Pac-Man

Namco · Since 1980

The highest-grossing arcade game of all time. Toru Iwatani's maze game sold over 400,000 cabinets, generated $2.5 billion in quarters by 1990, and made the yellow dot-eating character the most recognised video game icon before Mario.

Pac-Man (1980) was designed by Toru Iwatani at Namco to appeal to a broader audience than the space shooters dominating arcades — specifically, to attract female players who were largely absent from arcade culture. The maze-chase structure, the four ghost personalities (Blinky, Pinky, Inky, Clyde) with distinct AI behaviours, and the power pellet reversal mechanic created a game of depth that rewarded pattern memorisation. The game sold 400,000 arcade cabinets worldwide — the most of any arcade machine in history — and generated over $2.5 billion in quarters by 1990. The Pac-Man character appeared on lunch boxes, clothing, breakfast cereal, a television cartoon, and a licensed song by Buckner & Garcia that charted internationally. The Atari 2600 port, released in 1982 with significant quality compromises, was one of the contributing factors to the 1983 gaming crash.