PAC-MOM: A game about gender, work, and food insecurity

PAC-MOM is a parody of the popular arcade game PAC-MAN (1980) by Toru Iwatani. Game scholars classify PAC-MAN as an eating game. PAC-MOM is a game about gender and food insecurity. PAC-MOM is based on data on hunger as a gender issue including the gender pay gap. It takes place in a situation where accessing food requires PAC-MOM to work a disproportionate amount more than PAC-MAN for the same number of food dots. In addition to having to work more, PAC-MOM must avoid powerful ghost-enemies including patriarchy, misogyny, racism, abortion restrictions, and many more. PAC-MOM is programmed for the web in JavaScript/HTML5 and can be played online in most browsers as a single-player game. The game consists of a training level, a character customization screen, and a main level. The training level conveys background information. The information gained in the training level is applied in the character customization screen and the main level. Play it here http://www.anninaruest.com/pac_mom




2021 Piksel Festival. Bergen (Norway)




2021 Faculty Exhibition. Florida Atlantic University, Boca Raton / Florida (US)