Newsflash:

PAC-MAN Creator Surprises World with New Mazes on Xbox 360

Published June 5, 2007

New York—The year was 1981. Big hair, high-waisted jeans and popped-up collars were popular fashions, "Bette Davis Eyes" topped the charts, Raiders of the Lost Ark hit theaters, and everyone was saving up quarters to play the latest video games.

This Xbox LIVE exclusive premieres on June 6.

Also that year, a new videogame by game designer Toru Iwatani at NAMCO LTD. (currently NAMCO BANDAI Games Inc.) hit arcades around the world, and quickly became a pop-culture phenomenon and one of the most beloved games of all time. That game was PAC-MAN®, and today Microsoft and NAMCO BANDAI Games made videogame history by unveiling the PAC-MAN Championship Edition, featuring the first new PAC-MAN mazes in more than 26 years, available only on Xbox 360™.

"PAC-MAN was the game that ignited the
world's passion for videogames."
—Jeff Bell, Microsoft

New York Unveiling
This brand new game was introduced today in New York City at the first-ever Xbox 360 PAC-MAN World Championship, presented by Quiznos. As a special surprise from Iwatani and NAMCO BANDAI Games, the 10 tournament competitors became the first in the world to play and compete on the PAC-MAN Championship Edition before its launch at 0900 GMT (5:00 A.M. EDT) on June 6, 2007, only on Xbox LIVE® Arcade on Xbox 360.

Get ready for new mazes and HD graphics.

PAC-MAN Championship Edition is the same beloved PAC-MAN game played in pizza parlors and arcades of the Eighties, but is updated with new features that former PAC-MAN fanatics and new generations of fans alike will love. It includes new mazes that dynamically change shape during gameplay, six new timed game modes, new soundtracks, and high-definition (HD) graphics.

Game Highlights
The game features a classic 2-D presentation with a new, modern look in HD, including six new, timed game modes:

• Championship Mode: This is the main game mode designed by NAMCO BANDAI Games and Iwatani specifically for the championship round of the Xbox 360 PAC-MAN World Championship. This mode—as well as all others within the PAC-MAN Championship Edition—features redesigned mazes with wide maze walls and a widescreen configuration to better enable high-speed game play. Timed limit of five minutes.
• Challenge Mode 1 (Patience and Reward Course): This mode is an evolution of the Championship Mode. Patience mazes strategically offer fewer Power Pellets and Reward mazes provide a larger number of Power Pellets—providing unique challenges and rewards. Timed limit of 10 minutes.
• Challenge Mode 2 (The Darkness Course): In this mode, only the area directly around PAC-MAN and the Ghosts is visible and the maze walls are completely hidden. Timed limit of 10 minutes.
• Extra Mode 1 (The Freeway Course): An extremely high-speed mode for advanced players, this mode features warp-speed PAC-MAN and Ghosts and plenty of tunnels. Timed limit of five minutes.
• Extra Mode 2 (The Manhattan Course): A mode inspired by the streets of Manhattan—the home for the first-ever Xbox 360 PAC-MAN World Championship. Timed limit of five minutes.
• Extra Mode 3 (The Overall Course): A mix of all other modes resulting in extreme mazes for the most devout PAC-MAN fans. Timed limit of 10 minutes.

The game also features Xbox LIVE leaderboards, achievements, and Gamerscore. PAC-MAN Championship Edition has been rated E for Everyone by the Entertainment Software Rating Board.

New mazes and modes require new tactics.

PAC-MAN Championship Edition will be available for download only on Xbox LIVE Arcade on Xbox 360 starting at 0900 GMT (5:00 A.M. EDT) on Wednesday, June 6, 2007 for 800 Microsoft® Points.

PAC-MAN World Championship
PAC-MAN Championship Edition made its official debut during today's New York City finals for the Xbox 360 PAC-MAN World Championship, presented by Quiznos. The 10 participants from four continents and eight countries around the world—Austria, Canada, Japan, Mexico, New Zealand, Taiwan, the United Kingdom, and the U.S.—competed at The Supper Club in New York City's Times Square.

To advance to the championship finals, each participant had to earn the highest PAC-MAN score in their respective home country during the qualifying rounds that took place from May 4 through May 10, 2007. In an exciting finale, these top players competed on the new PAC-MAN Championship Edition several hours before its upcoming launch on Xbox LIVE Arcade.

The event was capped off with Iwatani crowning the first Xbox 360 PAC-MAN World Champion—Carlos Romero, a 27-year-old man from Pachuca, Mexico.

"It feels great to be the first PAC-MAN World Champion," said Romero, who has been playing PAC-MAN since 1986 and achieved a final score of 222,160. "It is a thrill to hold the title and to have won it by playing on the brand new game. This is amazing!"

Along with the distinction of being the first in the world to play PAC-MAN Championship Edition and the international acclaim for being the first Xbox 360 PAC-MAN World Champion, Romero was awarded other great prizes, including 26 years of free Quiznos toasted subs (one sandwich a week for 26 years, a $13,520 [U.S.] value), 100,000 Microsoft Points for games, movies and other fun content available on Xbox LIVE, and a one-of-a-kind Xbox 360 signed by Iwatani and featuring a special design inspired by PAC-MAN.

Lasting Legacy
"I'm deeply honored that people view PAC-MAN as my lasting legacy and am so excited to come full circle by releasing the PAC-MAN Championship Edition with its exciting new mazes and modes on Xbox LIVE Arcade on Xbox 360," said Iwatani, currently a professor at Tokyo Polytechnic University. "It gives me great joy to know that my final contributions in my corporate career were to crown the Xbox 360 PAC-MAN World Champion and to leave the world with an amazing new PAC-MAN game for generations to enjoy."

Wakka Wakka Wakka
Since launching in 1980 in Japan and in 1981 around the world, PAC-MAN, its host of ghosts and its famous "wakka wakka wakka" sound have become global pop-culture icons. This arcade game played an instrumental role in establishing the videogame industry in the 1980s, while the launch of Xbox LIVE in 2002 was a key factor behind the rapid growth in the popularity of online gaming. Today, Xbox LIVE Arcade is the premier online destination for digitally distributed HD games offering fans around the globe a great opportunity to connect, compete, and enjoy the fun.

"PAC-MAN was the game that ignited the world's passion for videogames, with every member of the family hooked on avoiding Clyde and eating up all the Power Pellets," said Jeff Bell, corporate vice president of Global Marketing for the Interactive Entertainment Business at Microsoft. "It is a tremendous honor that NAMCO BANDAI and Toru Iwatani are going to use the power of Xbox 360 and the Xbox LIVE Arcade platform to deliver the next evolution of PAC-MAN to the world."

"We would like to tip our hats to the players who traveled from far and wide to display their PAC-MAN talent to the world and to congratulate cdborrego from Mexico on his victory," said Steve Provost, Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Executive for Quiznos. "There couldn't have been a better way to celebrate the 26 year anniversary of Quiznos' chef-inspired toasted sandwiches than to help make the first-ever Xbox 360 PAC-MAN World Championship into a reality."