Cori Celebrates PAC-Man’s 40th By Getting Schooled By Her Kid

40 years ago, Japanese game designer Toru Iwatani (who was essentially a noob, not having much success with his previous designs) came up with a game that would solidify his place in gaming history. His game would become one of the most recognized and highly successful games of all-time. That game, as we have come to know and love it now, is PAC-Man.

What's fantastic about this game is it's simplicity. There's no blood, guts or gore. There aren't any guns, or crazy, dark plot twists. It's just a hungry head who eats dots and cherries and tries to stay away from floating ghosts.

That's it.

That and an awesomely upbeat soundtrack.

I'll wager a bet that if you cut a slice out of banana pie, hold it up to your head, and make a chomping sound, a good majority of folks in the room would absolutely know who you're imitating.

According to an article on CNN Style, PAC-Man's origin had to do less with his style originally, and more with his appetite! "The game wasn't called 'Pac-Man' back then, but rather 'PuckMan,' which offers a glimpse into its origins. 'Paku paku taberu' is a popular Japanese phrase for gobbling something up, with 'paku paku' mimicking the sound of a snapping mouth and 'taberu' meaning "to eat."

I think one of the coolest thing about PAC-Man is how timeless the game is. I'm not typically a huge fan of most modern video games. I suck at them, and honestly, I just don't have the time to invest into becoming better. But I am familiar with their appeal. I have a 12-year-old son. And while I don't typically spend a lot of time playing Fortnite or Minecraft with him, there are a couple of games I do enjoy playing with him: Tetris and PAC-Man.

So in honor of PAC-Man and I sharing our 40th birthday year together, my son and I played a round. He totally beat me, but we still had fun, which is kind of the point of the game, after all, right?

The gaming world has come a long way in the last 40 years, but has some fun things in store to celebrate one of their most iconic characters. Take a look at the video below if you want to know more.