Pac-Man &amp; Galaga DimensionsPac-Man &amp; Galaga Dimensions Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions "Dimensions" was created by Takahiro Okano and Takahisa Sugiyama, who were commissioned by Namco Bandai to produce a compilation as a way to celebrate the 30th anniversaries of "Galaga" and "Pac-Man", and to bridge the two franchises together in a single package. The two exclusive games were built to take advantage of the new features included in the 3DS, which had launched before production began. "Pac-Man Championship Edition" and "Galaga Legions" were added due to neither having been released on a portable system beforehand, and for being important entries in their respective series. "Pac -Man & Galaga Dimensions" received mixed reviews from critics. Though the emulation quality and the inclusion of "Pac-Man Championship Edition" and "Galaga Legions" received praise, reviewers were critical of the compilation's overall quality, the small screen resolution, and its high retail price. While some believed the exclusive games made the package worthwhile, others believed they were of subpar quality and suffered from poor 3D effects and controls. Overview. "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions" is a collection of six games from the "Pac-Man" and "Galaxian" franchises—"Pac-Man" (1980), "Galaga" (1981), "Pac-Man Championship Edition" (2007), "Galaga Legions" (2008), "Pac-Man  Tilt", and "Galaga 3D Impact", the last two being exclusive to this collection. "Pac-Man" and "Galaga" are both arcade games from the early 1980s, while "Pac-Man Championship Edition" and "Galaga Legions" are modernized updates that were first published on the Xbox 360 and PlayStation 3. All of the games except "Pac-Man Tilt" utilize the system's 3D display. The original ports of "Pac-Man" and "Galaga" feature a curved monitor display that replicate the original arcade machines, with the added option to choose from the American upright, Japanese upright, or tabletop cabinets for the screen border. The  collection also includes access to an online ranking system and a trailer for the "Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures" animated series. In "Pac-Man Tilt", players control Pac-Man as he must make it to the end of each level while avoiding ghosts and other obstacles in his way. Tilting the 3DS changes the direction of gravity, which is used to easily climb up steep inclines or turn into a ball to roll down hills and smash through bricks. Pac-Man can defeat the ghosts by finding glowing Power Pellets throughout the level. In "Galaga 3D Impact", players control  a starship from a first-person perspective throughout a series of levels, destroying formations of enemies and avoiding collision with their projectiles. Moving the 3DS in a fixed direction controls the player in the game. Players can also capture enemies and use their weapons against other enemies and bosses. Development and release. "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions" was designed by Takahiro Okano and Takahisa Sugiyama of Namco Bandai Games. As a way to celebrate the 30th anniversaries of "Pac-Man" and "Galaga", the two were commissioned to create a compilation that bridged the two franchises together into a single game. Okano  and Sugiyama designed "Dimensions" to utilize the hardware capabilities of the recently-launched Nintendo 3DS, as both showed interest in the system's specifications. Their interest lead to the creation of the two exclusive games, "Galaga 3D Impact" and "Pac-Man Tilt", which became the first games they designed for the company. Okano created "Tilt", based on his fascination with the handheld's gyroscopic sensor. He created an early prototype where players launched Pac-Man into a goal by tilting the 3DS, which while interested in the idea believed its concept proved confusing for players. In response, Okano reworked it  into a side-scrolling platformer where players titled the system to move Pac-Man through a series of levels. "Galaga 3D Impact" was designed by Sugiyama. He also designed the game after the gyro sensor, as he believed it was a unique concept for a shooter. Early iterations of "3D Impact" were third-person shooters that allowed players to view the entirety of their ship, which was changed to a first-person view to feel more immersive. Sugiyama had difficulties with implementing the 3D effects, creating multiple revisions to make objects pop-out while also making sure they weren't  blurry on the eyes. A separate team of programmers worked on the ports of "Pac-Man Championship Edition" and "Galaga Legions"; their inclusion was due to neither having received a portable version prior, and for being important installments in their respective series. The angled monitor display for the original "Pac-Man" and "Galaga" were inspired by the depth perception of dioramas. Namco Bandai announced "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions" in February 2011, alongside "DualPenSports" and "Ridge Racer 3D", and demonstrated it at E3 2011. In a