Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness

Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness is a Pac-Man video game released for PlayStation, Nintendo 64, and Sega Dreamcast, developed by Namco Hometek. The game stars the titular heroine as the main character, like in her game of origin. The game was released in United States on September 8, 2000 (published by Namco Hometek), Europe on November 17, 2000 (published by Sony Computer Entertainment), then Japan on December 28, 2000 (published by Namco). The game has also been ported to other systems like the Game Boy Advance, PlayStation 3, PlayStation Portable, and PlayStation Vita.

In Pac-Land, its many lands are powered by the Gems of Virtue. The wonders of the last four uncharted lands are legendary, but each area has been forever separated from the rest of Pac-Land by mysterious force fields. The dark forces suddenly begin to rise up to steal the treasures using black magic, starting with kidnapping the princess, turning her elegant castle into the dreary Castle of Haunted Halloween. Meanwhile, Ms. Pac-Man happens to visit Professor Pac at his laboratory, where the latter introduces her to his newest invention, the Pactrometer, a device that makes traveling between the four wonders possible. Unfortunately, the professor is soon captured by a witchy figure, yelling at Ms. Pac to gather the gems in order to save Pac-Land as his last words. And the adventure across the four lands begins...

The game in general goes with the traditional maze format the Pac-Man franchise is famous for, with four different themes each representing the wonders as not only aesthetic, but also level design and setpieces. While her husband's game at the time this game was released is more platform-heavy, Maze Madness is more focused on puzzle-solving, though both retain their "collectathon" elements. Ms. Pac-Man can push blocks, activate switches, jump using springs, etc. This game also has a multiplayer battle mode of up to four players, as well as an Arcade Perfect Port of the original Ms. Pac-Man.


 * 1-Up: Appears as a pick-up bubble in the form of a Ms. Pac-Man icon.
 * 100% Completion: Fully completing this game is not just a matter of clearing the Quest mode. There are the side objectives of collecting all Pac-Dots and fruits, beating all Time Trials, and obtaining enough score, basically meaning that the player to collect all the gold Stars (which are used to unlock some stuff too). And then there are the golden clocks (used to unlock extra stuff), which pretty much require good speedrunning skills.
 * Absent-Minded Professor: Professor Pac, to the point that even his own hologram suffers the same (just watch his Lock and Key Puzzle tutorial).
 * Action Bomb: The Firecracker enemies.
 * Advancing Boss of Doom: Gobblin.
 * Alliteration: Crystal Caves and Haunted Halloween. The game's title also counts in a way (Ms. Pac-Man Maze Madness).
 * Anti-Frustration Features: The Pac-Dot Radar the player picked up during the first trip at Cleopactra helps track nearby uneaten Pac-Dots, so it will only show up at the top of the screen if there are any nearby. If the player is still unsure, they will get a congratulatory message upon eating the last dot in a given area, so no need to roam the entire area to check any missing dots!
 * Anti-Poopsocking: Not sure if intentional or not, but one of the unlockable Multiplayer maps is called Play Outside, which takes place at the garden... outside.
 * Artificial Stupidity: The multiplayer AIs, hoo boy. In general, they tend to be killed by hazards in dumb ways and often roam aimlessly.
 * Attack of the 50-Foot Whatever: In Multiplayer's "Dot Mania" mode, picking up the chocolate cake power up will make that player giant. At that size, he/she becomes capable of stomping other players and is even immune to hazards.
 * Big Boo's Haunt: The Haunted Halloween levels.
 * Block Puzzle: A classic, since Ms. Pac-Man can push movable blocks. TNT blocks can be involved too. Thankfully, if the player finds themselves in a seemingly Unwinnable situation, a Reset Token is always available on an easy-to-access spot every time its corresponding block gets moved (as long as it is not inside a hole).
 * Bonus Stage: The optional Bonus Rounds, as in not necessary for story completion (100% Completion on the other hand...).
 * Boss Battle: Only two, believe it or not. And it is against the same villain, no less.
 * Build Like an Egyptian: The Cleopactra levels.
 * Canis Latinicus: One level's title is presumably the Pac-Foot's scientific name of Pacfooticus stompicus.
 * Check Point: Marked by touching the "check point" bubble.
 * Collection Sidequest: Pretty much the Pac-Dot Stars and fruit Stars in most levels.
 * Collision Damage: Touching enemies and hazards will cause Ms. Pac-Man to take damage.
