How to play Pac-Man
Pac-Man is the maze chase that defined the arcade. Steer the muncher through a 28 × 31 maze, eat every dot, and keep clear of the four ghosts that patrol it.
Grab a power pellet and the tables turn for a few seconds: the ghosts go pale, and you can eat them for a growing bonus.
Rules
- Each small dot is worth 10 points and each power pellet 50. Eat every dot and pellet to clear the maze and move on to the next level.
- Power pellets frighten the ghosts. Eating frightened ghosts scores 200, 400, 800 and 1,600 in a row; the chain resets with each new pellet. An eaten ghost runs home as a pair of eyes and comes straight back out.
- The ghosts have personalities inspired by the arcade: one chases you directly, one aims ahead of you, one takes its cue from the first, and the fourth loses its nerve up close. They alternate between hunting you and scattering to their own corners, and reverse direction whenever the mode switches.
- Fruit appears below the ghost house after 70 and 170 dots and stays for about 10 seconds. Cherry 100, strawberry 300, orange 500, apple 700, melon 1,000, then 2,000, 3,000 and 5,000 on later levels.
- You start with 3 lives and earn one extra life at 10,000 points. Touching a ghost that is not frightened costs a life; the game ends when you are out.
- The side tunnels wrap around to the other edge, and ghosts slow down inside them. Each level speeds everything up and shortens the frightened time until, deep into the game, the pellets barely frighten the ghosts at all.
Controls
- Arrows / WASD
- Steer — press early and Pac-Man takes the turn at the next opening; reversing is instant
- Swipe
- Steer on touch screens; on-screen D-pad on phones
- P / Esc / Space
- Pause and resume (the game also pauses itself when you switch tabs)
- Enter / Space
- Start or play again
Tips
- Queue your turn a tile early. Pac-Man remembers the direction you pressed and takes the corner the moment it opens.
- Save power pellets until the ghosts are bunched up near you — all four on one pellet is 3,000 points.
- Use the tunnel to lose a tail: ghosts crawl through it while you keep your speed.
About Pac-Man
Pac-Man was designed by Toru Iwatani and released by Namco in Japan in 1980, with Midway bringing it to America the same year. Iwatani wanted an arcade game that women and couples would play — about eating rather than shooting — and ended up with the best-selling coin-op of all time. The four ghosts each have their own way of hunting you, which is why the game feels like it has a plan.
This is an original browser remake inspired by it. The maze layout, the scatter-and-chase rhythm, the ghost personalities and the fruit table follow the arcade closely; the look is paper and ink, and the ghosts are told apart by pattern rather than colour.
Questions
Is this the original Pac-Man?
No. It is an original browser remake inspired by Namco’s 1980 arcade game, free, with nothing to install. The maze, ghost behaviour and scoring follow the arcade closely.
How do I play Pac-Man on a phone?
Swipe on the board in the direction you want to go, or use the on-screen D-pad that appears on phones. Pressing early is fine: Pac-Man takes the turn at the next opening.
How is the score calculated?
Dots are 10 points and power pellets 50. Eating frightened ghosts scores 200, 400, 800 and 1,600 in a row per pellet. Fruit ranges from 100 for the cherry to 5,000 for the key, and you earn an extra life at 10,000.
Do the ghosts behave like the arcade ghosts?
Closely. One chases you directly, one aims four tiles ahead of you, one uses the first ghost’s position to flank you, and the fourth retreats to its corner whenever it gets within eight tiles. They alternate between scattering and chasing on a timer.