Google’s weapon of mass distraction: Ms. Pac-man hijacks map app for April Fool’s day

The classic arcade game Ms. Pac-man, the follow-up to the original '80's video game Pac-man, has taken over the Google Maps web and mobile applications in honor of April Fool’s day, distracting lost commuters the world over.

According to a report in The Verge, the iOS app allows users to pick the playing field, while the Android version brings players to a random location around the world where they have five lives to outrun the infamous multi-colored ghosts on the city streets.

The web application allegedly affords users the ability to choose their own location but has proven buggy thus far, according to The Verge.

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“Clicking the button just takes me to a zoomed in version of the current map view, so maybe Google is waiting to roll out the game when it’s officially April 1st in most parts of the world,” The Verge reports.

Google is known for its passion and drive when it comes to bamboozling unsuspecting users on the international day of the prankster with stunts ranging from directing users to ‘Funky Town’ from their current location to offering ‘Search by emoji’ functionality for the day to providing a 360-degree immersive experience with none other than Snoop Dogg. 

While the tech giant pulled a similar prank in 2015, unleashing Pac-man on the world’s streets, the 2017 prank has a little more feminine charm and users are thrilled.