Namcot Collection

2, for the Switch, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and Windows. Collection includes a wide array of video games published by Namco for the Family Computer and Nintendo Entertainment System, with save states, achievements, and homebrew ports of Pac-Man Championship Edition and Gaplus. Bandai Namco enlisted the help of M2, a company recognized for its high-quality video game re-releases, to develop the game. Assisting M2 was B.B. Studio, a Bandai Namco subsidiary known for its work on the Super Robot Wars series. The game was released in Japan as a free digital app and a physical release, the former allowing its users to buy individual games or in select packs; as players began receiving the wrong games after purchasing them individually, Bandai Namco was forced to pull it from the Nintendo eShop temporarily. The localized releases were praised for their emulation quality and game library, particularly Pac-Man Championship Edition, though the lackluster presentation and Bandai Namco's decision to split the collection in two was the subject of criticism from western fans. The Collection received a physical release in Asian regions only.

• Title — Namco Museum Archives • Border — yes • Developer — * M2 • B.B. Studio • Publisher — Bandai Namco Entertainment • Series — Namco Museum • Platforms — Nintendo Switch, Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One • Released — June 18, 2020 • Genre — Various • Modes — Single-player, multiplayer

• Illustration — The menu interface in Namco Museum Archives is designed after a collector's shelf. Namco Museum Archives is a compilation of video games published by Namcot, the Japanese consumer game division of Namco, for the Family Computer (Famicom) and Nintendo Entertainment System (NES). The majority of the game library consists of games developed in-house by Namco, although some were developed by external companies like Game Freak and Atlus. Some of the titles are conversions of popular Namco arcade games, including Pac-Man (1980) and Galaga (1981), while others like Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti (1989) were created specifically for the Famicom and NES. The included titles encompass a wide variety of genres, notably action role-playing, shoot 'em up, and platforming. The collection also presents two homebrew ports of Gaplus (1984) and Pac-Man Championship Edition (2007), which were designed by M2 and are exclusive to the package. Players can save their progress and "rewind" back a few seconds in gameplay to make certain games easier to play. Certain games, such as Sky Kid, feature simultaneous multiplayer. In the Japanese Nintendo Switch release, the main menu is designed after a collector's shelf. Players can customize their shelf with boxes, game cartridges, and plastic figurines based on each of the included games. Artwork and manual scans are also included. The way the games are distributed differs from each version: in the Japanese version, players can purchase games either individually or in select packs. Packs that are purchased are indicated by magazine issues on the player's shelf, designed after the front covers of Namco's Community Magazine NG press literature. The international Archives releases omit this decision, with both volumes containing a varied selection of titles. Games included in Namcot Collection/Namco Museum Archives • Title — Genre — Original release — Developer — DLC Pack (Japan) — Volume (International) — JP Japan — INT International • Battle City — Top-down shooter — September 9, 1985 — Namco — DLC Pack 1 — Volume 2 • Dig Dug — Maze — June 4, 1985 — Namco — DLC Pack 3 — Volume 1 • Dig Dug II — Maze — April 18, 1986 — Namco — N/A — Volume 2 • Digital Devil Story: Megami Tensei — Role-playing — September 11, 1987 — Atlus — DLC Pack 3 — N/A • Dragon Buster — Action role-playing — January 7, 1987 — Namco — DLC Pack 2 — Volume 1 • Dragon Buster II: Yami no Fuuin — Maze — April 27, 1989 — Namco — N/A — Volume 2 • Dragon Spirit: The New Legend — Vertical-scrolling shooter — April 14, 1989 — Namco — DLC Pack 1 — Volume 1 • Family Circuit — Racing — January 6, 1988 — Game Studio — DLC Pack 2 — N/A • Family Jockey — Horse racing — April 24, 1987 — Namco — DLC Pack 1 — N/A • Galaga — Fixed shooter — February 15, 1985 — Namco — DLC Pack 1 — Volume 2 • Galaxian — Fixed shooter — September 7, 1984 — Namco — DLC Pack 2 — Volume 1 • Gaplus — Fixed shooter — August 20, 2020 — M2 — Bonus Game — Volume 2 • Kaijū Monogatari — Role-playing — November 18, 1988 — Birthday — DLC Pack 2 — N/A • King of Kings — Strategy — July 22, 1988 — Atlus — DLC Pack 3 — N/A • Legacy of the Wizard — Action role-playing — July 17, 1987 — Nihon Falcom — N/A — Volume 2 • Mappy — Platform — November 14, 1984 — Namco — DLC Pack 2 — Volume 1 • Mappy-Land — Platform — November 26, 1986 — Namco — N/A — Volume 2 • Mendel Palace — Action puzzle — June 27, 1989 — Game Freak — DLC Pack 1 — Volume 2 • Metro-Cross — Platform — December 16, 1986 — Namco — DLC Pack 3 — N/A • Namco Classic II — Golf — March 13, 1992 — Namco — DLC Pack 3 — N/A • Pac-Land — Platform — November 21, 1985 — Namco — DLC Pack 2 — Volume 2 • Pac-Man — Maze — November 2, 1984 — Namco — DLC Pack 1 — Volume 1 • Pac-Man Championship Edition — Maze — June 18, 2020 — M2 — Bonus Game — Volume 1 • Puzzle platform — January 6, 1988 — Game Studio — DLC Pack 3 — N/A • Rock 'n Ball — Pinball — March 23, 1989 — KID — DLC Pack 3 — N/A • Rolling Thunder — Platform — March 17, 1989 — Namco — DLC Pack 2 — Volume 2 • Sky Kid — Horizontal-scrolling shooter — August 22, 1986 — Namco — DLC Pack 3 — Volume 1 • Splatterhouse: Wanpaku Graffiti — Hack'n slash — July 31, 1989 — Namco — DLC Pack 1 — Volume 1 • Star Luster — Space combat simulator — December 6, 1985 — Namco — DLC Pack 1 — N/A • Super Xevious: GAMP no Nazo — Vertical-scrolling shooter — September 19,1986 — Namco — N/A — Volume 2 • Tenkaichi Bushi Keru Nagūru — Fighting — July 21, 1989 — Game Studio — DLC Pack 2 — N/A • Tower of Babel — Puzzle — July 18, 1986 — Namco — DLC Pack 3 — N/A • Action role-playing — August 6,1985 — Namco — DLC Pack 1 — Volume 1 • Valkyrie no Bōken: Toki no Kagi Densetsu — Role-playing — August 1, 1986 — Namco — DLC Pack 2 — N/A • Wagyan Land — Platform — February 9, 1989 — Namco — Bundled Game — N/A • Warpman — Maze — July 12, 1985 — Namco — DLC Pack 2 — N/A • Xevious — Vertical-scrolling shooter — November 8, 1984 — Namco — DLC Pack 3 — Volume 1 • Yōkai Dōchūki — Platform — June 24, 1988 — Namco — DLC Pack 1 — N/A

