Clean Sweep, released in 1982, is one of the earliest games to follow in the footsteps of Pac-Man clones, riding the global wave of the arcade phenomenon. But while it shares the core mechanics of the famous yellow gobbler, GCE’s game manages to establish its own identity, mainly because in this game, you’re not a ghost eater… you’re a bank vacuum cleaner!
Clean Sweep
Developer : GCE (General Consumer Electronics)
Year: 1982
Genre: Action / Maze
Modes: Single-player, 1 to 2 players alternating
A Pac-Man Like No Other
At first glance, Clean Sweep looks like a typical Pac-Man clone: you roam a maze, collect scattered items, avoid enemies, and can temporarily reverse roles to eliminate them.
But Clean Sweep puts its own spin on this formula with a unique mechanic: your vacuum cleaner fills up as it collects bills, and once full, you must return to the vault in the center of the maze to deposit them, otherwise, you can’t pick up any more. Depositing the bills earns you points and resets your vacuum, allowing you to go back out and collect more. This system adds a fresh layer of strategy; it’s not just about clearing the maze, you also have to manage your trips to the center of the screen without getting intercepted.
Thieves on the Hunt for the Jackpot
Of course, thieves are roaming the maze. Visually similar to the projectiles in Tempest, these enemies enter through vertical and horizontal tunnels and relentlessly chase your vacuum cleaner. If they touch you, you lose a life.
Thankfully, four “special zones” located at the corners of the maze allow you to temporarily reverse the roles by “supercharging” your vacuum. For a short time, you can suck up the thieves. Once used, these zones close off until the next level, limiting your defensive options. Tension ramps up as the number of enemies increases and safe zones become harder to find.
The game strikes a nice balance between offense and escape, with increasing difficulty as levels progress. The further you go, the faster and more unpredictable the thieves become, and the quicker your vacuum fills up, forcing more frequent trips to the vault.
A Mysterious Challenge
As you play through many levels, something odd eventually happens: the level counter is replaced with an infinity symbol. From that point on, the thieves stop actively chasing you and instead follow preset paths. A well-deserved break… or an uncaught bug? It remains a mystery.
A Very Rare Collector’s Edition: Mr. Boston
Clean Sweep also spawned a promotional version called Mr. Boston, named after a liquor brand. The game is identical in every way, except the title screen displays an ad for the brand, and the main character is a top hat! Fewer than ten known copies exist today, making it one of the most sought-after items for collectors.
What Stands Out
✅ Strengths :
- A well-designed and original twist on Pac-Man.
- The tank management system adds real strategy.
- Smart use of the four corners for the “supercharge” effect.
❌ Weaknesses :
- Occasionally loose controls make cornering tricky.
- Difficulty plateaus quickly (infinite level).
Clean It All or Lose It All
Clean Sweep stands out as a smart, well-crafted clone, perfectly suited to the Vectrex. Behind its simple appearance as a Pac-Man variant lies a unique gameplay mechanic that demands agility, spatial memory, and risk management. Halfway between an action game and a resource management challenge, Clean Sweep effortlessly vacuums up your free time, and that’s a pretty good sign.
For more, check out this fan video on YouTube :
