Technabob » jakks pacific

Pac-Man Tv Game Gets Another Update From Jakks

Technabob — Tue, 01 Dec 2009 13:05:39 +0000

Now I’m not really sure how many times Jakks Pacific can go back to the well on this one, but they’ve recently released yet another update to their popular Namco Pac-Man TV Plug-and-Play games.

The latest (fifth) revision to the system could be the best design yet, inspired by retro arcade cabinets, complete with a mock coin slot that lights up, and arcade-style buttons and joystick. The new version also bests all prior versions by including 12 classic arcade games inside. In addition to Pac-Man, the all-in-one console includes arcade versions of Bosconian, Xevious, Galaxian, Galaga, New Rally-X, Pac-Man Plus, Super Pac-Man, Pac & Pal, Mappy, Pole Position, and my all time fave DigDug.

While the best price I was able to find over on Amazon was $48 (USD), you should be able to find one for a bit less over on eBay if you dig under the appropriate rocks.

[screenshot via 20th Century Gamer]

Star Wars Gets New Tv Games From Jakks

Technabob — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 02:25:43 +0000

Here’s a couple of fun games for Star Wars fans to play on their TVs. The guys over a Jakks Pacific (makers of all of those great retro TV game systems) have recently released two new standalone TV games from the Star Wars universe.

The first of the game systems is called Classic Battles, which features a controller that looks like Darth Vader. The plug-and-play game includes five Jedi-themed battle games, including ship flying, lightsaber wielding, and battle droid blasting among others. Keep in mind that most of these games look like they’ve been recycled from an earlier version of the system.

The second console is brand new and looks like a major improvement over the Classic Battles system. Republic Squadron, which consists of a series of flying missions, played with a unique ship’s yoke style motion-sensing controller that let’s you really get into the action.

While Battles features mostly retro-style sprite-based games, Squadron appears to have graphics that look nearly as good as what you might find on a PS2 or Wii console. At least that’s how it looks from these screenshots. I haven’t had a chance to see the games in person.

You can find these and other Star Wars TV Games over on Amazon for about $30 bucks each.

[photo credit: kidstechreview]

Jakks Arcade Gold Plays 8 Namco Classics on Your Tv

Technabob — Fri, 24 Oct 2008 11:25:21 +0000

Jakks Pacific has been cranking out a variety of arcade games you can play on your TV for several years now. But all of their arcade systems up until now included 4, maybe 5 games. Their most recent model, the Arcade Gold game system ups the ante by cramming 8 old school arcade games into a single package.

The Arcade Gold connects to any TV and lets you play Pac-Man, Super Pac-Man, Pac & Pal, Pac-Man Plus, Galaxian, Bosconian, Dig Dug and New Rally X. For those of you playing at home, Jakks has basically combined their Namco Classics and Super Pac-Man systems into a single package, but kept the price under $20 bucks.

All games play with the original arcade graphics and sounds, and the big red ball joystick controller is perfect for retro gameplay. An added bonus over the original models is the built-in memory that lets you save your high scores even when the power is off. The only bad news is that the joystick is only a 4-way stick, making the diagonal-dependent Bosconian all but unplayable. Oh well, whaddya want for $20 bucks?

You can find the Jakks Pacific Arcade Gold game system over on Amazon.

[photo via CrankysArcade]