Ms. Pac-Man: Difference between revisions

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The series consists of [[video game]]s, television shows, and music.
The series consists of [[video game]]s, television shows, and music.


Ms. Pac-Man also is a playable character in some games in the [[Mario Kart|''Mario Kart'' series]].
Ms. Pac-Man premiered in [[1981]] in [[Ms. Pac-Man (video game)|an eponymous video game]] created by [[Steve Golson]] of [[General Computer Corporation]].
 
The character appeared in several video games by [[NetherRealm Studios|Midway]] and [[Namco]].
 
Ms. Pac-Man was also a playable character in some games in the [[Mario Kart|''Mario Kart'' series]].


==Fictional character biography==
==Fictional character biography==
[[File:Ms. Pac-Man.png|90px|left]]
[[File:Ms. Pac-Man.png|88px|left]]
Ms. Pac-Man is a round Pac-Person that eats ghosts.  
Ms. Pac-Man is a round Pac-Person that eats ghosts.  


Her husband is named [[Pac-Man]].  
Her husband is named [[Pac-Man]].  


Her son, [[Jr. Pac-Man]], is also known as Pac-Boy. Her daughter, [[Pac-Baby]], is also known as Pac-Sis.
Her son, [[Jr. Pac-Man]], is also known as Pac-Boy. Her daughter, [[Baby Pac-Man]], is also known as Pac-Sis.


==Rights issues==
==Creation==
The ''[[Ms. Pac-Man (video game)|Ms. Pac-Man]]'' [[arcade]] game was originally an unofficial expansion created by [[General Computer Corporation]] for ''[[Pac-Man (video game)|Pac-Man]]'' titled ''Crazy Otto''.
The ''[[Ms. Pac-Man (video game)|Ms. Pac-Man]]'' [[arcade]] game was originally an unofficial expansion created by [[General Computer Corporation]] for ''[[Pac-Man (video game)|Pac-Man]]'' titled ''Crazy Otto''.


[[NetherRealm Studios|Bally/Midway]], the official American distributor of Pac-Man, was impatient for a sequel. [[Namco]], the creator of Pac-Man, hadn't released a sequel of its own, so Midway was looking for a sequel they could publish itself.  
[[NetherRealm Studios|Bally/Midway]], the official American distributor of ''Pac-Man'', was impatient for a sequel. [[Namco]], the creator of ''Pac-Man'', hadn't released a sequel of its own, so Midway was looking for a sequel they could publish itself.  


Midway was impressed with ''Crazy Otto'', so the company purchased the game without the involvement of Namco. It was modified as ''Ms. Pac-Man'' so that it would fit the ''Pac-Man'' aesthetic.
Midway was impressed with ''Crazy Otto'', so the company purchased the game without the involvement of Namco. It was modified as ''Ms. Pac-Man'' to fit the ''Pac-Man'' aesthetic.


GCC sued Midway, and in approximately 1983 a settlement was reached wherein GCC was awarded a portion of the profits of the arcade version of ''Ms. Pac-Man''. GCC also created another sequel titled ''[[Jr. Pac-Man]]'', which was originally titled ''Pac-Baby'', so they were granted a portion of the profits of the arcade version of that game as well.
==Rights issues==
General Computer Corporation sued Midway, and in approximately [[1983]] a settlement was reached so that the former was awarded a portion of the profits of the arcade version of ''Ms. Pac-Man''. GCC also created another sequel titled ''[[Jr. Pac-Man]]'', which had a working title of ''Pac-Baby'', so they were granted a portion of the profits of the arcade version of that game as well.


In approximately 1987, the rights to everything related to ''Ms. Pac-Man'' and ''Jr. Pac-Man'' were transferred to Namco. This did not count the GCC contract, which still awarded the company a portion of the profits of the arcade versions of the games they created.
In approximately [[1987]], the rights to everything related to ''Ms. Pac-Man'' and ''Jr. Pac-Man'' were transferred to Namco. This did not count the GCC contract, which still awarded the company a portion of the profits of the arcade versions of the games they created.


