Pac-Man's creator was surprised to see how big the game was outside of Japan

Pac-Man is currently celebrating its 40th anniversary, and the character is still very much a part of the game industry. One big reason Pac-Man is still around has to do with the original arcade release, which forever locked Pac-Man in as a part of pop culture.

In an interview with Kotaku, Pac-Man creator Toru Iwatani admits that he wasn't expecting the game to be popular at all outside of Japan. Obviously his assumption was wrong, and there's no doubt he was happy to see things play out that way!

“The game didn’t really have anything in there that would leave a strong impression. I didn’t think players overseas, who sought thrills and excitement from games, would like it. Which is why I was honestly surprised when I saw how well it did in the United States and Europe.”