Today, it's back into the world of survival horror.
Pac-Man was not created to be a videogame. As explained by designer Iwatani Toru, "I don't have any particular interest in [computers]. I'm interested in creating images that communicate with people. A computer is not the only medium that uses images; I could use the movies or television or any other visual medium. It just so happens I use the computer." Basically, he wanted to make art, and that was just the medium he had. Pac-Man was one of the first games to have a creative team behind it, not just a single programmer - engineers, graphic designers, composers... having those jobs as part of the games industry today can be traced back to Pac-Man.
Pac-Man was originally just a circle with a mouth - in fact, the original Japanese cabinet art for Puckman portrayed him as a yellow ball with a pink mouth and green feet in rollerskates. Iwatani has said that while designing the game, they considered giving Pac eyes, but "once we added eyes, we would want to add glasses and maybe a mustache. There would just be no end to it." A sphere with a chunk taken out of it wouldn't make for a very interesting Mystery Mini, however, so Funko opted instead for something more complex.
Inspired by Pac-Man's 25th Anniversary logo (rather than the '80s art seen on the box), this figure sees Pac standing with one orange-gloved hand on his... "hip" may be too strong a word, but near the area where his leg enters his body. He's giving a thumbs-up, and winking at the viewer. His eyebrows are molded, and he has a long, upturned nose, but his eyes and mouth are just painted on. He wears two red boots, though they're molded here as a single piece. The size still seems surprisingly large, closer to the "Really Big Mystery Minis" than the normal ones.
I just wanted to say that you got some false information in this. That is NOT the original arcade art for PuckMan. That is actually art for a bootleg version of PuckMan, so it is unofficial. The OFFICIAL PuckMan artwork uses the design seen in this Mystery Mini. (With some small differences, like a longer nose and smaller feet.) This design was used in all official Japanese artwork and merchandise for Pac-Man throughout the 80s, and also appeared in-game for official games. Starting with Pac-Land, and continued to be used in Hello! Pac-Man, Pac-in-Time, and most famously the Pac-Man World trilogy. This design also recently appeared in Super Smash Bros. So, this design for Pac-Man existed and has been used long before his 25th anniversary logo, as well as being around since the first game. (and before his name was finalized) So yeah, that creepy pink-lipped green-footed PuckMan is just an unofficial bootleg. Here is the official art.
Wow, that's cool. Thanks for the correction!
No problem! I’m always happy to share information on Pac-Man. I’ll also share something interesting about the enemies. While they were originally called monsters, the ghost name originated from the Atari 2600 version as a way to cover up the sprite flickering. The ghost thing was eventually adopted by Namco, starting with Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures. However, for a while they sorta went back and fourth between calling them ghosts or monsters, until they eventually just decided to stick with callimg them ghosts in around the early 2000s. This is especially apparent in the reboot series Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures, where it is explicitly explained that the ghosts are actual spirits of dead pac-people. Also, the reason Pinky is listed as “Ms. Pac-Man Ghost” and has a different art style is because it’s based on the ghost seen on the Ms. Pac-Man arcade artwork from Midway, same for Ms. Pac-Man herself. (although her design is sort of a combination of her Midway design and her official Namco design) Blinky just looks like he does in most games, hence why he’s just listed with his name.