In 2002, GCC contacted Namco as they had not received any profits for the re-releases of ''Ms. Pac-Man''. The company was unaware of the contract, as it had been approximately twenty years since the contract was signed, and most of the employees from that era no longer worked at Namco. After no progress on rights negotiations after approximately four years, an arbitrator was assigned to the case. The contract was deemed to only refer to coin-operated versions, but because the contract hadn't been updated since it was signed, the court ruled that versions for [[mobile phone]]s, and any version that transmitted data through the [[internet]] or to other devices also applied to the contract because payment options were usually included within these versions.  
In [[2002]], GCC Technologies contacted Namco as they had not received any profits for the re-releases of ''Ms. Pac-Man''. The company was unaware of the contract, as it had been about twenty years since the contract was signed, and most of the employees from that era no longer worked at Namco. After no progress on rights negotiations after approximately four years, an arbitrator was assigned to the case. The contract was deemed to only refer to coin-operated versions. Because the contract hadn't been updated since it was signed, the court ruled that versions for [[mobile phone]]s, and any version that transmitted data through the [[internet]] or to other devices also applied to the contract because payment options were usually included within these versions.  


In approximately 2019, [[AtGames]] purchased the contract from General Computer Corporation. This would give AtGames royalties for most versions of the games created by GCC.
In approximately [[2019]], [[AtGames]] purchased the contract from General Computer Corporation. This gave AtGames royalties for most versions of the games created by GCC.


After the AtGames purchase, [[Bandai Namco Entertainment]] ceased using the Ms. Pac-Man character in their games, and created other female Pac-People. Pac-Man Girl was an unlockable character in the 2015 mobile game ''[[Mega Run meets Pac-Man]]''. Pac-Marie was included in the real-life pop-up retail stores known as Pac-Store and Pac-Man Ginza Style in 2016. Pac-Man Girl and Pac-Marie.
In the 2010s, [[Bandai Namco Entertainment]] created other female Pac-People. Pac-Man Girl was an unlockable character in the 2015 mobile game ''[[Mega Run meets Pac-Man]]''. Pac-Marie was included in the real-life pop-up retail stores known as Pac-Store and Pac-Man Ginza Style in [[2016]].


[[File:Pac-Mom.png|90px|left]]
[[File:Pac-Mom.png|88px|left]]
A lawsuit between AtGames and Bandai Namco Entertainment was settled in 2021.  
A lawsuit between AtGames and Bandai Namco Entertainment was settled in [[2021]].  


After this, Ms. Pac-Man became Pac-Mom.
After this, beginning with the [[2022]] release of ''[[Arcade Archives]] [[Pac-Land]]'', Ms. Pac-Man became Pac-Mom.


In addition, Jr. Pac-Man became Pac-Boy, and Baby Pac-Man became Pac-Sis.  
In addition, Jr. Pac-Man became Pac-Boy, and Baby Pac-Man became Pac-Sis.


==Video games wherein Ms. Pac-Man is a playable character==
==Video games with Ms. Pac-Man as a playable character==
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:100%"
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:100%"
!| Title
!| Title
Line 52: Line 57:
!| System
!| System
!| Release
!| Release
!| Added to museum
!| Notes
!| Notes
|-
|-
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | ''[[Ms. Pac-Man (video game)|Pac-Man]]''
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | ''[[Ms. Pac-Man (video game)|Ms. Pac-Man]]''
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[GCC Technologies|GCC]], [[NetherRealm Studios|Bally/Midway]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[GCC Technologies|GCC]], [[NetherRealm Studios|Bally/Midway]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Arcade]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Arcade]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 1982
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 1982
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | December 25, 2008 ([[Xbox 360|360]], [[Namco Museum Virtual Arcade|Museum]])
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | Maze game.
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | Maze game.
|-
|-
Line 66: Line 69:
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Pinball]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Pinball]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 1982
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 1982
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | Not yet
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Pinball]] machine
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Pinball]] machine
|-
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | ''[[Namco Museum Volume 3|Namco Museum Vol. 3]]''
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Now Production]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[PlayStation 1|PS1]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 1996
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | Compilation includes ''Ms. Pac-Man''.
|-
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | ''[[Namco Museum (1999 video game)|Namco Museum]]''
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Now Production]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Dreamcast]], [[Game Boy Advance]], [[GameCube]], [[Nintendo 64]], [[PlayStation 2|PS2]], [[Xbox (console)|Xbox]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 1999
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | Compilation includes ''Ms. Pac-Man''.
|-
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | ''[[Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness]]''
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Namco Hometek]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Dreamcast]], [[Nintendo 64]], [[PlayStation 2|PS2]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 2000
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | Maze game.
|}
|}


