Any look back at classic video game merchandising would be remiss in its duties if it didn’t mention some of the most highly visible – and yet least memorable spinoffs: Saturday morning cartoons.
Video games had quickly been picked up as a theme in cartoons; does anyone remember the awful Super Friends episode where our heroes are miniaturized and chased around a maze by a huge, omnivorous, blue Pac-Man controlled by a diabolical mad scientist? No? Then you’re lucky. There was actually such a cartoon, but trust me, it’s not the sort of thing you’d want to remember.
But then again, the same applies to some of the cartoons which were actually licensed by various video game makers.
Naturally, Pac-Man was the first to appear, premiering in 1983 on ABC. The pilot episode actually aired first in prime time, during a preview special with several other kids’ shows, and this pilot episode was the only instance in which Pac-Man ever got chomped on screen. – Read the rest of the article here from Classic Gamer Magazine (courtesy of Old School Gamer)!
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