Family entertainment centres and other amusement venues compete for attention with bright displays, energetic soundtracks, interactive games and prize attractions. In 2025, the quality of that overall customer experience remains central to bringing people through the door and encouraging repeat visits.
That makes visual design an important part of the amusement business. Cabinets, plush toys and redemption prizes must attract players, fit their surroundings and support the commercial goals of operators.
Steph Jones, Digital Design Manager at Bandai Namco Amusement Europe, discusses the work behind the company’s amusement products. The conversation focuses particularly on PAC-MAN Roller, PAC-MAN Baller and PAC-MAN Slider, the sports-led machines that form the PAC-MAN Street Range, while also touching on prize and redemption products.
Why design is central to amusement products
Question: Design is often treated as a finishing touch, yet it can influence product development, business growth and market leadership. Does the industry properly recognise the importance of design teams?
Steph Jones: There is still a misconception that design is a quick and uncomplicated stage. In reality, a great deal of skill and effort goes into everything from amusement machines to plush and prizes.
Each product must reflect Bandai Namco’s history, reputation and position in the industry, so the process cannot be hurried. Meeting demanding quality standards while working to deadlines and maintaining a steady flow of new and improved products is difficult, but the company’s delivery record demonstrates the value of that work.
How the PAC-MAN Street Range began
Question: Do new products mainly come from operator requests, or does Bandai Namco identify market trends and develop ideas around them?
Steph Jones: It is a combination of influences. PAC-MAN Roller, for example, followed the recognition that the existing roller market looked dated and could benefit from products with a fresher, higher-value presentation.
Changes to bar legislation in the Middle East also helped create new opportunities for street locations. That development contributed to the PAC-MAN Street Range, which includes Roller, Baller and Slider.
The three machines were designed for the growing global arcade-bar market. Bandai Namco worked with manufacturing partners to identify suitable base machines, then developed the visual identity and finished products now used around the world.
Development continues after delivery. Operators may request custom elements, including LED strips along the playfield sides, animated lighting that follows the ball’s movement and neon headers that connect groups of machines.
For readers comparing different cabinet formats, RETROCADE’s arcade machine buying guide provides useful context on choosing equipment for a venue or home.
Creating a recognisable PAC-MAN identity
Question: A licence can attract attention, but the physical design must still stand out among many competing machines. How does the team achieve that?
Steph Jones: Bandai Namco’s PAC-MAN style guides are a major resource when developing proprietary products. The Japanese head office provides more than 50 themes, each containing assets such as typefaces, colour palettes, patterns and rendered examples for machines, plush and prizes.
These guides help designers create a consistent visual language and make approvals more efficient. The familiar Classic PAC-MAN treatment is the standard most people recognise, but the library also includes seasonal options such as Halloween and Summer. Design teams around the world can use the collection for ideas and direction.
That consistency allows a product to communicate its brand even before a customer notices a logo. It also gives operators a way to build a cohesive-looking group of attractions.
From PAC-MAN Baller to a complete Street Range
The PAC-MAN Baller basketball machine began as a proposed successor to the successful PAC-MAN Basket. The Neon style guide was initially used for a mock-up, but Jones believed the concept could be stronger with the Stickerbomb theme.
After presenting the idea to the team, Jones developed the revised direction and renamed the product PAC-MAN Baller to match its styling. Operators responded positively, and the same Stickerbomb-inspired approach was later applied to PAC-MAN Roller and PAC-MAN Slider, the air-hockey machine.
The Street Range has become popular with both players and operators. Some venues group the machines together to create a dedicated PAC-MAN area. The collection has also attracted private buyers in the US, where some home game rooms feature the full range alongside complementary PAC-MAN décor.
At RETROCADE, shoppers interested in a dedicated driving or sports-focused setup can also explore racing arcades and driving machines.
Why operator testing matters
Question: How important is operator feedback during development?
Steph Jones: It is extremely important. PAC-MAN Slider provides a clear example. An early prototype was displayed at the 2023 EAG show under a different name.
The table originally used a black-and-white pattern with the opacity set to 80 per cent. An established operator partner noted that the puck was somewhat difficult to follow against the surface and suggested reducing the opacity. The team acted on that feedback, and subsequent testing supported the change.
Showing prototypes at industry events gives experienced operators and other specialists an opportunity to assess a product before mass production. Their observations can identify practical issues that may not be apparent during the design process alone.
PAC-MAN Roller appears at 2:12 in the video above, PAC-MAN Slider at 4:48 and PAC-MAN Baller briefly at 5:03.
What could come next?
Question: Are more machines being considered for the Street Range?
Steph Jones: Discussions are taking place about which additional machines would suit the PAC-MAN brand. Bandai Namco continues to look for innovative, entertaining products that attract players and generate revenue for operators.
The Street styling could potentially be expanded in connection with PAC-MAN’s 45th anniversary in May 2025, although no specific additions were confirmed.
Steph Jones’s standout design projects
One of Jones’s most rewarding projects is Wincha®, an online crane brand currently available only in the UK. Jones led its design from the beginning with full artistic control, then worked with the Prize division as it developed Wincha® plush in response to customer requests for branded merchandise.
PAC-MAN Roller is another personal highlight. Its cabinet includes the phrase “Rollin’ with the ghosties”, a reference to the line “Rollin’ with my homies” from the film Clueless, where Brittany Murphy sings along to Coolio’s song. It adds a small pop-culture detail that Jones enjoys seeing on the finished machine.
Design, feedback and the arcade floor
The PAC-MAN Street Range shows how licensed amusement products can be shaped by market trends, operator input, brand guidelines and prototype testing. Roller, Baller and Slider began as individual concepts, but their shared presentation allows venues to build a recognisable attraction zone.
For operators, that balance between play value, visibility and practical feedback is as important as the licence itself. For home collectors, the same cohesive design has helped make the Street Range appealing as a group of machines rather than a set of unrelated cabinets. More arcade-industry coverage is available in the RETROCADE Arcade Blog.
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