 * The Computer Is a Cheating Bastard: The Multiplayer mode AIs, as if to make up for their stupidity, is rather more advantageous than the human-controlled characters. The player can lose 10 Pac-Dots upon death, but the AI will always lose 2 per death.
 * Control Room Puzzle: Some puzzles involve Ms. Pac-Man stepping on ground-bound switches in the correct order to activate something in the area.
 * Convection, Schmonvection: Standing near lava or above it while riding a floating platform has no negative effects on Ms. Pac-Man herself, but the moment she actually steps into it, it is an instant death.
 * Cosmic Keystone: The Gems of Virtue.
 * Damsel in Distress: The Princess of Pac-Land.
 * Dude in Distress: Prior to Ms. Pac-Man's adventure, she can only watch Professor Pac being dragged away by magic.
 * Every Ten Thousand Points: One extra life every 10,000 points in the current level.
 * Fire-Breathing Diner: In Multiplayer's "Dot Mania" mode, the fiery chili power-up will make the user generate a temporary trail of fire as he/she walks around, killing anyone who gets caught in it.
 * Flintstone Theming: Some of the level/map names incorporate "Pac" or other Pac-Man-specific terms, like Temple of Dots and Year of the Pac.
 * Floating Platforms: Varies depending on the world, but share the same purpose: to take Ms. Pac-Man from one point to another.
 * Forced Tutorial: Every time the player starts a new game, they have to contend with Professor Pac's holograms, most of which cannot be skipped as it blocks the way.
 * Frictionless Ice: The Crystal Caves world has icy terrains that make Ms. Pac-Man slide in a straight line until she leaves said terrain if she steps on one. The movable ice blocks have this trait too, as pushing one will make it slide as far as it can before it bumps into a wall/item.
 * Gimmick Level: The Bonus Rounds. While Slip Sliding Away and Pier Pressure are explained in Unexpected Gameplay Change below, Shock Therapy plays with the normal controls but the obstacle course challenge is styled after the Freeway Atari 2600 game.
 * The Goomba: The iconic ghosts are the most standard enemies the player can encounter. They are even the first enemies shown in the first level.
 * Gravity Barrier: Played straight for the most part, unless the player somehow manages to make Ms. Pac-Man drop down from moving platforms or unstable terrain.
 * Ground Pound: The Pac-Foot in the Crystal Caves levels do this to trigger Stalactite Spite.
 * Guest Fighter: Pooka is an unlockable character in Multiplayer mode.
 * Hailfire Peaks: The Crystal Caves levels mix icy cold caves and lethal lava pools, except for its very first level and its Bonus Round, which are straight-up Slippy-Slidey Ice World.
 * Heart Container: The yellow heart bubbles, which are rare pick-ups that can increase Ms. Pac-Man's max health. Once picked up, they turn into regular red heart bubbles that merely recover some health in subsequent visits.
 * Hearts Are Health: Heart bubbles are the only way to replenish health.
 * Homing Projectile: The Anubis's magic, which quickly zips through the maze's path to reach Ms. Pac-Man.
 * Idle Animation: Ms. Pac-Man has this if the player leaves her standing still for a while. Notably, she is the only Multiplayer character with this (others just spin in place with no unique animation).
 * Incredibly Lame Pun: Some level names have this, sometimes combining it with Flintstone Theming, like Mummy Dearest, Watch Your Pac, Sand Witch, and Bats a Wrap.
 * Item Get: When obtaining an Extra Life or a Gem of Virtue. "Hoho, right, yeah!"
 * Level Goal: Marked by a Star. In Time Trials, if the timer is above a certain point, a Golden Clock becomes this, otherwise it is just the Star.
 * Life Meter: Starts out at a short amount, but can be upgraded by picking up the yellow heart bubbles.
 * Loading Screen: Presented with a short arcade-style corridor showing Ms. Pac-Man eating Pac-Dots (representing loading progress) and a background image.
 * Lock and Key Puzzle: Often times, the player is faced with multiple colored doors, and they have to explore other areas to get all the required keys.
 * Locked Door: Colored ones, requiring a Key that matches its color. These are gone in Time Trials. There are also the special doors marked by a witch silhouette that blocks hidden areas required for 100% Completion, only accessible after obtaining Mesmeralda's key.
 * Magic Carpet: The floating platforms in the Cleopactra world. Apparently scared of Professor Pac's magic carpet vacuum cleaner.
 * Meaningless Lives: It is all too easy to replenish lives (from eating four ghosts in a row, Scoring Points, or 1-Up items), yet the player practically has to be trying to even get a Game Over, even if the player has difficulties in certain levels.
