LEGO PAC-MAN Arcade review! The real game is cheaper... but tHe bUiLd eXpeRiENce

Independent, #NotSponsored, unscripted fan review of the LEGO PAC-MAN Arcade set 10323, with 2651 pieces for £229.99 / $269.99 / 269.99€. It's a desktop-scale model with interactive "screen," illuminated coin slot, moveable joystick, and two desirable side builds including an exclusive minifig.
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The opinions I express are mine and mine alone and not for sale for any price. Ads, when shown, are selected & placed by KZbin itself.

[@bjzaba]

Always really cool when you point out the non-Lego alternatives. Your reviews are great, and incredibly grounded!

[@ToaPohatuNuva]

I agree, and Jang is probably the only LEGO reviewer I have seen do this.

[@joevictor53]

I think this looks great and the mechanism is awesome but I really don't know if Pac-Man has a big enough fanbase in 2023 that's willing to spend almost $300 on a Lego set. I feel like a set of the buildable Pac-Man with 4 ghosts and maybe the mini arcade machine for less than $100 would've been popular with more people

[@alterego2275]

Lego corporation is completely delusional, their warehouses are bursting.

[@siskavard]

It's a shame they couldn't incorporate some sound into this, the sounds from the old Pac-man arcade cabinet is so iconic. It's like 50% of the experience.

[@Rocket1377]

Just put a KZbin clip of the Pac-Man arcade game on your phone, and place it behind the LEGO set. 😁

[@siskavard]

@@Rocket1377 haha why didn't I think of that

[@user-lynKx]

you're right, sound effects are so missing from lego toys!

[@Hylian_Herald]

I would have bought the little arcade build in a heartbeat. But I'm not a HUGE Pac-Man fan, so the larger set isn't even a consideration for me.

[@joevictor53]

Same. And the buildable Pac-Man and ghosts

[@leeprice2849]

I would pay $50 for just the brick built Pac-Man and all 4 Ghosts with the base. Also 10$ for the small arcade diorama.

[@joevictor53]

Same. Maybe even a little bit more if that's what they sold it for. I feel like they missed out by not making that a small set. There are probably a lot more casual Pac-Man fans willing to spend $60 than hardcore fans willing to spend almost $300

[@colinsantos9079]

I'm really glad you're review includes the non-brick alternatives. Lego used to be my main hobby/collectible, but after I got into 1/18th scale figure & vehicle collecting, like the star wars vintage collection, it's easier to look at Lego products far more critically. Mentioning the more affordable, working, arcade cabinet, really puts this product in perspective

[@scribble127]

I really appreciate Jang's comparison of Lego sets to non-Lego alternatives that serve essentially the same purpose e.g. the positive comparison of the Lego bonsai vs cost of a real bonsai, negative comparison of the Lego globe vs cost of a real globe, and again here vs a real Pac Man arcade game.

[@DiceRobo]

My only concern with this set is how well it will function in 5 years. I hope the Mechanisim holds up to dust and aging plastic.

[@Cameragry]

Love the stash/beard combo! (sets pretty cool too)

[@lopoa126]

I used to play Pac-Mac on a flat table setup at a restaurant when I would be waiting for food. The ghosts going upside down isn't weird for me since you could sit at the "top" or "bottom" of the table and still play. The table was meant for a head to head games. This is so much better than the Atari set. Movement is so key for these big pricey display sets.

[@SO-ym3zs]

I'll say one thing: having played with Lego back when Pac-Man was in the arcades, I never would have conceived or believed that such a thing as this would one day be possible with Lego. It's pretty darn clever, and I'll hand it to Lego's designers: whether you like the end results or not, they keep pushing the boundaries of what Lego is/does.

[@EL-uj1pl]

I think the point that you could buy a functioning, real world version of a Lego set is something that should come up more often. The gimmick of it being Lego really only works when the item in question doesn't have much functionality (such as the Ideas Ship in a Bottle). I think the only Lego product that manages to function like the intended thing it's mimicking, while also justifying its existence as a Lego model was the Optimus Prime.

[@Owensully123]

It’s a very cool looking set but I can’t justify buying it at the moment. It will be a great set to buy if and when it goes on sale!

[@Zenlore6499]

It would be so cool if they could use the Mario figure and a special tile that makes Pac-Man sounds, like they did for the NES set! Obviously that wouldn’t happen, but it would add in the sounds!

