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Pac-Man FAQ
Copyright Namco and Tengen 1984, 1990
Written By Brian P. Sulpher
E-mail:
[email protected]
Version 1.6
Dates Written: December 29th, 2003 to January 2nd, 2004
Dedicated to my NES brethren as well as the fans of Pac-Man. I may not have
the super hot strategies that get you through each area flawlessly, but I do
offer solid strategies, useful info on other parts, and some generally fun
commentary. I will accept any superb strategies that you experts may offer,
so send them in if you wish to share your knowledge.
Also, for Cougar, Howler, Koonce, and Gracey. I miss you, and I hope you
are living it up in the afterlife as you did in this world. You will always
be in my memories, and you will never be forgotten.
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Version 1.0
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-Submitted FAQ on January 2nd, 2004
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Version 1.5
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-Submitted FAQ on March 6th, 2004
-The Fruit section was expanded (thanks to nate kapel)
-Corrected an eror in the Ghost section (thanks to nate kapel)
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Version 1.6
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-Submitted guide on 16th of October, 2005
-I added in Retronintendo and Honestgamers as sites allowed to use my FAQs
-Altered the format to make it easier on the eyes of the reader
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-----------------------------Table Of Contents------------------------------
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1) Introduction
2) Controls
3) Characters/Objects
4) Fruit
5) Points
6) Strategies
7) Final Word
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---------------------------------Introduction-------------------------------
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1) Pac-Man is a video game ICON that has passed through a few generations of
video game players to remain well known and rather popular. Here is the
NES version of the game, offering a rather faithful rendition of this
classic, reaching another audience of people that may have never
experienced the simplistic joy that Pac-Man brings. So, get your
reflexes ready, grab some Power Pellets, and go terrorize some Ghosts as
you lead Pac-Man through the endless mazes to amass a massive total of
points! If you show enough skill and wit, you may even be able to get
far enough into the game to reach the vaunted and fabled "kill screen",
located in level 255!
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-----------------------------------Controls---------------------------------
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2) This section will look at the controls for Pac-Man.
UP......: Moves Pac-Man upwards.
DOWN....: Moves Pac-Man downwards.
LEFT....: Moves Pac-Man to the left.
RIGHT...: Moves Pac-Man to the right.
SELECT..: Moves cursor between One Player and Two Player on the start
screen.
START...: Confirms start screen selection. Also pauses/unpauses the game.
B Button: No apparent use.
A Button: No apparent use.
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-----------------------------Characters/Objects-----------------------------
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3) This section will give a quick look at the Characters and Objects that
inhabit the mazelike world of Pac-Man.
o------------o
| Characters |
o------------o
Pac-Man: The hero of the game, Pac-Man is yellow and circular. He tries to
navigate the mazes the Ghosts inhabits to try and eat all of the
Pellets without getting attacked. Originally intended to be named
Puck-Man, that was changed due to the children of the day possibly
calling him another name, one that rhymes with Puck-Man, but the
"P" would have been substituted for an "F" (use your imagination).
Blinky.: A Red Ghost, he is the first Ghost to leave the small Ghost
compartment at the start of a level.
Pinky..: A Pink Ghost, he is the second Ghost to leave the small Ghost
compartment at the start of a level.
Inky...: A Blue Ghost, he is the third Ghost to leave the small Ghost
compartment at the start of a level.
Clyde..: An Orange Ghost, he is the last Ghost to leave the small Ghost
compartment at the start of a level.
o---------o
| Objects |
o---------o
Pellets......: These are the small Pellets that dominate the maze. They are
what Pac-Man needs to eat up (along with the Power Pellets),
to clear the level.
Power Pellets: These are the large Pellets that are found in the four
corners of the maze. They are what Pac-Man needs to eat up
(along with the Power Pellets), to clear the level. However,
they also carry the bonus of making the Ghosts vulnerable to
Pac-Man, so he can eat them to temporarily remove them from
the maze (their eyes return to the Ghost Compartment to
reform). The Pellets last for less time as Pac-Man advances
further into the game.
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------------------------------------Fruit-----------------------------------
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4) This section will take a look at how Fruit appears, after how many levels
a specific Fruit will appear, and strategies for getting the fruit
without having the Ghosts harassing Pac-Man.
o---------------------o
| Appearance Of Fruit |
o---------------------o
Fruit appears based on how many pellets (both Pellets and Power Pellets)
Pac-Man has consumed in a maze. The first Fruit appears after the 57th
pellet is ingested by Pac-Man, the second appears after the 137th pellet is
gobbled by Pac-Man.
However, these rules can be modified somewhat. If Pac-Man grabs his 57th
pellet and then dies while the Fruit is on screen, that Fruit is lost
forever. Say Pac-Man dies at the 55th pellet (as an example number), he can
then grab two pellets the next turn to make the Fruit appear as normal.
