Pac-Man: Complete Beginner's Guide
Pac-Man looks simple, but the maze is built on rules. Once you understand how the four ghosts think, the game turns from chaos into a puzzle you can solve.
Know the four ghosts
Each ghost has its own personality and chase logic. Reading them is the single most important skill in the game.
- Blinky (red) targets your exact tile, so he's always right behind you. Never let him corner you in a dead end.
- Pinky (pink) aims four tiles ahead of your direction. You can bait her by turning at the last moment.
- Inky (cyan) uses both your position and Blinky's, which makes him hard to predict. Treat him as a wildcard.
- Clyde (orange) chases until he gets close, then retreats to his corner. Use him as a safe escape route.
Use the corners and tunnels
The maze has safe pockets the ghosts struggle to coordinate around. The side tunnels slow ghosts down but not you, so looping through them is a reliable escape when two ghosts close in.
Time your power pellets
Don't grab a power pellet the moment you see it. Wait until two or three ghosts are nearby, then eat it and turn to chase them. Eating multiple ghosts on one pellet is where your score multiplies — 200, 400, 800, 1600 points in a single run.
Frightened time shrinks every level. By level 10 the blue period is very short, so plan your ghost-eating route before you bite the pellet.
Reaching level 10
Consistency beats speed. Clear dots in a fixed order so you always know where the open space is, keep one escape lane open at all times, and never chase a fruit bonus into a corner. Players who reach level 10 aren't faster — they simply stop making the two or three mistakes that end most runs.
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