Pac-Man power pellets explained: timers, speeds and rules
Four large dots in the corners turn the hunters into the hunted. The window shrinks every level, vanishes entirely on level 19, and understanding the table changes how you play.
What a power pellet does
Eating one of the four energizers scores 50 points and triggers frightened mode: every ghost not already heading home reverses direction, slows down, turns dark blue and starts moving randomly at junctions. While the timer runs, touching a ghost eats it for 200, 400, 800 and then 1,600 points, and the eaten ghost returns to the house as a pair of eyes. Near the end of the window the ghosts flash white and blue as a warning. When the timer expires they return to normal speed and resume whatever mode the level timer dictates.
Frightened time by level
| Level | Seconds blue | Flashes |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | 6 | 5 |
| 2 | 5 | 5 |
| 3 | 4 | 5 |
| 4 | 3 | 5 |
| 5 | 2 | 5 |
| 6 | 5 | 5 |
| 7 to 8 | 2 | 5 |
| 9 | 1 | 3 |
| 10 | 5 | 5 |
| 11 | 2 | 5 |
| 12 to 13 | 1 | 3 |
| 14 | 3 | 5 |
| 15 to 16 | 1 | 3 |
| 17 | 0 | 0 |
| 18 | 1 | 3 |
| 19 and beyond | 0 | 0 |
The table is not monotonic: levels 6, 10 and 14 are "breather" boards with longer windows. From level 19 the pellet does nothing except reverse the ghosts and score 50, which is why the per-board maximum drops as described in pacman scoring system.
Speeds while frightened
Blue ghosts move at 50% of maximum on level 1, 55% on levels 2 to 4 and 60% from level 5, while Pac-Man speeds up to 90%, 95% and 100% respectively. On level 1 you move almost twice as fast as a frightened ghost, which is why chains are easy early and nearly impossible by level 9, when one second is barely enough to reach a single ghost.
Where the pellets are
One in each corner region: two near the top corners and two near the bottom corners, in the outermost corridors. Their positions are symmetric, and the maze geometry around them is described in pacman maze dimensions explained. Because the corners are also the ghosts' scatter targets, a pellet eaten during a scatter phase often catches one or two ghosts arriving at their corner.
Rules players get wrong
- Eating a second pellet while ghosts are blue resets the timer and the chain, so the next ghost is worth 200 again, not the next step up.
- Eyes heading home cannot be eaten and are not affected by a new pellet until they regenerate.
- Ghosts in the house when a pellet is eaten come out blue only if time remains.
- Frightened ghosts choose directions pseudo-randomly, so they are the only truly unpredictable element in the game; the rest is covered in how pacman ghosts chase you.
Using the table
Early boards reward grouping ghosts for a 3,000-point chain per pellet. From level 9 the pellet is an escape tool: reversing all four ghosts at once is still valuable even if you cannot catch them. Strategy that reflects these phases is in pacman tips for higher scores. The power orbs in the games on the mr pacman maze game site follow a similar shrinking curve, from seven seconds down to two.
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Frequently asked questions
How long do ghosts stay blue in Pac-Man?
Six seconds on level 1, decreasing with level and reaching zero on level 17 and from level 19 onward.
How many power pellets are there?
Four per board, one near each corner.
How many points is a power pellet?
50 points, plus up to 3,000 for eating all four ghosts while it lasts.
Why don't ghosts turn blue anymore?
Because from level 19 the frightened duration is zero. Pellets still reverse the ghosts.
Does eating another pellet extend the timer?
It resets the timer to the level's full value and also resets the ghost chain to 200.