PAUSED
1UP
HIGH SCORE
About Pac-Man
Toru Iwatani designed Pac-Man at Namco in 1980 to be a game his friends would play — not another shooter. The result is a maze, 240 dots, four ghosts and one rule that turns the whole thing around: eat a power pellet and for a few seconds you are the one doing the chasing.
The four ghosts are not interchangeable. Blinky follows you directly. Pinky aims at the tile ahead of you and cuts you off. Inky's target depends on both your position and Blinky's, which makes him the erratic one. Clyde chases until he gets close, then wanders off. Learning which colour is behind you is most of the game.
How to play
- Eat all 240 dots in the maze to clear the level.
- The four large flashing dots in the corners are power pellets. Eating one turns the ghosts blue and edible for a short time.
- Eaten ghosts return to the box in the centre as a pair of eyes and come back. Each ghost eaten in one pellet is worth more than the last: 200, 400, 800, 1600.
- Fruit appears below the ghost box twice per level for a bonus. It disappears if you leave it too long.
- Touching a ghost that is not blue costs a life.
Controls
- Arrow keys / WASD
- Turn Pac-Man. He keeps moving in the last direction you chose.
- Touch
- Swipe in the direction you want to turn.
Tips
- Queue your turns early. Pac-Man takes the turn as soon as it is legal, so pressing before the junction is better than pressing at it.
- The tunnels on the left and right slow the ghosts down but not you. When you are cornered, run for a tunnel.
- Save a power pellet. Clearing the last dots in a corner is much safer with a pellet still available nearby.
- Do not eat a pellet with the ghosts scattered. Wait until two or three are close, then take it — that is how you get to the 1600-point ghost.
- Blinky speeds up as the dots run out. Late in a level he is genuinely faster than you, so plan the last stretch before you get there.
Frequently asked questions
What are the ghosts' names?
Blinky (red), Pinky (pink), Inky (cyan) and Clyde (orange). Each uses a different targeting rule, which is why they do not travel as a pack.
How many dots are in a Pac-Man maze?
240 regular dots plus 4 power pellets.
Does Pac-Man ever end?
The arcade original breaks at level 256, where a counter overflow fills the right half of the screen with garbage. It is known as the split-screen or kill screen.
Can I play Pac-Man without installing anything?
Yes, the game above runs directly in your browser.