[@evill01]

I hope Lego will make a pinball machine one day, it could even work properly.

[@AHYL88]

I actually like the side builds a lot here and prefer those over the main set itself, which is ironic as that's never how I felt towards a set before. As for the main part of the set, it's a very cool looking Lego model. But it has exactly the same problems as the others sets that are based on real household objects; it costs the same or significantly more than the thing it's based on. People got very defensive over this repeated criticism and honestly, while it may be repetitive in itself, using the excuse of "the build experience" for every set they blindly like also becomes a copout reason as well. And it's especially reckless to not take a step back and properly think about it and debate if it's worth shelling so much on a set in the first place. Heck the Grand Piano, I still don't feel it was worth it for how much it cost, despite enjoying building it. I'm not against stuff like this, but it's very hard to choose and fully commit to stuff like this over the vast array of other fantasy feeling sets in the range like the spaceships, buildings, vehicles and mechs, most of which are better value over sets like these. Although tastes will of course vary. Granted, we could say the same about the car models but most of us will not be able to afford to buy, maintain and run the real car in the real world anyway!

[@vexorian]

Well, as a Lego fan, I would have prefered to pay 50 USD for just the diorama and the statues. I'm an adult Lego fan with disposable outcome that played lots of pacman while little. I am definitely in the target market for this. But I won't get it because it's too large and it costs too much FOR A SINGLE ITEM. I have money to spend on Lego, but as an adult I can't just spend 270 USD on a single Lego set, no matter how good. And although money is no issue, space definitely is. If i had room for something this large, I would just get an Arcade cabinet.

[@hostiledodo1150]

Watching that "gameplay" feature just sold me. It is hypnotic to watch. I might have to grab myself a motor setup lol

[@hazeldavis3176]

I'm not in the market for another huge lego model, but would've bought the tiny arcade setup without a thought. It's the perfect size.

[@leroy1154]

15:26 This is one of the things I really appreciate about Jang's reviews. I'm going to go out on a limb and say this isn't just a belief or thought that has come to him randomly, but is something that he has learnt through experience in the real world, dealing with this type of stuff while working with big business and marketing and what not. It's real world experience, that a lot of other reviewers (namely younger ones) lack.

[@noxious8]

The ghosts from the top as a single set would be fantastic. But maybe they put it in this set in the hope some people will buy the big set just for the topping

[@migatron1]

Bro, what kind of sorcery did you use? You were streaming the build less than 24 hours ago, and now the review is live!? I'm impressed. Great work as always!

[@skyborne80]

I absolutely adore the little cherry wiggling around! They could have easily left that static and noone would have said a thing, but having it alive like that is absolutely brilliant!

[@AnUnearthlyGay]

i feel like those blue/black printed tiles would be really fun to use on a classic blue TIE fighter-inspired MOC

[@SO-ym3zs]

I'll chime in with others: I'm glad that you talk frankly about alternatives to this set and Lego in general. Lego is fun--I wouldn't be here otherwise--but there are brick-building brands I've come to enjoy more (Cobi, with their military vehicles), and, you're right, you can buy superior, or at least different, alternatives to Lego in some cases for equal or less money. The roughly $.10/piece price tag of Lego has become so ingrained and expected among Lego-philes, that it's good to step back and question it.

[@Benjamin0119]

That is a pretty perfect representation of Pac-Man machine in LEGO form. The screen is an engineering wonder. Given what you said about the real mini-arcade cabinets being much cheaper, yeah, you definitely get this because it's a LEGO version of X thing. Oh, it would've been great to get that minifig arcade by itself.

[@SenseiBricks]

The livestream for this was so fun

[@SethRuh]

The old alien conquest mother ship had a sound brick!! If only lego had remade that brick and incorporated it here!

[@AbsolutelyJason]

Great review! Gosh, I'm really impressed with this set. It's not even really nostalgic for me, but I think it looks great and the mechanism is mesmerizing! I think it's a real achievement in LEGO design.

[@CrazyBunnyAids]

The beard is looking good Jang! ❤

[@outsider238]

It's cool but for me it'll just end up like the NES set... sitting in a storage bin after a while once the novelty wears off in a couple of weeks. I also wonder how well it will work over time. My NES set has Mario getting stuck when I turn the crank on the TV now as something happens to Lego pieces over time. Such as the squeaking of parts as they age. I've heard of others having issues with the TV as well now that they've sat for awhile. I'd like it for the build experience but I can't justify the cost just for that.

