The Pac-Man Scream: Video Gaming's Wilhelm Scream (draft report)

The "Pac-Man scream" is the term I use for when the sound of Pac-Man dying in the Atari 2600 port of the game is used as a sound effect in other media. It has been used for decades in everything from feature films to video games, and only rarely does the context have anything to do with Pac-Man.

If you have also noticed this and wanted to learn the origin, you are in the correct place. It is what I would call "obscured media"; Plenty of people have noticed it, talked about it, and even compared it to the Wilhelm scream, however the origin is surprisingly easy to miss, even when you are looking.

Origin

The origin seems to be the 1983 re-release of the Sound Ideas Series 1000 Sound Effects Library, and the track description is "Arcade, Video Game, Electronic Sounds, Amusement Park, Fair".

Why it is obscure

• The original release of Series 1000 is 1979, about three years BEFORE Pac-Man for the 2600 was for sale. It is easy to discount it as a place to check. I write this from experience.
• The track was only added with the 1983 CD release. Which is still rather tight as far as the timing goes. In 1982 the game is released. In 1983 Superman III is released with sound effects from the CD.
• The track's description implies an open air arcade or fairground. Neither would typically feature an Atari 2600.
• The track description does not mention Pac-Man at all.
• The track is of normal gameplay and the first death is not heard until around 20 seconds in.
• Since it contains multiple effects people might want to use, not every media which uses the track uses the scream.
• People might assume a sound producer would just emulate the game and record their own copy. This would imply an unessesary copyright risk, though. The library is explicitly for use and licensed as such. The game is still copyrighted.

Examples I have vetted

Calling it a scream

I call it the Pac-Man Scream because it is the sound he makes when he dies and because it draws a comparison to the famous Wilhelm Scream. I hope that's not too much of a stretch, but it's a fair question to ask if it is a "scream."

To my ear, the 2600 version is trying to sound like the arcade version. And the arcade version sounds like a cartoonish panic attack; a comedic version of someone becoming so consumed by fear that they can't even get their breath out evenly. Is it a scream? To my ear, it is trying to be.

Let's look at it like this. "The Birth of Venus" is a famous painting by Botticelli. I used a tool on a closeup of this painting to create a dithered, four color image. Now. Is her hair blowing in the wind? If your answer is "yes," I'd call it a scream.

I do admit that it is never used AS a scream, whereas the Wilhelm scream is almost always used straight. But then again, nowadays the Wilhelm scream isn't used as scream either, not without being a little tongue in cheek.

Sources

• Atari Age
• Audiohero
• Sound Effects Wiki
• Facebook: Atari Age

Conflicts of Interest

The author declares no interest in conflict