is a classic arcade game compilation published by

Namco Bandai Games is a Japanese multinational video game publisher headquartered in Minato-ku, Tokyo. Its international branches, Bandai Namco Entertainment America and Bandai Namco Entertainment Europe, are respectively headquartered in Irvine, California and ...

. It was originally released for the

Nintendo DS The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in tan ...

on September 18, 2007.

Overview

''Namco Museum DS'' features 8 (10 if both ''Super Xevious'' and the old version of ''Dig Dug II'' are counted) games originally published by Namco.

Games featured in Namco Museum DS

* ''

Galaxian is a 1979 fixed shooter arcade video game developed and published by Namco. The player assumes control of the Galaxip starfighter in its mission to protect Earth from waves of aliens. Gameplay involves destroying each formation of aliens, who ...

'' (1979) * ''

Pac-Man originally called ''Puck Man'' in Japan, is a 1980 maze action video game developed and released by Namco for arcades. In North America, the game was released by Midway Manufacturing as part of its licensing agreement with Namco America. Th ...

'' (1980) * ''

Galaga is a 1981 fixed shooter arcade video game developed and published by Namco. In North America, it was released by Midway Manufacturing. It is the sequel to ''Galaxian'' (1979), Namco's first major video game hit in arcades. Controlling a starshi ...

'' (1982) * ''

Xevious is a vertically scrolling shooter video game developed and published by Namco for arcades in 1982. It was released in Japan and Europe by Namco and in North America by Atari, Inc. Controlling the Solvalou starship, the player attacks Xevious for ...

'' (1983) * ''

Mappy is an arcade game by Namco, introduced in 1983 and distributed in the United States by Bally Midway. A side-scrolling platform game featuring a mouse protagonist and cat antagonists, it runs on Namco Super Pac-Man hardware modified to suppo ...

'' (1983) * ''

Super Xevious is a vertically scrolling shooter released as an arcade video game in Japan in 1984. It was developed and published by Namco as an updated version of ''Xevious'' (1982) created as a response to the overwhelming success of the original in Japan. ...

'' (1984) (hidden from view initially) * ''

The Tower of Druaga is a 1984 Arcade game, arcade action role-playing maze game developed and published in Japan by Namco. Controlling the golden-armored knight Gilgamesh, the player is tasked with scaling 60 floors of the titular tower in an effort to rescue the ...

'' (1984) * ''

Dig Dug II is an action arcade video game developed and published in Japan by Namco in 1985. It is a sequel to 1982's ''Dig Dug''. Pookas and fire-breathing Fygars return as the enemies, but the side view tunneling of the original is replaced with an overhe ...

'' (1985) (Old version included which is hidden from view initially) * '' Pac-Man Vs.'' (2003) (Original port) ''Super Xevious'' is unlocked by toggling settings in the game's Hardcore Options menu. Additionally, the old version of ''Dig Dug II'' is present as well, titled ''Dig Dug II (Old)''. The port of ''Pac-Man Vs.'' contains an entirely different soundtrack and supports

DS Download Play The is a handheld game console produced by Nintendo, released globally across 2004 and 2005. The DS, an initialism for "Developers' System" or "Dual Screen", introduced distinctive new features to handheld games: two LCD screens working in ta ...

, allowing multiple players to play ''Pac-Man Vs.'' without extra game cards. As with the original version on the

GameCube The is a home video game console developed and released by Nintendo in Japan on September 14, 2001, in North America on November 18, 2001, and in PAL territories in 2002. It is the successor to the Nintendo 64 (1996), and predecessor of the Wii ...

, there is no single player mode. All games support high score saves, for the first time on a Nintendo handheld. The games have been slightly modified from their original versions. Each of the games originally suffered from bugs, but in this version they are fixed. However, the player is given the option to play a bug fixed mode of each game, or turn off the bug fixes and retain the original functionality of the game. The collection also features virtual

DIP switch A DIP switch is a manual electric switch that is packaged with others in a group in a standard dual in-line package (DIP). The term may refer to each individual switch, or to the unit as a whole. This type of switch is designed to be used on a ...

modes where the switches can be turned on and off using the stylus, although not nearly as many of the original switches are on it. A diagram is listed on the top screen showing the various switch positions and functions. ''Galaga'', ''The Tower of Druaga'', ''Xevious'' and ''Super Xevious'' feature a navigation mode that shows various hints and tips throughout the gameplay to assist the player. There is also a music jukebox that allows the player to sample the original game tunes of the arcade games included, also including unused tunes and sound effects in this mode for the various games in this collection. This collection also includes the Japanese promotional material and dip switch boards for each game. The player chooses an item to view and then can use the stylus to move the picture around, zoom in and zoom out. The player can also wirelessly send one of any of the arcade games to another Nintendo DS by selecting "Demo" on the main menu. The receiver gets the game from Download Play and can play the full game until the system is shut off, although the receiver's scores are not saved. It was re-released as part of a "Dual Pack" bundle with the Nintendo DS version of ''

Pac-Man World 3 ''Pac-Man World 3'' is a platform video game developed by Namco, Namco Hometek and Blitz Games and published by Namco for the PlayStation 2, the GameCube, the Xbox (console), Xbox, the PlayStation Portable, the Nintendo DS, and Microsoft Windows. T ...

'' in North America on October 30, 2012.

Reception

Namco Museum DS has received a metascore of 67 from Metacritic, indicating "mixed or average reviews".

Notes

References

{{Pac-Man series Bandai Namco video game compilations 2007 video games Nintendo DS games Nintendo DS-only games Namco games Video games developed in Japan Video games scored by Manabu Namiki