Keep this in mind if you count your pellets as you go, and you are likely to
be caught by the Ghosts (if you get too many before dying, your Fruit will
be lost).
o----------------o
| Fruit & Levels |
o----------------o
Cherry ....: Level One
Strawberry.: Level Two
Peach......: Level Three & Level Four
Apple......: Level Five & Level Six
Kiwi.......: Level Seven & Level Eight
Orange Leaf: Level Nine & Level Ten
Bell.......: Level Eleven & Level Twelve
Key........: Level Thirteen Onwards
o----------------o
| Fruit Grabbing |
o----------------o
i) The more common method for this is to try and draw the Ghosts into
following Pac-Man as he is about to trigger the Fruit appearance, as
opposed to them coming towards him. If done correctly, all of the
Ghosts will be out of position to guard the Fruit, allowing an easy
time for Pac-Man to grab the Fruit below the Ghost Compartment.
ii) Grab a Power Pellet just as the Fruit will be triggered. Although some
would argue eating Ghosts is worth more points, a skilled player can
perform the Ghost hunting first, then grab the Fruit as the Power
Pellet wears off, thus maximizing the point intake.
iii) Try to make the trigger Pellet close to the Fruit spot underneath the
Ghost Compartment. This carries the plus of an easy Fruit grab (well
within the Fruit's timeline), but it carri4es the minus of the Ghosts
being concentrated in the same area.
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------------------------------------Points----------------------------------
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5) This section will list all of the points that can be gained throughout
the game.
Apple.......: 700
Cherry......: 100
Kiwi........: 1000
Orange Leaf.: 2000
Peach.......: 500
Pellet......: 10
Power Pellet: 50
Strawberry..: 300
o--------------o
| Ghost Eating |
o--------------o
Ghost eating can only occur when Pac-Man has collected a Power Pellet. This
will cause the Ghosts to change colour to a bluish purple for a limited time
(this time becomes less and less as the levels advance), indicating they can
be snacked upon. When the Power Pellet starts to wear off, the Ghosts will
flash briefly before returning to their usual state. During the time they
are vulnerable, they run away from Pac-Man instead of chasing him.
With each Ghost you eat on a single Power Pellet, the points reward becomes
greater and greater. The following is how the points break down for the
number of snacked-upon Ghosts in a single Power Pellet:
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~ One Ghost ~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
200 points
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~ Two Ghosts ~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
200 + 400 = 600 points
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~ Three Ghosts ~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
200 + 400 + 800 = 1400 points
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
~~~ All Ghosts ~~~
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
200 + 400 + 800 + 1600 = 3000 points
This means that it is possible to get a maximum of 12000 points per maze
(4 Power Pellets and 3000 points for eating all Ghosts with each one). This
is how to score truly astronomical amounts of points in a short amount of
time. However, this also requires some careful planning and Ghost
manipulation to set up these kills for large scores. Also note that as
levels advance, the time to hit the ghosts becomes less, and even no time if
you get far enough.
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----------------------------------Strategies--------------------------------
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6) This section will look at some strategies to use to get the pellets while
avoiding and making those wily Ghosts pay.
a) Use the tunnels to your advantage. The Ghosts are far slower in the
tunnels than Pac-Man, so they make an excellent spot to lose them if they
are in hot pursuit. However, be wary of entering the tunnels if another
Ghost is on the far side of the maze, for they may enter from the other
side and trap Pac-Man!
b) Eat in an organized, planned path. If you just send Pac-Man all over the
maze, you will likely end up being forced to leave stray pellets lying
all around the maze. This can make it very tough near the end of the
level to get all of the Pellets with the Ghosts running wild and you are
not likely to have any Power Pellets on hand to help.
c) Power Pellets are useful tools, but do not use them too quickly. If your
goal in each maze is to eat a bunch of Ghosts, you may use your Power
Pellets too quickly, leaving a lot of Pellets to collect with continual
Ghost harassment. Try to eat a bunch of pellets before all four Ghosts
get into the maze, and try to leave Power Pellets as long as possible in
their own quarter of the maze, possibly grabbing them last to chomp some
Ghosts as you move into another, Pellet infested part of the maze.
d) After eating a Ghost, be careful around the Ghost Compartment. Even if
your Power Pellet is still going strong, any Ghost being reincarnated in
the Ghost Compartment usually pops out immediately and is no longer
vulnerable to your ravenous Pac-Man.
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---------------------------------Final Word---------------------------------
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7) As is the usual, this walkthrough is copyright property of Brian P.
Sulpher, 2004. The only website, group, person, etc. to have access to
post it is www.gamefaqs.com, www.ign.com, www.retronintendo.com, and
www.honestgamers.com. You must ask for permission before posting this,
as doing so without consent is a violation of international copyright
law.
If you liked it, hated it, have anything to add, then please E-mail me at
[email protected]. You can also contact me through MSN messenger
through the same E-mail address.
A truly fun game, it has a little more depth than many realize. Play it
loud and play it proud people, as "Puck-Man" is a classic among classics
in video gaming history!
