made it a much more difficult and stressful game compared to its predecessors, feeling that players would have a hard time succumbing to its "strange" ideas and gameplay that had a more action-oriented pace to it. He concluded his review with: "While Namco clearly hoped to sustain Pac-Mans tremendous legacy with an inventive follow-up, Pac & Pal hastened the series' demise. Pac & Pal was one in a string of duds and doesn't hold up very well in retrospect -- it's a real oddball of a game. Sometimes, though, weirdness is just as interesting in hindsight as true significance." Bobinator of Hardcore Gaming 101 argued that the difference in gameplay made Pac & Pal standout from other Pac-Man sequels, and that it helped make the game feel fresh and unique. He also believed that it represents Namco's willingness to experiment with the mechanics and concepts established in the original. Bobinator wrote: "Sadly, this would be the last time Namco would ever experiment quite this much with their well-used maze game formula. While Pac-Man would soon move into new genres entirely, later maze games would choose to play it safe. Experimentation like this would never be seen in the series again." Notes References External links 1983 video games Arcade video games Japan-exclusive video games Nintendo Switch games PlayStation 4 games Maze games Namco arcade games Pac-Man arcade games Video games developed in Japan Video games scored by Yuriko Keino Hamster Corporation games