 * Mercy Invincibility: Present for a few seconds after Ms. Pac-Man takes damage.
 * Mini Game Credits: The Credits is basically a Unexpected Shmup Level like Pier Pressure, but without any pick-ups and enemy ghosts, leaving only Collision Damage as the only danger. Yes, the player can die in the credits, at which point the usual credits roll on black screen is shown much earlier.
 * Mook Maker: The cans spawn Firecracker enemies that walk on set paths before blowing themselves up.
 * Mummy: One of the enemy types in the Cleopactra world. If it sees Ms. Pac-Man, it will spin quickly like a tornado and chase her for a while as long as she is in its territory.
 * One-Hit Kill: Caused by standing adjacent to active explosives (for the green Nitro ones, even nudging it), getting hit by a Baby Dragon's flame with too low max health, walking into lava without the aid of ice blocks, or failing to outrun the Advancing Boss of Doom.
 * Punny Name: Gobblin ("gobble" + "goblin") and Mesmeralda ("mesmerize" and "Esmeralda").
 * Puzzle Reset: The Reset Token allows the player to reset its corresponding block's position if it happens to be moved, as long as it is not currently in a hole. These tokens can also rebuild broken unstable terrains that Ms. Pac-Man has stepped on.
 * Respawning Enemies: The usual ghosts, of course. The Baby Dragon can also respawn itself after being eaten, presumably to prevent Unwinnable situations as some puzzles require its flame breath.
 * The Reveal:
 * Save Game Limits: Up to three save files.
 * Save the Princess: The main goal of the game, in addition to saving the entire Pac-Land.
 * Saving the World: An extension to the Save the Princess goal, as the Gems of Virtue keep the lands of Pac-Land in check.
 * Score Screen: Shown upon level completion, along with how many Pac-Dots collected and what fruits were picked up.
 * Scoring Points: As this is a Pac-Man game, score is gained from eating Pac-Dots, fruits, and weakened enemies. Scoring high enough in a level will grant the player a "high score" Star for that level.
 * Segmented Serpent:
 * Applies to the Caterpillar enemy in the Cleopactra world. Under the effects of the Power Pellet, its round segments can be eaten for individual points, though eating its head is the only way to fully get rid of it.
 * The Chinese Dragons are this too. Eating/Shooting its "body" will destroy the affected segment, but its head remains its main weakness, just like the Caterpillar above.
 * Shock and Awe: The lightning power-up will make the user unleash electricity that can take out ghosts and kill powerless players.
 * Shout-Out: Some of the multiplayer maps: Pac to the Future, Portal Combat, Deep Im-Pac.
 * Skeleton Key: Mesmeralda's key, unlike the regular colored keys, can be used to open all the formerly impassable witch doors without losing the key.
 * Spin Attack: How the Mummies attack once Ms. Pac-Man is in their line of sight.
 * Spring Jump: The only way Ms. Pac-Man can jump in this game.
 * Springs, Springs, Everywhere: Later levels tend to involve a lot of springs for Ms. Pac-Man to jump around.
 * Squashed Flat: Every time Ms. Pac-Man takes damage from being crushed.
 * Stalactite Spite: In the Crystal Caves world, anytime an area has a Pac-Foot around will guarantee this thanks to its habit of causing tremors.
 * Star-Shaped Coupon: The gold Stars obtained from clearing levels and their side objectives.
 * Stuff Blowing Up: The TNT and Nitro crates, the latter of which explodes with a single touch. These kill Ms. Pac-Man in one hit if they explode adjacent to her.
 * Time Bomb: The "Da Bomb" mode in Multiplayer is a lethal game of tag where the "it" is this. The bomb explodes every 30 seconds, at which point the last one to hold it will explode, turning into a ghost.
 * Timed Mission: Setting a level into Time Trial mode turns the selected level this. Each level has its own time limit and the player can only replenish the countdown by picking up clocks and eating weakened enemies. It also encourages No-Damage Run too, as taking damage can make the player lose more time than the clocks/weakened enemies can make up for it.
 * Unexpected Gameplay Change: The Bonus Rounds, except for Shock Therapy, are optional levels that play nothing like the usual maze roaming mechanics (Slip Sliding Away is a Racing Mini Game, while Pier Pressure is a Unexpected Shmup Level)
 * Unlockable Content: The Multiplayer mode has unlockable maps and two hidden characters, the former requiring obtaining high enough scores, while the latter requires golden clocks.
 * Wutai: The Pac Ping Harbor world is basically a China-esque region of Pac-Land.