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We're just two months away from the release of Shadow Labyrinth, the new action side-scroller that takes pop icon Pac-Man and turns it into a gritty, dystopic hellscape (like Prime Video did on Secret Level). Interestingly, the main character in the game isn't the little yellow sphere we've come to know and love, it's the mysterious Swordsman No. 8. However, at PAX East 2025, we learned that the Pac-Man we're used to almost was the game's central figure...

Or at least, the central figure's head.

The revelation comes from Bandai Namco producer Seigo Aizawa, who took part in the Platform for Adventure: Metroidvania Game Makers Roundtable. At the tail end of the discussion, Aizawa referred to the giant image of the game's main character and explained that, had things gone differently, we would've been looking at something else entirely.

"To tell you the truth," Aizawa said via translator, "in the initial phase, the Swordsman's face was actually a Pac-Man head." 

This got a pretty big laugh from the sizeable audience of Metroidvania players.

"The design was not giving out the [game’s] serious vibe," said Aizawa, referring to the reaction. It's just too funny."

But the design that the Shadow Labyrinth team ended up going with wasn't just to make the character seem less silly - it was to emerge the player deeper into the world.

"That's why we designed the Swordsman to have kind of a blurred face," concluded Aizawa, "So the characters can kind of feel like they are the first character in the game."

I see the logic, but what if I wanted to feel like I was wearing a giant Pac-Man head? I guess that's what DLCs are for.

Shadow Labyrinth comes to consoles July 18.

The gaming industry has come a long way since Pong blew all our minds in the 70s. We've got everything you need to know about the next big thing in games. Of course, Grand Theft Auto VI is going to be the big game of 2026, but there are plenty of other games coming out between now and then. Here is our starter guide for every gamer:

• All upcoming games in 2025 and beyond
• Gamify My Life, our weekly gaming column designed
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• Why the GTA 6 budget isn't as crazy as you think
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And be sure to check Popverse regularly for the latest gaming news.