Maze game

Maze game is a video game genre description first used by journalists during the 1980s to describe any game in which the entire playing field was a maze. Quick player action is required to escape monsters, outrace an opponent, or navigate the maze within a time limit.

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This genre is exemplified by Namco's Pac-Man (1980), where the goal is to collect dots while avoiding enemies that are chasing the player. Pac-Man spawned many sequels and clones. In Japan, they are often called "dot eat games".

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In grid capture games, also called line coloring games, the maze consists of lines, and the goal is to capture rectangular areas by traversing their perimeters. The gameplay is not fundamentally different than Pac-Man (players still have to navigate the entire maze to complete a level) but enough games have used the grid motif that it is a distinct style. One unique element is that it is possible to capture multiple rectangles simultaneously, usually for extra points. Amidar established the model for this subgenre.

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