[@joevictor53]

This is what baffles me with these replica sets like the NES, Typewriter, this, etc. Surely the novelty will wear off after a while and then all the effort spent on the mechanisms will be wasted as it stays on a shelf somewhere. Having said that, I buy the Creator Expert cars and technically they're replicas of real world items too. Maybe these just aren't for me

[@AHYL88]

@@joevictor53 I suppose in fairness to the Creator Expert Cars, which also applies to the Technic supercars and hypercars, the actual cars are well outside of what the majority of us can afford to buy (and maintain and run!).

[@michaeltrondsen7033]

My biggest problem with this set is that the cabinet is incomplete; its missing the bottom vertical section that gives it it’s iconic look. Right now it looks a little wonky, with the angled section on the front coming to an abrupt halt. They shouldn’t have included the side builds, and used that extra budget (if even possible) to extend it downwards more with, frankly, not that many more pieces.

[@joevictor53]

Yeah my mum who knows almost nothing about games saw the images of this and straight away said it looks incomplete because of the bottom half being missing. She's seen a Pac-Man arcade machine keyring I have and what arcade machines look like in real life. I agree about the side builds but for a different reason. There are a lot of people including me that like Pac-Man but not enough to spend almost $300 on a set. I'd much rather buy a small set of just the buildable characters and the hidden arcade room

[@storm5936]

I see that point but the thing is an arcade machine is supposed to be as tall as a human so around 6 foot tall which I can see why LEGO didn't. They could've shrunk it like the consoles but they probably couldn't add the mechanism in.

[@Gameprojordan]

​@Storm he means add about 3-4 inches of height to the base of the cabinet. If you look up miniature home cabinet variations of the pac man arcade game you'll see they're about the same scale as this set except the base is slightly taller. He doesn't mean make it a full sized cabinet you'd stand up to play on

[@cruxdeluxe]

I really, really enjoyed this review. You enthusiastically show all of the good parts (of which there are many), but you also very rightly point out that it's nearly THREE HUNDRED of your finest, shiniest dollars, which you could easily spend on a better way to scratch that same nostalgia-itch. And that is a level of balance and fairness that I can really appreciate.

[@VampguyN85]

YT wouldn't let me comment on thwle live stream. They said I was subscribed and watching a video meant for kids so comments were disabled for me. It was weird. I've never seen that before. As for stickers, I prefer prints as much as possible. I have had terrible motorskills my whole life, and OT was never really able to fix it growing up. Can you get the mini arcade machines via part picker? Would be nice to collect a habdful of mini machines overtime to one day build a modular arcade.

[@scottv2010]

My Atari Flashback, NES Classic, and Pac-Man countercade all say "hi!" as they are all far superior desk decorations compared to their respective (and pricey!) lego counterparts.

[@defenderprime8046]

This set is very neat and it brings back many memories about Pac-Man games, the golden age of videos games you could play in arcades back in the day, but this is a repeat of the Nintendo and Atari sets that came before this one, which are great display sets with some playability, but is it what you want? An expensive display set or a real retro game system that is half or less the price of these Lego sets? Nothing against Lego no, but... makes you think anyway. I have a Pac-Man game that plugs into my TV and there are other retro games in the same system I can play anytime, the Lego build is possibly the most rewarding part of sets like these, but they just are so expensive, not very appealing to many Lego fans, thanks for the honest review, Jang!

[@Wyattporter]

Rocking that beard, man

[@MrKlawUK]

The side builds are still slightly frustrating. They were with the Atari. Sub $250 without the side builds would have been good - would have been sub £200

[@Arcade_Cat_]

I love how you've been comparing Lego sets to alternative products that can offer similar or better features for the same amount or even less money. All these Lego sets, like the NES, the Atari, and probably more that I'm not thinking of, would make incredible MOCs. I'd love to see a fan make a build like this and post it to Flickr with a short video of its features, but I just don't see any reason to buy it as an official Lego set. Lego keeps making these weird sets so I guess it's working for them

[@craniumbear]

I'd love to be able to get the small arcade side build by itself.

