As with any retro compilation, it is above all necessary to detail the list of forces involved. Let's proceed in chronological order, as does the menu of this Namco Museum. We start with the essential Pac-Man, which needs no introduction, followed by Galaga, assumed clone of Space Invaders. Next is Dig Dug, where you dig tunnels and inflate monsters to death. Less known than the three previous titles, The Tower of Druaga asks us to go through mazes in search of keys. In Sky Kid, you have to bomb enemy installations from an airplane. Rolling Thunder is a "run and gun" that puts us in the shoes of a spy. Galaga '88 turns out to be a little richer and more graphically accomplished than the first installment in the series.
But is it really reasonable to spend half the price of Mario + Rabbids to play Pac-Man and Galaga in 2017?
Much more aesthetic than most of the other games in the compilation, Splatterhouse is a "beat them up" inspired by 80s horror films. We then return to very classic graphics with Tank Force, which you guessed this is a tank game. We continue with Rolling Thunder 2 which is, oh surprise, the sequel to Rolling Thunder. And we end with the unexpected Pac-Man VS, which denotes more than one title. While all the other games in the compilation were released between 1980 and 1991, this one jumps back in time since it dates back to 2003. As a result, it is the only one to offer 3D graphics. In addition, the experience is clearly multiplayer oriented, since it puts us in the shoes of the ghosts chasing Pac-Man. Finally, it is possible to play with two Switches, if you want one of the players to play the "nice little guy".
LOOK IN THE RETRO
In order to justify its selling price, with difficulty that said because it is clearly too high, Namco Museum offers several interesting options for each game. Thus, it is possible to save at any time in order to circumvent the frustrating difficulty inherited from the terminals of arcade. It is also possible to display artificial scanning lines on the screen, in order to recreate the sensations of a CRT screen. Much more useful, especially for Pac-Man, Galaga, Galaga '88, Dig Dug and The Tower of Druaga, you can set the display to vertical mode if you play on the Switch screen. The console support is unfortunately not made for that, you will have to lay it flat or balance it in one way or another. But for the games that we have just mentioned, this option makes it possible to benefit from an extended display area and greater fidelity to the original arcade terminals. In addition, the options screen for each game allows you to modify the level of difficulty of the games, to activate the selection of levels or to obtain additional lives more easily Finally, it is possible to launch each title in Challenge mode ( for example: achieve the highest score in 5 minutes) if you want to compare yourself to other players. Thanks to all these little additions, some games undoubtedly gain in accessibility and interest. But is it really reasonable to spend half the price of Mario + Rabbids to play Pac-Man and Galaga in 2017? Your turn to judge !
