the 80s, there was something magical about going to the local arcade and dropping all of my allowance money into my favorite coin-operated arcade games.
There was a show back in the 80s called Silver Spoons staring Ricky Shroder. In the show, Ricky played a rich kid with an arcade in his house. Although he was a fictional character, he was the envy of every kid around my age at that time.
As much as I loved the social aspect of visiting the local arcade, I always dreamed of what it must be like to own my own machine.
Some of my best memories as a child was going out for pizza and video games and playing with my friends. There was always a long line of people waiting their turn to play Ms. Pac Man while others patiently waited and watched.
Part of the fun of watching others was to try and glean some new patterns or strategies to incorporate. And everyone was vying for the high score so they could be hailed as the current champion.
How Popular was Ms. Pac Man?
When I was growing up, video games were still in their infancy and were just getting started. 1982 was about the time we got our Atari 2600 for Christmas. All the cool kids owned one.
Like a lot of cultural phenomena, Ms. Pac Man’s image was plastered over various books, magazines, dolls and action figures, and jigsaw puzzles.
Did you know that Ms. Pac Man was once a Saturday morning cartoon? In 1982, Hanna Barbera produced a cartoon on ABC that featured Pac Man, Ms. Pac Man, Pac Baby and a team of ghosts. The show only lasted 2 seasons.
Bros. for Wii U, and Sonic Dash.
In addition to merchandise and cartoons, Ms. Pac Man has also appeared in other video games including Mario Kart Arcade GP, Mario Kart Arcade GP 2, Pac-Man World Rally, Super Smash
The original Pac Man was also featured in a hit song, “Pac Man Fever” by Buckner & Garcia.
It was a great time to be a kid!
How to Play Ms. Pac Man?
If you’re one of those folks looking for your very own Ms. Pac Man arcade machine then I’m sure you are already all too familiar with the how to play classic arcade games like Ms. Pac Man. For those unfamiliar, the concept of Ms. Pac Man is super simple. Travel through a maze while being chased by the ghosts Blinky, Inky, Pinky, and Sue.
Eat the pellets along the way without touching the ghosts. There are four larger power pellets that render you invincible for a short period of time. Once you eat all of the pellets without exhausting all of your lives, the level ends and a new level begins.
Along the way, various fruits appear that will earn you extra points. The further you venture into the game, the faster and more difficult each level becomes.
Arcade Classics Last Forever
Not only are classic video games making a comeback but they also never end. I mean seriously! You can theoretically play the arcade version of Ms. Pac Man forever. The game is on a continuous loop.
To me, this was never a negative aspect of the 1980s video games. Since games never ended, you could just keep playing and playing until you ran out of quarters or the arcade store owners needed to close for the night and kicked you out.
Various Ports
In addition to the extremely successful arcade release, Ms. Pac-Man also found a home on many home console systems including Nintendo’s NES, the Atari 5200, 7800, 2600, Xbox 360, Game Boy Color, and Commodore 64.
Today, Ms. Pac Man can be found in a variety of gadgets and handheld devices and if you’re looking for some true nostalgia, check out Ms. Pac Man tabletop for sale at Amazon.com.
What is old is new again
As of this writing, the nostalgia of the 1980s is at an all-time high. Everywhere you look, whether it’s movies, TV shows, or merchandise, the 80s are back in a big way.
Arcade machines and classic arcade video games are also making a big comeback. There has been a huge market for local area bars with classic arcade themes. Most of these places use the lure of arcade machines with retro games to entice customers into their establishments.
Another huge market is in arcade rentals for corporate parties, company picnics, birthdays, and trade shows.
If you scour the internet, you notice a lot of folks are building their own arcade cabinets or they are buying them outright to decorate their man or woman caves.
What about classic arcade tabletop or cocktail tables?
If you love the nostalgia of the old classic arcade machines like me, then you have dreamed of owning your own arcade machine. This Ms. Pac Man Tabletop is currently available at Amazon.com.
- The Namco Pac Mans Arcade Party Cocktail Game comes in a sleek black finish.
- In addition to the original Pac Man game, it also includes several classic titles including Ms. Pac Man, Pac-Mania, Galaxian, Galaga, Galaga 88, Dig Dug, Rally-X, Mappy, Xevious, Rolling Thunder, Dragon Spirit, and Bosconian.
- The dimensions are 29 L x 21 W x 31 H inches. The unit weighs 184 pounds.
- Now you can play this tabletop version of Ms. Pac Man complete with 19-inch bright color monitor.
- Includes 2 player action with authentic arcade-style joysticks.
Wouldn’t this arcade cabinet make an excellent addition to your man cave? This is certain to be a collector’s item.
If you’re not dead set on this classic Ms. Pac Man tabletop, perhaps you might prefer a bartop unit instead.
This Ms. Pac Man bartop arcade machine is for sale at Amazon.
In addition to a full size 19″ LCD, the unit boasts:
- 412 Classic Arcade Games Like; Ms. Pac-Man, Donkey Kong, Galaga
- 2-year warranty
I just know you’ll love this awesome Ms. Pac Man tabletop and bartop!
