Last night, Pac-Man 99 dropped on the Nintendo Switch eShop. This game is FREE for all Nintendo Switch Online subscribers. Pac-Man 99 was announced just one day before it’s release with the surprise trailer below.

This marks the third FREE Nintendo Switch Online game of its kind — The Retro Battle Royale game.

We first had and still have Tetris 99, where you play again 98 other Tetris players and try to be the last one standing, by sending your trashed tetrominos to their maps. Mario 35 (which is now forever gone) was the second one, featuring 35 player battles, where everyone is playing the original Mario Bros at once. And now we have the Pac-Man Battle Royale — Pac-Man 99.

In Pac-Man 99, you play Pac-Man while 98 other players are also playing Pac-Man around you. Everyone has one life to live and you’re all trying to take each other out. There are some changes to the original Pac-Man formula. For one, there are sleeping ghosts which help you create a ghost train for eating and sending over to your opponents. Opponents send over “Pac-Ghost-Men” that slow you down if you touch them. So, eat those pellets and eat those ghosts, but stay away from those “Pac-Ghost-Men.”

These three Retro Battle Royale games all basically work the same way. You are playing the original game, but with a twist. Opponents can send obstacles your way by completing game objectives. And, you can do the same to opponents to eliminate them from play.

I got to play a few rounds last night and this game is just as fun and hectic as the other two games. I didn’t play too many rounds of Mario 35 while it was around, but I did play and continue to play Tetris 99 every now and then.

As if Pac-Man wasn’t crazy enough for me, now I have to play faster than 98 other people? I haven’t broken 50th place yet, and if I ever get into the top 20 I may retire from this game. I have never been that great at Pac-Man, and even in Tetris 99 (a game I have always considered myself “ok” at) I still don’t get into the top 10 all that much.

Even though Mario 35 did leave the eShop and the servers were shut down recently, Pac-Man 99 has no listed end date. Hopefully, it is here to stay because it is similar enough to Tetris 99 to feel familiar, but different enough to be something different to play.

These Retro Battle Royale games have all been really fun to play. It’s just a new take on these classic games, adding a massive multiplayer experience. I’m excited to see where else they go with these games. Will we get more Mario games? What other retro games will we see in the 99-style? Will we see newer games?

I can see many games, new and old, getting the “99” treatment. I can totally see a Towerfall 99. I just really love playing Towerfall and it would be the perfect game for this formula.

What other games do you see getting the 99/Retro Battle Royale treatment in the future?
Let us know in the comments…