Namcot Collection was developed by M2, a Japanese developer which previous worked on Sega Ages, and published by Bandai Namco Entertainment. M2 was assisted by Bandai Namco subsidiary B.B. Studio, the development group for the modern-day Super Robot Wars games. The included homebrew port of Pac-Man Championship Edition, designed to work on real Famicom hardware, was originally the creation of a Japanese ROM hacker from 2008, who out of legal concerns chose not to release his work to the public. For Namcot Collection, Bandai Namco acquired the rights to the hack and provided minor changes, such as altering the soundtrack.

Bandai Namco revealed Namcot Collection during a Japanese Nintendo Direct hosted on March 26, 2020. Originally thought to remain exclusive to Japan, it was revealed on June 4 that Namcot Collection would be localized and split into two separate collections titled Namco Museum Archives Vol. 1 and Namco Museum Archives Vol. 2 internationally, retrofitted under the company's existing Namco Museum series of similar collections. Namcot Collection and its Archives localizations were released on June 18, 2020. The former was released exclusively for the Nintendo Switch, while the latter was published on the Switch, Xbox One, PlayStation 4, and PC via Steam. In Japan, the game was released for free on the Nintendo eShop, which includes Wagan Land as a free game and has players purchase additional games separately or in packs. A physical version was published the same day that includes the first wave of games. Bandai Namco pulled the digital version from sale the same day after an error was discovered that gave players the incorrect game after purchasing individual games from the store. The game was relisted with the defect corrected on July 8.