[@Free_speech_is_dead]

they should have put a sound brick inside too. like the one they just used for the newly released old school radio set

[@mastterby]

As always your reviews are above and beyond the rest, thank you so much! Will you be adding the spare printed tiles to the arcade in the city?

[@DZstudios.]

While it looks cool I think it’s a bit too much. Definitely a set for people that played the game back in the days or Pixels fans

[@awwgordy]

can you maybe do a guide on how to place stickers so they look their best? you seem very good at it and with a sticker that large it must be very daunting (doing the stickers on my space shuttle interior was stressfull and theyre so much smaller)

[@SO-ym3zs]

We really need to be discussing Jang's C64 hoodie. Best part of this review. Apropos for the Pac-Man era. Hats off.

[@TimHam]

Love that Commodor 64 hoodie!!

[@gozuka4048]

I completely understand your point of view, and I agree with you, lego comes out of sets well realized and faithful to the original, like the NES or the atari to stay in the world of retro gaming and I don’t understand how they define their price and it’s more expensive than the original, while they still put on sticker boards and lego remains plastic, in short it makes you think.

[@TheLupinator]

My mom loves Pac-Man and she already has that counter top Arcade 1-Up machine. Idk why this would appeal to any casual fan when that exists.

[@joevictor53]

Yeah I'm confused by this set. I feel like it's too expensive for casual fans and I'm curious if there are enough hardcore Pac-Man fans to make this a success

[@seiya880]

Nice, but like the NES, the Atari, makes little sense to buy Lego instead of the real, working thing

[@ThatJaymsWisdom]

I am kinda ok with the "extras" personally. I really like the cabinet but it looks _sooo_ much better with the 3D sign on top. It is just much more visually pleasing and eye catching. I don't think I'd be as interested in it without that part. And the mini build is just nice. I also think the price is OK. Maybe 10% more expensive than it should be but that's pretty good imo!

[@villelepoaho4105]

I can't think of many negative things to say about this set. As soon as I see this on a discount, it's getting added to the cart.

[@rogerhalt3991]

I would happily pay $150 for just the arcade and no extras. I’m too young to know the arcade Pac-Man experience from decades ago but I want this set just for the marvel of technical design here in the set. Bravo!

[@lbricks7631]

Man, why did the Lego-high ups do us dirty with that price.

[@noxious8]

The little build with the minifig looks like a great GWP

[@1pfuller]

I can’t help but think just the top build expanded to include the other ghosts would have been better.

[@Gameprojordan]

You're right about the Pac Man brickbuild being undersized. It should be just as tall and wide as the ghosts. Atleast based off the ingame sprites

[@judysears6417]

where do I find the pacman video game you were talking about please...the one that has the sounds....thank you

[@Al8lack]

Love the hoodie! 😁 Love the review Jang. Thank you for being you!

[@ashark8968]

Take both the side builds over the machine

[@Merlynn132]

Yeah,once again,just like the Atari set,I agree the side builds would've been better as stand alone items. I'd love to have the top piece as something to put on an actual arcade unit. I heard Lego also had an exclusive arcade set that was part of a promotion for this set. I dunno. I don't get why Lego's going for the "big expensive sets" when they could easily make more money selling the bits and pieces separately. I mean,if the main set isn't going to get you to buy it,some bits and bobs aren't going to change your mind. But you might buy the bits and bobs on their own. Maybe I'm just a fan of the "build a playset" mindset. You buy little sets to make one big set. Because you buy it little by little,it doesn't hurt the wallet so much. But yeah,I'd rather have an actual Pac-Man game over a mock up of one no matter how cool or lego it is.

[@BrickHQ]

This set is awesome but expensive. Lego should make minifigure scale arcade sets like the build in this set. The designer said in an interview that the reason there's stickers on the side is so people have the option to have it on or not

[@LeFaucheur]

wonder if they could have added the pacman music with a sound brick

[@FossilBox]

I care 0% about Pac-Man. Never have. But that minifig scale micro-set is INCREDIBLE. Man... a 90s McDonalds set with interchangeable menu banners so they could even advertise the Bionicle happy meal toys......... I would FRIGGIN DIE.

[@MrKlawUK]

I wonder if it could be motorised to move when you press a button or move the joystick?

