Here's How Much The Pac-Man Franchise Is Worth

Pac-Man has been a staple in the gaming community since the earliest days of gaming. The game's protagonist, a hungry yellow sphere, is an icon even young gamers recognize. And Pac-Man's mechanics have proven they're capable of speaking to people from all walks of life.

Even non-gamers appreciate the entertainment value provided by this classic series. With an easy-to-understand premise and simple yet addicting gameplay, Pac-Man was set up from the beginning to become one of the most iconic games in the world. But exactly how much is the Pac-Man franchise worth?

After releasing in Japan on May 22, 1980 and later making its way to North America on October 10, 1980, the immense success Pac-Man saw in arcades ensured that it wouldn't be confined to them for long. Who could've guessed it would become this popular, though? Not only is Pac-Man a wildly successful game, but the titular character has shown up in a bunch of other places, too.

Cartoons, merchandise, movie cameos, and appearances in other games means that the exact worth of this franchise is difficult to pin down. But with the Bandai Namco Corporation being worth about $510 billion, and a large portion of that coming from Pac-Man, it's clear that the franchise has been a financial success for its creators.

The arcade version of Pac-Man on it's own is worth an estimated $7.6 billion dollars. But this doesn't include alternative sources of revenue the franchise would generate. For example, the  Ms. Pac-Man arcade game on its own is worth an estimated $2.4 billion. So between the earnings from the almost 30 licensed spin-off games and appearances, movie cameos (obtaining the rights to use Pac-Man's likeness in the 2015 film Pixels would have cost a pretty penny), and merchandise, it's nearly impossible to calculate the exact worth of the franchise as a whole.

Given the numbers we do have access to, however, it's safe to say that a good chunk of Bandai Namco Corporation's $510 billion net worth is in large part thanks to our bright yellow friend.