Pac-Manhattan

This IRL Pac-Man Pac-Manhattan was an innovative work of urban-performance art that transformed the streets of New York City into a live-action videogame, replicating the classic 1980's arcade game Pac-Man. The project recalled the work of GRAV and other performance artists who encouraged—rather, required—audience participation. Developed within NYU’s Interactive Telecommunications graduate program under Frank Lantz, the artwork experimented with the dynamics of gaming by bringing digital play into the physical realm of Manhattan’s Washington Square Park area. Players dressed as Pac-Man and the ghosts navigated the city’s grid, with Pac-Man attempting to collect all virtual “dots” along the streets, while the ghosts tried to tag him. Each street player was paired by mobile phone with a controller in a Wi-Fi-equipped control room who moved their icon on a shared map, and the game state was broadcast over the internet. It can also be seen as an early attempt at an immersive, virtual reality performance piece on a large scale.