The Mr Pacman blog
Shorter, sharper reads around the guides: single mechanics explained in depth, profiles of each ghost, buying and collecting, practice plans and side-by-side version comparisons.
Ghosts
Blinky, the red ghost
Blinky, the red Pac-Man ghost: his nickname Shadow, Japanese name Akabei, direct-chase targeting, scatter corner, the Cr…
blinky pacman ghost profilePinky, the pink ghost
Pinky, the pink Pac-Man ghost: nickname Speedy, Japanese nickname Machibuse (ambusher), her four-tiles-ahead target, the…
pinky pacman ghost profileInky, the cyan ghost
Inky, the cyan Pac-Man ghost: nickname Bashful, Japanese name Aosuke and nickname Kimagure (fickle), his two-point vecto…
inky pacman ghost profileClyde, the orange ghost
Clyde, the orange Pac-Man ghost: nickname Pokey, Japanese name Guzuta and nickname Otoboke, his chase-then-retreat rule …
clyde pacman ghost profileMechanics
Pac-Man speed chart
A Pac-Man speed chart by level: Pac-Man 80% to 100% and back to 90%, ghosts 75% to 95%, tunnel and frightened speeds, th…
pacman speed chart by levelPac-Man patterns explained
What Pac-Man patterns are, why they work (deterministic ghosts and fixed timers), how level groups share one pattern, wh…
pacman patterns explainedPac-Man intermissions
Pac-Man's three intermissions explained: the giant Pac-Man chase, the nail that tears Blinky's sheet, and the repaired-s…
pacman intermissions explainedGhost house rules
How ghosts leave the Pac-Man ghost house: Blinky starts outside, Pinky leaves immediately, Inky after 30 dots and Clyde …
pacman ghost house rulesCornering technique
How Pac-Man cornering works: pre-turning before a junction so Pac-Man cuts the corner diagonally, gaining pixels on ever…
pacman cornering techniqueHow to practise Pac-Man
A practical Pac-Man practice plan: week one controls and cornering, week two ghost reading and scatter windows, week thr…
how to practise pacmanYour first 50,000 points
How to score 50,000 points in Pac-Man as a beginner: what each of the first five boards is worth, where the points come …
first 50000 points in pacmanChampionship Edition DX tips
Pac-Man Championship Edition DX tips: how to build long sleeping-ghost trains, when to eat the power pellet, routing the…
championship edition dx tipsPac-Man 256 tips: power-ups, dot combos and outrunning the glitch
Pac-Man 256 tips for high scores: chaining 256-dot combos, which power-ups to upgrade first, reading the ghost types, st…
pacman 256 tipsHistory
The Pac-Man arcade cabinet
Everything about the Pac-Man arcade cabinet: Midway upright, cocktail and cabaret versions, the Puck Man original, what …
pacman arcade cabinet detailsPac-Man sound effects
The Pac-Man sound effects explained: the opening jingle, the waka-waka eating sound, the rising siren, the frightened-mo…
pacman sound effects explainedThe speed-up chip
What the Pac-Man speed-up chip was: a bootleg ROM swap that made Pac-Man move much faster, why bar operators installed i…
pacman speed up chipPac-Man Plus
Pac-Man Plus explained: Midway's 1982 revision with a green maze, new bonus items, power pellets that sometimes affect o…
pacman plus arcade versionBest home ports ranked
The best Pac-Man home ports ranked: Famicom/NES, Atari 5200, Commodore 64, Game Boy, Namco Museum, Pac-Man Collection, A…
best pacman home portsDIP switch settings
Pac-Man DIP switch settings explained: coins per credit, 1 to 5 lives, bonus life at 10,000, 15,000, 20,000 or none, nor…
pacman dip switch settingsThe Puck Man cabinet
Puck Man, the 1980 Namco cabinet that became Pac-Man: how it looked, how it differed from Midway's version, why so few e…
the original puck man cabinetCulture
Google Pac-Man two-player
How to play the Google Pac-Man doodle with two players: click Insert Coin twice to add Ms. Pac-Man on WASD, plus mobile …
google pacman two player modePac-Man in movies and TV
Pac-Man in movies and TV: the 1982 Hanna-Barbera cartoon, Scott Pilgrim vs. the World, Wreck-It Ralph, Pixels, Guardians…
pacman in movies and tvPac-Man collectibles
A Pac-Man collectibles overview: original cabinets, Coleco and Tomy tabletop games, the Milton Bradley board game, cerea…
pacman collectibles worth owningPac-Man Day
Pac-Man Day is 22 May, the 1980 Japanese release date. Learn why Google celebrated on the 21st, what Bandai Namco does f…
pacman day on 22 mayComparisons
Mr Pacman vs Ms Pacman
Mr Pacman vs Ms Pacman explained: there is no official Mr. Pac-Man arcade game. Learn where the name comes from (the 198…
mr pacman and ms pacman differencesPac-Man vs Ms. Pac-Man
Pac-Man vs Ms. Pac-Man compared: mazes, moving fruit, ghost randomness, speed, intermissions, scoring, records, and the …
pacman vs ms pacmanArcade vs Atari 2600
Pac-Man arcade vs Atari 2600 compared: a 4K cartridge, horizontal maze, flickering ghosts, wafers instead of dots, alter…
pacman arcade vs atari 2600Championship Edition vs original
Pac-Man Championship Edition vs the 1980 original: timed sessions, split regenerating mazes, persistent ghost chains, sp…
pacman championship edition vs originalPac-Man 256 vs Pac-Man 99
Pac-Man 256 vs Pac-Man 99 compared: endless upward maze with the level-256 glitch and power-ups versus a 99-player Switc…
pacman 256 compared to pacman 99Google doodle vs arcade
The Google Pac-Man doodle (21 May 2010) compared with the arcade original: logo-shaped maze, two-player Ms. Pac-Man mode…
google pacman doodle vs arcadeHow the blog fits with the guides
The pacman guides and strategies cover each subject end to end. Blog posts take one question, one ghost or one version and go deeper, with links back to the relevant guide so nothing is explained twice. New posts are added regularly and each shows its last-updated date. When you want to play instead of read, the games on the visit mr pacman online are one click away.
Frequently asked questions
How often is the blog updated?
New posts are added regularly, and existing posts are revised when facts change; each carries its last-updated date.
Are blog posts written by the same author?
Yes. Every post is written and fact-checked by Syed Hamid under the editorial policy.
Can I suggest a topic?
Yes, through the contact page. Reader questions are the main source of new posts.