preview, "GameSpot" showed interest in the two exclusives and the inclusion of online leaderboards. The  game was published in Japan on June 23, 2011, in North America on July 27, 2011, in Australia on August 4, 2011, and in Europe on August 26, 2011. The Japanese, Australian, and European versions of "Dimensions" were published by Namco Bandai, while the North American version was published under the original Namco brand name. Reception. According to the review aggregator website Metacritic, "Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions" received mixed reviews. The game sold 10,785 units in Japan alone. Critics were generally divided by the amount of content included and if it was worth the price. While the four reviewers at  Famitsu said that "Dimensions" offered a great deal of games for a good pricepoint, Jack DeVries of "IGN" stated otherwise, writing that it is "far too high for such a mediocre collection." DeVries also criticized the game for being a generally weak collection, and for "actually a bastardization of two awesome game series." Critics generally agreed that one of the strong points of "Dimensions" was the inclusion of "Pac-Man Championship Edition" and "Galaga Legions". DeVries said that the games were entertaining and almost a reason to buy the collection. However, he also argued that they should have been $ 5 downloads on the Nintendo eShop instead. "Nintendojo"s Aaron Roberts believed that both games were great and solid updates to their predecessors. "Galaga Legions" in particular was liked by Kyle Hilliard of "GamesRadar+", but claimed "Galaga Legions DX" was a better game and that the graphics weren't as well-done as those in the Xbox 360 iteration. Writing for "Nintendo Life", Jon Wahlgren listed "Championship Edition" and "Legions" as the highlight of the package. He stated they were both "gripping new spins on their respective elders" and would entice console gamers with their action-packed gameplay. Wahlgren noted that  Legions suffered from slowdown when there was too much going on, but said it wasn't enough to distract players. The included ports of the original "Pac-Man" and "Galaga" were also met with mixed reactions. Critics unanimously agreed that both games were timeless and still fun to play, but that the squashed screen resolution made them difficult to play. "Nintendo World Report"s Andy Goregen commended the 3D support for making the games much more unique than previous re-releases. Wahlgren agreed with Goregen and added that the ability to swap between using an upright or tabletop border design would  please fans, but said the "almost comical" screen resolution makes them tough to play, especially with the 3D mode. DeVries said they both lack an impressive presentation. The ports were viewed by Hilliard as being more of a novelty than anything else, saying the poor screen resolution and size made these less appealing than players would think. Reviewers were split regarding the two new games, "Galaga 3D Impact" and "Pac-Man Tilt". While some said they were both fun and great extras, others claimed they lacked polish and could have used some definite improvement. The reviewers at "Famitsu" dedicated most  of their review to them, finding them to be entertaining and solid additions to "Dimensions". On the contrary, DeVries stated they were only noteworthy for the novelty, and that in actuality they're "boring, awkward titles that completely miss why either of these franchises are fun." He disliked "Tilt" for its controls and "3D Impact" for coming off as a shallow clone of "Panzer Dragoon". "GamePro"s Ray Barnholt liked "Tilt" for being a cute, interesting platformer, and said it made it worth the purchase of "Dimensions". Furthermore, he said "3D Impact" could entertain players, but was way too short and  felt more like a virtual theme park attraction than a full game. Critics agreed that "3D Impact" in particular was hindered by its 3D effect, which made the game hard to play and were ineffective. Roberts compared "3D Impact" to the first-person segments in "Steel Diver", and said the exclusives helped increase the attractiveness of the compilation. Goregen liked the game's layer of strategy through its multiple weapons, but said it suffered from poor 3D effects. Critics also directed attention towards the inclusion of the trailer for "Pac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures". Wahlgren called it "utterly bizarre  and something that needed to be seen to be believed. Overall, many critics concluded that Dimensions" was an incomplete collection and needed plenty of polish to be of good quality. Barnholt told readers that they should instead buy "3D Classics Xevious" if they wanted some classic Namco action in portable form. While the game received criticism for its inability to erase high scores, a representative of Namco Bandai reached out to publications and confirmed that it was possible via a button code. Pac-Man & Galaga Dimensions "Dimensions" was created by Takahiro Okano and Takahisa Sugiyama, who were commissioned by Namco