The weird silver war zone of Shadow Maze (Metroidvania) has influenced Pac-Man…actually effective!
Blog Andrew Joseph 15 May , 2025 0
As an old gamer (now 32 years old), I have a lot of experience playing Pac-Man. During my adolescence, many of my summer days were spent on my local arcades trying to reach the fabulous “split screen level.” As a big fan of the franchise, I admit to keeping the Pax East preview of Bandai Namco's new, unconventional series Shadow Labyrinth.
On paper, the shadow maze should not work. Pac-Man is a dark sci-fi battle where he turns into a giant mecha, shooting lasers from his mouth sounds like a bad game wattpad novel. However, that's exactly what it is… Hockey, man, it's glorious.
The story takes place shortly after the events of the main video, and is animated with Secret War, as the protagonist, the dark and contemplative swordsman, No. 8, awakens by monsters and aliens. He soon meets a mysterious figure known as Puck, a yellow circular creature that looks like he enjoys eating particles, fruits and blue ghosts. After a brief introduction, the duo combines their unique power and mobility, hoping that they can survive the dangers of the world and survive in the darkness of waiting.
Dark comes in many shapes and sizes, as the settings have a few different biomes, each with different personalities, backgrounds and characteristics. No two mazes in this 2D adventure will have the same layout, and the design and type of enemies will vary depending on the area being explored.
My preview started by placing me in an underground tech biome filled with various melee, flying and ranged enemies types that can only exist underground, such as bat creation and angry hedgehogs. The gameplay is initially simple and intuitive. Fighting and dodging reminds me of many original Castlevania champions, with platform elements similar to Ori, Forest of the Blind and Celeste’s Love Kids, thanks to Puck’s ability to catch the spots, adding extra maneuverability.
Combining grabs with air attacks allows for fun gameplay with enemies, especially when it comes to the challenge room. Like many other Metroidvanias, the Shadow Magyrinth's room is closed once it enters, requiring the swordsman to defeat each combatant inside to unlock the room.
Enemies lay eggs from the entire room, trying to submerge with quantity and diversity, thus for a bullet-like environment. I tried frantically to catch the allegations of the enemy on the ground while dodging the flying enemy, failing to do so many times and needing to be reborn.
After mastering their modes and positions, I struggled hard, moving through the air chain with melee attacks, and then slamming my sword from above on the enemy below, thus achieving a great victory. Although I had only experienced two challenging rooms in this particular building, each room was difficult but meaningful and I was impressed by it. But despite how much I enjoyed, the platform of the Shadow maze and the real beauty of the battle light up when the puck becomes a controllable character.
The platform elements that control the hockey are both smart and nostalgic, as the swordsman becomes him and rides a wave of electricity to help them move in areas that are environmentally hazardous or inaccessible. You will move the same way into the old Pac-Man game when waving the waves, but will increase.
Parker is still limited to the left, right, up or down movement on the Violet power line, but he is no longer limited to the lined grid and can also stop, aim and jump. While this sounds simple, it adds new layers to movement and combat. Some challenge rooms even have these lines that can be used to perform sword attacks, creating a completely new way to defeat the battle puzzles in each room.
My favorite instance happened halfway through the preview during Kaiju Boss Battle (yes, you read it correctly). This battle is similar to the Challenge Room because it prevents any retreat, but this time it is a one-on-one battle because the boss is much bigger than the No. 8 Swordsman. To strike the difference in size, Swordsman No. 8 can use Parker's ability to ride on the wall, not only to obtain the enemy's angle, but also to avoid the enemy's corner weaknesses, and to avoid large-scale attackers, otherwise they will avoid attacking attackers, otherwise they will encounter attacks.
It turns out that the boss isn't the only one wielding lasers, and this is another of my favorite ridiculous moments in this preview: The Puck can be turned into a giant mech called Gaia. Yes, this is a Metroidvania Pac-Man game where you can control a Gundam and fight Kaiju. Again, this shouldn't work, but it does, leading to an epic gradual crescendo that becomes a fanatical dream of boss fight and transformation.
Even after the boss’s battle is over, there is still a lot of exploration in the shadow maze. The first thing I unlocked after that was a cutback version of the Gaia laser feature, which the swordsman could press the charging button to use. This move is not only ideal for distributing a large number of enemies to block an area, but also attacks in locations like the challenge room to make some pleasurable combinations kill.
In addition to the new power movement, I unlocked a new position that included another set of strange familiar enemies that would start floating along my level until they hit the ground. At first, I was confused about how to beat them because hitting them with a sword doesn't work.
Until I started listening to music and sound effects and remember why the enemy's movements seemed so familiar that the light bulb went out: these are Dig Dig Dug's Pooka. Like the classic arcade title from 1982, the only way to destroy Pooka is to be unconscious and swell when it is realized. After experimenting, it turns out that using the hockey's grab ability to knock them down and then using it again to exaggerate them is the only way to kill them.
This is just one of many quotes to Bandai Namco's beloved arcade game library, as Shadow Lagyrinth's story and setup will include a lot of reference, modernized other iconic games. While there is no hint or mention which one it is, the developer scoffs at the war-torn shadow maze itself will be a major revelation of narrative progress.
If you tell me, then someday someone will make a silver-menian version of everyone's favorite hockey man, I might think you're crazy. After Pax East played Shadow Magyrinth in 2025, that statement may still be true, but I'm right next to you, enjoying the insanity.
Whether it's the fluidity of the hook and wall traversal of the puck, plus the raw power and durability of the Swordsman No. 8, or the fact that the Pac-Man can become a kind of laser shot out of the mouth, everything about this Metroidvania is very interesting. The game has something for everyone here, as the platform, battles and puzzles everyone stands out with a pleasant experience.
I beg you to pause your incredibles about how this bizarre concept works and at least tried Shadow Magyrinth at launch because this crazy creative bet by Bandai looks like it might actually pay off.