My Arcade

My Arcade, formerly known as dreamGEAR, is a manufacturing company founded in 2001, which produces "Plug & Play" and electronic handheld game systems, generally based on Nintendo Entertainment System (Famiclone) hardware.
For many years, their consoles featured lesser known, somewhat bootleg-affiliated games from companies such as Nice Code Software and JungleTac. Towards the later 2010s, My Arcade shifted focus towards producing licensed consoles, based on more well-known arcade IPs; beginning with the Data East library (licensed from G-Mode) in 2017. In 2018, My Arcade began releasing licensed titles from Namco, including games from the Pac-Man series; additional licensees include Atari, Konami, Capcom, and Taito, among others.
== Micro Players ==
Tabletop arcade machines with one built in game. Can run on batteries or an AC adapter. The systems are generally based on the Nintendo Entertainment System (Family Computer) versions of each respective game. The machines' artwork is closely modeled after the original arcade cabinets unless otherwise specified.
(Note: the lists below only feature titles licensed from Bandai Namco Entertainment.)
=== Original series ===
* Pac-Man Micro Player - Famicom/NES version.
* Pac-Man 40th Anniversary Micro Player - Uses the "Sega Genesis clone hardware" port running in horizontal resolution. Compared to the non-40th model, it is gold instead of yellow, and the side artwork is a lenticular print.
* Ms. Pac-Man Micro Player - NES (Namco 1993) version.
* Galaxian Micro Player - Famicom version.
* Galaga Micro Player - Famicom/NES version.
* Dig Dug Micro Player - Famicom version.
* Mappy Micro Player - Famicom version.
* Rolling Thunder Micro Player - NES (Tengen) version.
=== Micro Player Pro series ===
The "Pro" series of machines were released in 2023, and are seemingly intended to replace the prior units in production. These consoles feature vertical-resolution screens instead of horizontal; rather than using Famicom/NES ROMs, these units appear to use newly created conversions of the games for Sega Genesis/Mega Drive hardware.
* Pac-Man Micro Player Pro - Also available in smaller "Nano Player" size.
* Ms. Pac-Man Micro Player Pro - Also available in smaller "Nano Player" size.
* Galaga Micro Player Pro - Features Galaga and Galaxian; also available in smaller "Nano Player" size.
* Pole Position Racing Player - Upcoming release.
=== Joystick Player series ===
The "Joystick Players" feature a large, Atari 2600-like joystick attached to the front of the (otherwise-same size) machine; they generally use the same software as their Micro Player Pro counterpart (if one is available).
* Pac-Man Joystick Player - Upcoming release.
* Ms. Pac-Man Joystick Player - Upcoming release.
* Galaga Joystick Player
== Pocket Players ==
Small handheld game systems with three built in games. Can run on batteries or an AC adapter.
(Note: the lists below only feature titles licensed from Bandai Namco Entertainment.)
=== Original series ===
* Pac-Man Pocket Player - features Pac-Man, Pac-Mania and Pac-Panic (European version of Pac-Attack). Pac-Mania and Pac-Panic are based on their existing Sega Genesis releases, while My Arcade's Genesis conversion of Pac-Man is included.
* Ms. Pac-Man Pocket Player - features Ms. Pac-Man, Sky Kid and Mappy; utilizes NES versions/Famiclone hardware.
* Galaga Pocket Player - features Galaga, Galaxian and Xevious; utilizes NES versions/Famiclone hardware.
* Dig Dug Pocket Player - features Dig Dug, Dig Dug II and The Tower of Druaga; utilizes NES versions/Famiclone hardware.
=== Pocket Player Pro series ===
* Pac-Man Pocket Player Pro
* Ms. Pac-Man Pocket Player Pro
* Galaga Pocket Player Pro - Features Galaga and Galaxian.
* Pole Position Pocket Player Max - Upcoming release.
==Namco Museum Mini Player==
A larger tabletop arcade machine with 20 built-in games. The games included are mostly genuine arcade versions, alongside a handful of Sega Genesis games.
*Pac-Man (1980)
*Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures (1994)
*Pac-Mania (1987)
*Pac-Panic (1993) - European version of Pac-Attack, runs at slower PAL speed
*Battle City (1985)
*Dig Dug (1982)
*Dig Dug II (1985)
*Dragon Spirit (1987)
*Galaga (1981)
*Galaxian (1979)
*Mappy (1983)
*Phelios (1988)
*Rolling Thunder (1986)
*Rolling Thunder 2 (1990)
*Rolling Thunder 3 (1993)
*Sky Kid (1985)
*Splatterhouse (1988)
*Splatterhouse 2 (1992)
*Tower of Druaga (1984)
*Xevious (1982)
==Trivia==
*While not officially confirmed, all of My Arcade's Ms. Pac-Man handhelds were likely released through loopholes with the 2006 General Computer Corporation agreement, which would indicate no royalties had to be paid to GCC for their release.
**Curiously, the Ms. Pac-Man systems were briefly pulled from production in late 2022; though due to the following 2023 releases, the loopholes presumably still apply to the products.
*My Arcade's Sega Genesis conversion port of Pac-Man - appearing on the Pac-Man Pocket Player and other My Arcade devices - was produced by Piko Interactive, while reportedly being developed by Shiru. While originating from the Pocket Player, the port has been known to appear on other manufacturers' devices (namely the Arcade1UP "Pac-Man Collectorcade", which runs the game in vertical resolution).
*Pac-Man is included twice in the Namco Museum Mini Player, which contains the arcade port, and the Genesis port via Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures.
*Several My Arcade releases use artwork designs modeled after Pac-Man Cereal.
*If the Sega Genesis Pac-Man conversion is played on an emulator, pressing the A and C buttons while starting the game will open a service menu, which is not normally accessible on the My Arcade units due to the lack of a C button. Like many releases, the service menu allows extra life thresholds and starting lives to be changed; but additionally includes three display mode options, whereas only one mode is enabled by default (which varies depending on the console). One mode is displayed horizontally with the HUD moved to the sides; another horizontal mode shrinks the sprites to match the original Pac-Man's aspect ratio; and a vertical display option that displays the original unmodified graphics from the arcade version.
*Many of My Arcade's earlier systems (including some under the original dreamGEAR brand) are known to feature bootleg, Famiclone-based hacks of the Pac-Man NES/Famicom games, alongside other Namco titles (such as Mappy and Dig Dug II). Consoles featuring the unauthorized games were produced before Namco's partnership with the company.
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