[@Iamadumbfool]

Theres a lot of sas in that title 😂

[@pengo2418]

I bought the original arcade version for 5 bucks on the Nintendo switch eshop when this set was announced.

[@ryanhurley8170]

With the mini-build, all I see is Tom Servo ❤

[@dmonsef]

Jang, is it possible to change the characters pattern movement by changing the plastic chains path?

[@alexandradoukakis6533]

I was tempted to get this one, but ended up finding an Arcade1up partycade on clearance that was less expensive than the LEGO set. So I bought the real thing 😊

[@leg0liver194]

Impressive, but space consuming. Another example, I wish to get sections of the whole, e.g. the minibuild ("the gem"), the on-top-trio, and the cabinet. So you could order single or all-in-one set.

[@christamius2834]

Once again, same reason I didn’t buy the Atari 2600. And my dad contracted for Atari! Thanks Jang. Love the mechanism for sure, really a great build. But yeah, buy one that works is my take.

[@joyoflego-]

This build gives me Pac-Man Fever !

[@tygohaha]

Can you review the jurrasic park velociraptor escape next?

[@manti1923]

I definitely want this build got the Nintendo & Atari already but I'll have to wait for a good price drop on this build.

[@FlymanMS]

I like this set a lot more than other retro gaming series sets. Even not being a Pacman fan, I'd buy it if I had disposable extra money.

[@Obi-Wan_Kenobi]

I could have loved to get the Pac-Man character display by itself.

[@MR-SINISTER76]

Gotta agree with the stickers i like prints more but i dont mind them but i really dont like that extras arnt includen in case you mess them up

[@Salsadancer45]

Super cool set but for $300 I would rather get a more playable big set, but this set is very cool

[@crawdaddyy]

Such a nice build. Unfortunately I won’t be buying it unless it goes down to $200

[@BoardGamesBricksHobbies]

The title of this video is great 🤣

[@eoghanley]

Loving the beard, Jang !

[@thebookhero5727]

Truthfully I’d gladly just hand them my wallet if they started releasing little $20 arcade fragments like the little one in here. Would also love Donkey Kong, Centipede, and Galaga cabinets.

[@reventonrowe6111]

It’s fine. Do I want it? Yes. Do I need it? No. Would definitely not pay full price for it.

[@hanselmansell7555]

Lego smashes it out of the park 🥰

[@joshwilliams7692]

I completely agree about comparing this to non Lego items. The whole fun of Lego is that you can build your own stuff after you're done with the set. Technically, you could reuse these pieces, but that isn't the point of it. If you just want to display a Pacman arcade machine, that's fine, but why pay Lego prices for stuff like this and the shield? You're not going to do anything with it after you build it. I think is a waste of money. If want an arcade machine, get an arcade machine. If you want to build Legos, go buy a set that has pieces you want to build with.

[@xxxprincethe2nd793]

Jeez man this is impressive

[@thatguysstuff15]

I wanted to like this set so much but i just cant stop laughing at it .....this is legos most what were they thinking set eveeeeerrrrrr !!!

[@dmonsef]

Jang where did you get your Commodore 64 hoody from?

[@vukvasiljevic3321]

Liked the hoody more then the set.

[@Bob-zm8xj]

love the title

[@JohnDoe-dk6zp]

I want the mini arcade but not buying such a big set for it. I dislike how arcades or game rooms always have to be part of a large set.

[@skyyswaggstudios2934]

I think its a neat set, especially as a big video game person, but its also alot of money when I can play pac man already on any number of consoles. Its a cool collectible but is it 200+ dollars cool? Ehhhh

[@bobbyc912]

I’ll be adding a couple of minifigs standing behind her in line to play the game

[@NathanSmith-jl7zm]

Love the beard, Jang!

[@alterego2275]

Lego has brainwashed majority of their consumers into thinking about value of their product when in reality there is hardly any. You can get a fully working pac-man cabinet in a same size for half of the LEGO asking price, this is actually mind boggling.

[@jfortier23]

It’s soooooo expensive and I’m on the fence on buying it.

[@andrewglidewell2699]

I had one of the arcade 1up Pac-Man table tops and the emulation was absolutely horrible.

[@EvanMoon]

The Jang is so fun

[@DarthKanye]

they sure love those curved rounded corner slopes pieces these days

[@kyleprzykopanski8187]

I'm curious to see if they will continue to make more of these with different games