When this set came out I was very intrigued by it, but how could I ever purchase this when it would be cheaper to purchase an actual PAC-MAN game. Sure, I have the game on the NES and Game Boy, and I can use my NES Advantage so I have a joystick. But the real issue is that the game to be played properly should be on a vertically oriented screen.

So I decided that I loved this set mainly because I loved how it looked. However, it'd be a cheaper or comparable to get an Arcade 1UP version of the game instead. Sadly the countercade version has been discontinued, and the 3/4 size cabinets really take up a lot of space. So I started searching eBay and managed to get a brand new countercade for $150 shortly after this set was announced. I'd have to say it's probably the best thing I've ever purchased, at least from a retro gaming perspective.

But now several months later my birthday is coming up and really this is the one set that I really want. Not to mention the countercade is mounted on a wall in my basement outside my office. My office is where I display not just all my Lego, but also my retro gaming collection. This (along with my Lego NES) is perfect for the room.

Well, now I have it, and once more I couldn't be happier with my purchase. My kids too absolutely love it, just as much as they love the Arcade 1UP. So now that you have some background, let's review the actual set.

Packaging

The packaging looks great but I especially like the instructions. Instead of a picture of the set, they feature pixel art. They also come packed in a cardboard envelope so they stay protected.

Parts

The set of course features a lot of yellow and black but sadly only a handful of printed parts. The three parts the make up the marquee are printed, as are handful 1x1 round tiles that feature Pac-Man, the ghosts, and cherries. Since you get 1 extra of each you will have 3 of each ghost, 3 cherries, and 5 Pac-Man tiles. Beyond that, the large ghost eyes for the mini build are printed. This means that you get a boatload of stickers including some very large ones that can be quite difficult to place perfectly. This is certainly a bit of a disappointment given the price of the set.

Aside from that, you do get quite a few interesting parts. You get two very large Technic boards that make up the screen. A lot of large tiles (several of which get stickers), a variety of sloped bricks as well as a good amount of large bricks. However, you also get tons of small Technic bricks and lots of tread pieces, including several with sticks that hold the ghosts and Pac-Man that move around the screen.

The Build

The build itself is quite interesting. The first two bags are for the mini-build of the large Pac-Man and two ghosts. It's rather interesting as it involves some simple Technic and a lot of SNOT, not to mention the base is built sideways. Perhaps the most interesting part of it is that it includes parts that need to be removed and will later be used in the cabinet. I've never seen anything like this before in Lego instructions, but the purpose of it is to keep everything straight and aligned until it is all secure.

Now these removable bricks did ultimately become problematic for me when my daughter broke this build and I had already used the removable bricks elsewhere on the cabinet. I was still able to get it fixed but it required a good amount of precision to get everything perfectly aligned.

After that you build the cabinet which is pretty straightforward and is just standard stacking of bricks for the most part. At the bottom of the front of the cabinet it is angled so you do use a few simple hinges to get it right, and you use a drop of Technic, namely a rubbery pieces to create the joystick and the button that lights up the coin slot. The sides have a little bit of SNOT, but not much. Really it is pretty simple, but it is enjoyable. This part of the build is not repetitive.

Now comes the screen which is the interesting part. As you can probably imagine it is all Technic. However it is surprisingly simple given how amazing the play feature is. Basically you have a two sets of treads, a large one for Pac- Man and two ghosts, and a smaller one for one ghost. In addition you have a cherry that dances in place and a ghost that goes back and forth in their starting position. But for the most part you are building up the walls of the board which are also the guides for the treads. It's a lot to do, but really isn't all that complex much to my surprise. You will need to create 64 dots which is definitely the most time consuming part of the build.

After that you insert the screen, finish the Technic function which is just a few gears that connect to a single axel. Finish the top of the cabinet sides, and then cover it up.

To finish the build you make the back access panel which is surprisingly thin and simple but does seem sturdy. Then you build the minifigure arcade and done.

It really is an enjoyable build as it offers a lot of variety and changes things up every bag or two. While the dots are repetitive, nothing else in the set really is.

The Model

This is why you are buying the set. Once completed it is a beautiful model that captures all the details of an original cabinet you'd find in an arcade. One of my favorite things is if you open the back, the backside of the screen looks like it could be a circuit board. Of course it's the play feature that is amazing. It's just as good and as innovative as the TV screen on the NES set. It really looks like you are playing the game.

As for the mini-build, typically I hate these. I usually feel like they are tacked on to inflate the price of the set. However, this one is different. It really looks great despite only featuring two of the ghosts. Furthermore, I love how you push in the button on the back and Pac-Man spins around to eat the ghosts who have now changed colour to blue. This is something that you really can't recreate in the cabinet itself. And I have to say, while the cabinet alone would look great, with this on top it really does look better.

Overall

I have to say that this is one of my favorite sets, and my kids also love it despite it not being a play set. The set just looks fantastic, was a lot of fun to build, and has a very cool play feature that works perfectly.

I would certainly recommend it to anyone who has a PAC-MAN cabinet, but would of course recommend getting a cabinet you can play the actual game on over the Lego set. It's of the same quality as the Lego NES set. Which one you'd prefer probably just depends on which one you feel more nostalgic for. But if you love Lego and you love PAC-MAN, then this is definitely a set you should get.