Google’s Early April Fool’s Prank Transports Ms. Pac-Man To Google Maps
April Fool’s Day isn’t until tomorrow, but many companies are already cashing in on the festivities on the last work day of the week. Google is getting in on the action by transforming its incredibly popular Google Maps application into a digital playground for Ms. Pac-Man.
Google last pulled off this “prank” back in 2015, and this year’s revival is in keeping with the same formula. Bringing up Ms. Pac-Man is super easy; all you need to do is open up the Google Maps app on your iOS or Android device, after which you will see a new Ms. Pac-Man button above the standard “Location” and “Navigation” buttons on the bottom right-hand side of your screen.
Clicking on the Ms. Pac-Man button will prompt the Google Maps application to work a bit in the background as it converts the standard map interface. The app generates a dark background and turns the roadways into pathways for Ms. Pac-Man to navigate in order to avoid the meaning ghosts. All of the usual Ms. Pac-Man sounds are there and you can navigate by simply swiping on the screen in any direction.
As you play and chomp on little white pellets and blue ghosts (hopefully before they turn back to their original colors), you’ll see your score continue to skyrocket in the top left hand side of the screen. You have endless “maps” to choose from, as you can navigate to anywhere in the world and choose where to play. For me, I chose downtown Raleigh, NC for my Ms. Pac-Man gaming session.
So, if you’re nostalgic for classic 80s gaming, this is sure to drive your productivity downwards for the day. Google will probably keep the Ms. Pac-Man functionality enabled through tomorrow, so play up while you can.
You can download Google Maps right now for either iOS or Android.
