Alright, here we go. So, I’m like this old-school gamer now, 32, which blows my mind. Pac-Man was my jam as a kid. I mean, I’d lose a whole summer’s worth of allowance just trying to beat that rumored split-screen level at the arcade. Anyway, here I am at PAX East, feeling all nostalgic and skeptical about this new Pac-Man thing called Shadow Labyrinth. Like, Pac-Man gone sci-fi with lasers and mechs? Honestly, sounds bonkers, right?
But then, man, it was wild—like, crazy good. So, yeah, the story picks up after some Prime Video short (no, I haven’t watched it), and you’re this moody dude named Swordsman No. 8. He wakes up, surrounded by things that look like they crawled straight out of someone’s nightmares. Enter Puck. Yep, our good ol’ pellet-munching friend but in a whole new avatar. Together, they’re navigating this dark, messy world, each with their own skills. And it’s not just darkness—they’ve got all these different areas, each with attitudes of their own, you know? Really gnarly stuff.
So, my adventure starts underground, where creepy-crawlies that only belong down there roam freely. It initially felt easy, sorta like Castlevania, but with a twist. Ori meets Celeste, maybe? Puck, bless him, has these grappling skills that just make platforming sweet. But boy, I died—a lot—before I got the hang of it.
Once you’re in the groove, though, chaining moves and attacking midair? Oh man, that rush. And just when I thought I’d seen it all, there’s Puck going full mecha! Yes, mecha. Some boss fight against a massive monster, where you gotta get all tactical. Puck turns into a big robot, Gaia, and it’s downright epic.
After the fight, there was still so much left to see. Unlocked some kinda laser ability—like, who thinks of this stuff? And even ran into Pooka from Dig Dug, which was this big “lightbulb moment” of nostalgia. A bit tricky to beat them, but worth it. Apparently, this game is chock-full of nods to Bandai Namco’s classics. But they’re keeping tight-lipped about what else is in store.
You know, if someone had told younger me that Pac-Man could be a Metroidvania, I’d call them nuts. Yet, here we are, and I’m all about this chaos. Whether it’s the grappling mechanics or Pac-Man, the mech warrior—it’s all kinds of fun. It might sound like madness on paper, but it feels like this gamble just… works.
So, that’s it. If you’ve ever wondered what a Pac-Man Metroidvania looks like, just give Shadow Labyrinth a go. It’s weird, it shouldn’t work, but it does. And I’m loving every second of it.
