Google Stadia just recently announced a Battle Royale title in the form of a 64-player classic Pac-Man game titled Mega Tunnel Battle.
The original Pac-Man arcade franchise in Japan is celebrating its 40th anniversary. With that, Bandai Namco has decided to partner with Google’s game streaming arm, Stadia.
Not only is this new title a whole new gameplay concept in the Battle Royale category, but it also gives a fix to those who miss the classic Pac-Man arcade thrill.
The Mega Tunnel Battle
The game title itself already gives off an idea of how expanded this Pac-Man experience is. What was usually played with a maximum player of four, is now turned into one whole community of 64.
In a nutshell, the game brings a mixed vibe of Tetris Effect and Devolver Digital’s hit BR title, Fall Guys.
This new “mega” multiplayer experience is set to launch first on Google Stadia next month, November 17. It will retail at US$19.99. Nevertheless, Google is offering a free demo of the game until October 27.
The free game try-out is part of Stadia’s “Good Stuff” event. Per Eurogamer, alongside the Mega Tunnel Battle, is a playable demo of Ubisoft’s Immortals Fenyx Rising. As well as Amplitude Studios’ 4X video game Humankind, which actually releases in 2021.
Android Central reports that availing of the free demos is as easy as making a Stadia account, without the need for a Pro subscription.
https://youtu.be/exhe6lsfooM
Pac-Man BR gameplay
There are two distinct modes of play in the Mega Tunnel Battle. The media outlets highly recommend the Elimination mode.
What makes this as intrusive as falling over other players in Fall Guys is that players can invade other players’ maze. Not only that, they can eat up others’ power-ups as well.
Also, viewers can also influence the flow of the game, via Spectator mode. As quoted by Eurogamer:
“But watch out: viewers can vote on power-ups that can cause you – or your opponents! – to stumble on the field and be eliminated from battle!.”
https://twitter.com/GoogleStadia/status/1318597850150785024
In an official statement, Bandai Namco introduces the game:
“Created to celebrate PAC-MAN’s 40th anniversary, PAC-MAN Mega Tunnel Battle leverages Google’s cloud gaming platform to create the largest multiplayer PAC-MAN game ever developed, enabling up to 64 players to play together. Spread across an interconnected grid of PAC-MAN mazes, each player will need to outwit and outlast their competition to be the last PAC-MAN standing in this unique take on the battle-royale genre, playable on PCs, laptops, tablets, phones, and TVs through Stadia. In addition to being larger than ever, PAC-MAN Mega Tunnel Battle introduces new power-ups that can change the tide of battle, fun cosmetic unlocks to customize PAC-MAN, and a Spectator Mode that allows viewers to become an influential part of the game.”
Google and Bandai Namco’s relationship
Moreover, this is actually not the first that Bandai Namco partnered with Google for an anniversary event for the Pac-Man franchise. Accordingly, Android Central points out that the two also teamed up during the classic game’s 30th-year milestone.
As many may have remembered, a playable Pac-Man mini-game was featured in the ever-changing Google homepage logo.
Featured image courtesy of Pac-Man