The game Pac-Man 99 has reached a new milestone with more than 9 million downloads on Nintendo Switch. In celebration, Bandai Namco Entertainment America is bringing back the Pac-Man 99 Challenge. For those of you not familiar, this is an esports tournament where popular content creators go against their fans in a unique and lovable battle royale game.
For this year, the Challenge is going to start as an online tournament but eventually culminates in a physical event. The Pac-Man 99 Challenge online competition begins January 7, 2023, and then takes place each consecutive Saturday until January 28.
During each of the weekend tournaments, one content creator will challenge their viewers to 10 matches to determine who they’ll be recruiting to their squad. Competitors earn points based on their final placement after each match:
- Placement: 1st
- Points: 50
- Placement: 2nd
- Points: 25
- Placement: 3rd
- Points: 15
- Placement: 4th-5th
- Points: 12
- Placement: 6th-10th
- Points: 7
- Placement: 11th-20th
- Points: 6
- Placement: 21st-30th
- Points: 5
- Placement: 31s-40th
- Points: 4
- Placement: 41st-50th
- Points: 3
- Placement: 51st-75th
- Points: 2
- Placement: 76th-100th
- Points: 1
The top 23 players are recruited to join the team for the Finals. Five players compete in-person at the live Finals event while the others compete remotely. Only players in the US and Canada are eligible to compete.
You can check out the official rules here. You can also learn more about the Pac-Man 99 Challenge here.
Pac-Man 99 offers the classic gameplay of the original Pac-Man many have grown to love. However, it adds new competitive game mechanics and introduces powerups to have that one-of-a-kind battle royale experience with up to 99 players. In the game, players need to eat as many Ghosts as they can so that they can slow down their opponents using Jammer Pac-Man. The more Ghosts they eat, the more Jammers they can send.
The gameplay involves eight different strategies, from speed-up to sending extra Jammers and more. Being able to switch between strategies at the right time can mean the difference between becoming Ghost fodder and being the last Pac-Man standing.
Currently, Pac-Man 99 is running a sale at the Nintendo eShop from November 2 to November 20. Offers include 35% off Mode Unlock and 50% off the Deluxe Pack. Learn more about it here.