==Video games wherein Pac-Man is a non-playable character==
==Video games with Ms. Pac-Man as a non-playable character==
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:100%"
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:100%"
!| Title
!| Title
Line 76: Line 96:
!| System
!| System
!| Release
!| Release
!| Added to museum
!| Notes
!| Notes
|-
|-
Line 83: Line 102:
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Arcade]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Arcade]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 1983
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 1983
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | Not yet
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | Maze game.
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | Maze game.
|-
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | ''[[Pac-Land]]''
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Namco]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Arcade]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 1984
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | Platform game.
|-
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | ''[[Pac-Man World]]''
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Namco Hometek]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[PlayStation (video game console)|PlayStation]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 1999
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | Platform game.
|}
==Video games with Pac-Mom as a non-playable character==
{| class="wikitable sortable" style="width:100%"
!| Title
!| Developer
!| System
!| Release
!| Notes
|-
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | ''[[Pac-Man World|Pac-Man World Re-Pac]]''
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Now Production]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[PlayStation 4|PS4]], [[PlayStation 5|PS5]], [[Nintendo Switch|Switch]], [[Xbox One]], [[Xbox Series X/S]], [[Windows]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 2022
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | Remake of ''[[Pac-Man World]]''.
|-
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | ''[[Arcade Archives]]'' ''[[Pac-Land]]''
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Namco]]<br />[[Hamster]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[PlayStation 4|PS4]], [[Nintendo Switch|Switch]]
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | 2022
| style="border-style: solid; border-width: 1px; text-align:center" | [[Emulation|Emulated]] re-release of ''[[Pac-Land]]''.
|}
|}


[[Category: Book series]]
[[Category: Characters]]
[[Category: Characters]]
[[Category: Characters created in 1981]]
[[Category: Characters owned by AtGames]]
[[Category: Characters owned by Bandai Namco Entertainment]]
[[Category: Characters owned by Bandai Namco Entertainment]]
[[Category: Film series]]
[[Category: Pac-Man]]
[[Category: Pac-Man]]
[[Category: Series]]
[[Category: Series]]
[[Category: Series created in 1981]]
[[Category: Series owned by Bandai Namco Entertainment]]
[[Category: Series with books]]
[[Category: Series with films]]
[[Category: Series with television shows]]
[[Category: Series with television shows]]
[[Category: Video game series]]
[[Category: Series with video games]]

Latest revision as of 01:05, 17 June 2024

Ms. Pac-Man logo.png
Ms. Pac-Man
Developer Steve Golson
Publisher Namco, Bally/Midway, Atari, Bandai Namco
Platforms see below
Released 1981-present
Added to
Museum
see below

Ms. Pac-Man, also known as Pac-Mom, is a character that is part of a multimedia series by Bandai Namco Entertainment.

The series consists of video games, television shows, and music.

Ms. Pac-Man premiered in 1981 in an eponymous video game created by Steve Golson of General Computer Corporation.

The character appeared in several video games by Midway and Namco.

Ms. Pac-Man was also a playable character in some games in the Mario Kart series.

