[Review] – PAC-MAN Mega Tunnel Battle: Chomp Champs – Nintendo Switch
Developed By: Amber Studio
Published By: Bandai Namco
Categories: Arcade, Multiplayer
Release Date: 05.08.24
Price: $19.99
*Game Download Code graciously provided for the purpose of review.

I never thought there would be a huge necessity for a Battle Royale style Pac-Man game, but then Chomp Champs went and proved me wrong earlier this month. I wasn’t expecting much when I first started playing, but after a few matches, I was pretty much hooked with the gameplay loop. The graphics are good, and many of the mazes are full of chaos and color, though there were a few moments where there would be a split second of lag when transitioning to a different maze.  As for the sound, it’s really just like your average Pac-Man game with its memorable music and sound effects.

There’s an elimination mode where you just play a casual match with more than 30 other players and once you reach level 10, you unlock ranked mode. These matches are tougher because the players will be more seasoned and there are more players to deal with in a match than in elimination mode. There’s also a ton of customization because you earn coins for playing and can use them to unlock a bunch of different cosmetics in the shop. Some of the cosmetics include a variety of hats, glasses, shirts, and even maze themes. There are a bunch of maze types and each one has a unique look and feel, with some being way more chaotic than others.

PAC-MAN Mega Tunnel Battle: Chomp Champs is nothing like your standard Pac-Man game. While it does start off like the average experience, it quickly evolves fast-paced chaos. A match begins like any other, with you eating dots and evading ghosts in a standard maze. But after only a few seconds, you gain the ability to invade other people’s mazes. You can keep playing in your maze because once you eat all the dots your maze level increases which resets the number of dots and makes the ghosts faster.

This is great if you want to increase your score or want to survive a little longer and need more power pellets. But the real chaos is when you invade other mazes because each maze has a different look and there will usually be one or even two other places in the maze and that adds a lot to your strategy. You’re competing against them to collect as many points as possible from dots and ghosts while also trying to eat them with the use of power ups. If you eat them, they lose a life which means you also have to be extra careful so that they don’t eat you.

When ghosts or other players eat you enough times, you’re eliminated, and your place is saved. The game is very fast paced, and this mechanism allows for multiple ways to win. If you’re feeling brave you can go on the offensive and try to eat the other players yourself, but you’ll need to make sure that you’re powered up. You can also play the waiting game and avoid them, hoping that the ghosts get them instead. I’ve seen some matches where it was down to the last two players and they would keep going for five minutes or more because they kept evading both each other and the ghosts. 

But if players are bad and die quickly or are good and can come up with clever strategies to eat or trap other players, games will be super-fast and a lot of fun. I’ve personally had matches where I would finish in 1stplace, but the entire match would only last a few minutes and those were the ones that were the most chaotic and fun. If you aren’t good at Pac-Man to begin with or don’t fare well with multiplayer, then it will get frustrating if you’re eliminated in under 60 seconds and then have to wait for a new game. 

That’s the only real downside to the game because you’re paying $20 for a game that’s online only. If you buy it and you find out that you just can’t compete with the others, you’re stuck because there’s no real offline mode aside for practice. You can’t just buy the game and play Pac-Man normally. You could stick to your own maze if you like and see how long you last but eventually other players are going to ruin it for you. 

If you love Pac-Man and you expect to either do well in the online mode or don’t care about how well you’ll do and just want to play, this game is a solid investment. You’ll get many hours out of the game if you’re really good and enjoy competing for a high rank. If you’re just casually playing and having fun with it, I think you can still get at least 10 hours. So, for $20 it’s worth looking into. If you want even more Pac-Man on the Switch, read this review.

3.5/5

12 May, 2024