The Bottom Line
A derivative of the 1980's mega-classic arcade game, the Pacman add-on for Firefox takes you back in the day by letting you chomp on pellets and eat fruit right in your browser window. Using your keyboard to navigate the familiar ghost-ridden maze, you can ascend through the increasingly difficult boards just like in the original version.
Pros
- The game does a nice job of mimicking the original.
- The keyboard controls are very easy to use.
- Unlike a lot of add-ons there is no presence in the browser's main window, saving valuable space.
- High scores are saved even after you restart the Firefox application.
- Game speeds are easily changeable.
Cons
- Although the game controls are simple, there are no instructions available within the game itself.
- The default speed on Level 1 seems unnecessarily slow, even for a beginner.
- The background color (green) can not be modified.
- There are no keyboard shortcuts available to toggle the sound or to pause/unpause the game.
- After installation, it is not intuitive to look in the Tools menu to launch the game.
Description
- The Pacman add-on is a variant of the original game, played in a Firefox pop-up window.
- The game is launched from a link placed in Firefox's Tools menu.
- The rules as well as the gameplay are very similar to the original version.
- Game speed can be set to any of the following: Slow, Normal, Fast, and Insane.
- Keyboard arrow keys are used to control gameplay.
- High scores are recorded and can be accessed through the game's Options menu.
- The game includes some appropriately retro sound effects.
Guide Review - Pacman
Putting nostalgia aside for a second, it is evident even with today's amazing video game technology that at its core Pacman is still one of the greats. This Firefox add-on brings the former king of the arcade right to your web browser. Although this slimmed-down edition of the classic does not offer enough configuration options in the areas of color and sizing, it provides an enjoyable distraction and in time may have you chasing high scores and ramping up the speed to the Insane level. This was developed to be a fun addition to Firefox, and it has definitely achieved its goal.