Fictional character biography

Ms. Pac-Man.png

Ms. Pac-Man is a round Pac-Person that eats ghosts.

Her husband is named Pac-Man.

Her son, Jr. Pac-Man, is also known as Pac-Boy. Her daughter, Baby Pac-Man, is also known as Pac-Sis.

Creation

The Ms. Pac-Man arcade game was originally an unofficial expansion created by General Computer Corporation for Pac-Man titled Crazy Otto.

Bally/Midway, the official American distributor of Pac-Man, was impatient for a sequel. Namco, the creator of Pac-Man, hadn't released a sequel of its own, so Midway was looking for a sequel they could publish itself.

Midway was impressed with Crazy Otto, so the company purchased the game without the involvement of Namco. It was modified as Ms. Pac-Man to fit the Pac-Man aesthetic.

Rights issues

General Computer Corporation sued Midway, and in approximately 1983 a settlement was reached so that the former was awarded a portion of the profits of the arcade version of Ms. Pac-Man. GCC also created another sequel titled Jr. Pac-Man, which had a working title of Pac-Baby, so they were granted a portion of the profits of the arcade version of that game as well.

In approximately 1987, the rights to everything related to Ms. Pac-Man and Jr. Pac-Man were transferred to Namco. This did not count the GCC contract, which still awarded the company a portion of the profits of the arcade versions of the games they created.

In 2002, GCC Technologies contacted Namco as they had not received any profits for the re-releases of Ms. Pac-Man. The company was unaware of the contract, as it had been about twenty years since the contract was signed, and most of the employees from that era no longer worked at Namco. After no progress on rights negotiations after approximately four years, an arbitrator was assigned to the case. The contract was deemed to only refer to coin-operated versions. Because the contract hadn't been updated since it was signed, the court ruled that versions for mobile phones, and any version that transmitted data through the internet or to other devices also applied to the contract because payment options were usually included within these versions.

In approximately 2019, AtGames purchased the contract from General Computer Corporation. This gave AtGames royalties for most versions of the games created by GCC.

In the 2010s, Bandai Namco Entertainment created other female Pac-People. Pac-Man Girl was an unlockable character in the 2015 mobile game Mega Run meets Pac-Man. Pac-Marie was included in the real-life pop-up retail stores known as Pac-Store and Pac-Man Ginza Style in 2016.

Pac-Mom.png

A lawsuit between AtGames and Bandai Namco Entertainment was settled in 2021.

After this, beginning with the 2022 release of Arcade Archives Pac-Land, Ms. Pac-Man became Pac-Mom.

In addition, Jr. Pac-Man became Pac-Boy, and Baby Pac-Man became Pac-Sis.

Video games with Ms. Pac-Man as a playable character

Title Developer System Release Notes
Ms. Pac-Man GCC, Bally/Midway Arcade 1982 Maze game.
Mr. & Mrs. Pac-Man Bally/Midway Pinball 1982 Pinball machine
Namco Museum Vol. 3 Now Production PS1 1996 Compilation includes Ms. Pac-Man.
Namco Museum Now Production Dreamcast, Game Boy Advance, GameCube, Nintendo 64, PS2, Xbox 1999 Compilation includes Ms. Pac-Man.
Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness Namco Hometek Dreamcast, Nintendo 64, PS2 2000 Maze game.

Video games with Ms. Pac-Man as a non-playable character

Title Developer System Release Notes
Jr. Pac-Man GCC, Bally/Midway Arcade 1983 Maze game.
Pac-Land Namco Arcade 1984 Platform game.
Pac-Man World Namco Hometek PlayStation 1999 Platform game.

Video games with Pac-Mom as a non-playable character

Title Developer System Release Notes
Pac-Man World Re-Pac Now Production PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One, Xbox Series X/S, Windows 2022 Remake of Pac-Man World.
Arcade Archives Pac-Land Namco
Hamster
PS4, Switch 2022 Emulated re-release of Pac-Land.