  The phase diagram of QCD is investigated by varying number of colors $N_c$
within a Polyakov loop quark-meson chiral model. In particular, our attention
is focused on the critical point(s): the critical point present for $N_c=3$
moves toward the $\mu_q$-axis and disappears as soon as the number of color is
increased. Yet, a distinct critical point emerges along the temperature axis
for $N_c = 53$ and moves toward finite density when increasing $N_c$ further.
Thus, the phase diagram at large $N_c$ looks specular w.r.t. the $N_c = 3$
results, with the first order transition in the upper-left and crossover in the
down-right regions of the the $(\mu_q,T)$-plane. The pressure is also evaluated
in dependence of $N_c$, showing a scaling with $N_c^0$ in the confined and
chirally broken phase and with $N_c^2$ in the deconfined one. Moreover, the
presence of a chirally symmetric but confined `quarkyonic phase' at large
density and moderate temperature with a pressure proportional to $N_c$ is
confirmed.
