Blinky: the red ghost who never stops chasing
Blinky is the only ghost that targets you directly and the only one that gets faster. Everything about him is simple, which is exactly what makes him dangerous.
Names
Blinky is his English name; the attract screen calls him Shadow. In Japan he is Akabei ("red guy") with the nickname Oikake, the chaser. The full naming table is in pacman ghosts and their nicknames.
How he moves
In chase mode his target tile is Pac-Man's own tile, so at every junction he takes the exit closest to you as the crow flies. In scatter mode he heads for the top-right corner. He starts each board outside the ghost house, above the door, and is active immediately, while the others wait on the counters described in when ghosts leave the house. The decision rule itself is explained in how pacman ghosts chase you.
Cruise Elroy
When the number of dots left on the board falls below a threshold, Blinky's speed rises by 5 percentage points, and when it falls below half that threshold it rises by 10, taking him past Pac-Man's speed. The thresholds grow from 20 dots on level 1 to 120 on level 19 and beyond; the full table is in speed values for every level. In this state he also ignores scatter mode and keeps chasing. If Pac-Man dies, he reverts to normal speed until Clyde has left the house.
Handling him
- A direct chaser is predictable: lead him around a loop and he follows the shortest straight-line path, which often takes him the long way round a wall.
- He is the ideal first ghost to group for a power pellet because he is always close.
- Late in a board, finish the dots on his side of the maze first, before Cruise Elroy triggers.
- He cannot turn upward in the four no-up corridors, so climb away from him there.
Elsewhere in the series
Blinky stars in all three intermissions (see pacman cutscene boards), appears in every sequel, and in Wreck-It Ralph is replaced as spokesman by Clyde. In the games on the play mr pacman style games, the magenta diamond drone plays his role: direct chase, nothing fancy.
More from the guides
- pacman maze layout — The Pac-Man maze explained: 28 by 31 tiles, 240 dots and 4 pellets, the ghost house, two w…
- complete history of pacman — The complete history of Pac-Man: Toru Iwatani's 1979 design at Namco, the May 1980 Japanes…
- pacman strategy tips — Pac-Man strategy for higher scores: cornering, ghost grouping before power pellets, patter…
Frequently asked questions
What does Blinky do in Pac-Man?
He targets Pac-Man's current tile directly and speeds up late in each board.
Why is Blinky called Shadow?
Midway's attract screen nickname describes how he shadows Pac-Man; his Japanese nickname means chaser.
Is Blinky the fastest ghost?
Only when Cruise Elroy triggers near the end of a board. Otherwise all ghosts share one speed.