I still play pinball, but not many arcades in Japan have them nowadays, so I literally go the extra mile just to play them. Pinball captivated me with how the ball moves according to the laws of physics, the fun in reading the ball’s movement, and with the vibrant graphics that adorned the backglass and playfield.

Do you still play pinball? What do you think of the new machines?

Having the Ghosts chase you then turning the tables and chasing the Ghosts and gobbling them up in succession is quite gratifying, which I think is another reason why the game is adored to this day.īefore getting into the digital arcade market, you wanted to make pinball machines. Toru Iwatani: We targeted the game towards female audiences and dating couples, so I believe the cute design, the easy learning curve, and simple-yet-intuitive four-way controls resonated well with everyone. Why do you think the character has had such an impressive legacy? Pac-Man is actually older than a lot of the people who play games today. In honor of this anniversary, we spoke with Iwatani about the creation of Pac-Man and why he thinks the character has had such a lasting legacy.

According to the Guinness World Records, more than 293,000 Pac-Man machines were built throughout the ‘80s, making it the most successful coin-operated arcade machine ever produced. The release of Pac-Man created a frenzy that reportedly caused coin shortages and spawned a Top 40 single. Forty years ago, Toru Iwatani took a look at a pizza then created one of the most iconic video game characters of all time.

Pac man logo origin