Pac-Man Ghost Names: Blinky, Pinky, Inky and Clyde — and What Each One Does
The four Pac-Man ghosts are Blinky (red), Pinky (pink), Inky (cyan), and Clyde (orange). Each has its own AI behavior — they're not just four copies of the same enemy.
Quick reference: the four ghosts
| Name | Colour | US nickname | Japanese name | What it does | Scatter corner |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blinky | Red | Shadow | Akabei / Oikake (“chaser”) | Targets your exact tile; speeds up late in a level | Top right |
| Pinky | Pink | Speedy | Pinky / Machibuse (“ambusher”) | Targets 4 tiles ahead of where you're facing | Top left |
| Inky | Cyan | Bashful | Aosuke / Kimagure (“fickle”) | Flanks using Blinky's position as a pivot | Bottom right |
| Clyde | Orange | Pokey | Guzuta / Otoboke (“feigning ignorance”) | Chases when far, retreats when within 8 tiles | Bottom left |
The Japanese names describe behaviour; the English ones were invented for the 1980 Midway release and are what most of the world knows. In the attract-mode sequence the game shows both the nickname and the name — “Shadow / Blinky”, “Speedy / Pinky”, “Bashful / Inky”, “Pokey / Clyde”.
Blinky — the red ghost (the Shadow)
Blinky is the pure pursuit ghost. His target is always your exact tile. He chases directly.
There's one twist: once you've eaten enough dots in a level, Blinky enters 'Cruise Elroy' mode and speeds up. Late in the game he becomes faster than Pac-Man.
How to beat him: easiest to predict, hardest to outrun late-game. Keep a planned exit route at all times.
Pinky — the pink ghost (Speedy / Ambusher)
Pinky targets the tile four spaces in front of where Pac-Man is facing. She's not chasing — she's trying to cut you off.
There's a famous bug: when Pac-Man faces up, Pinky's target is calculated as four tiles up AND four tiles left, because of an overflow in the original assembly code. Speedrunners exploit this all the time.
How to beat her: reverse direction when she closes in. Her target was based on your old facing direction.
Inky — the cyan ghost (Bashful)
Inky is the strangest. His target depends on both your position AND Blinky's. The game draws a vector from Blinky through the tile two spaces in front of Pac-Man, then doubles it. That spot is Inky's target.
In plain language: Inky tries to flank you from the opposite side of where Blinky is approaching.
How to beat him: hardest to predict. The general rule — if Blinky is behind you, expect Inky in front.
Clyde — the orange ghost (Pokey)
Clyde is the wild card. When he's more than 8 tiles from Pac-Man he behaves like Blinky and chases directly. When closer than 8 tiles, he flees to his scatter corner.
How to beat him: often the safest ghost. Move away calmly and he'll usually retreat.
The two modes
All four ghosts switch between chase mode (where the AI above applies) and scatter mode (where each retreats to a corner and circles it). The game switches modes on a fixed timer, with chase phases getting longer in later levels. Scatter phases are your breathing room.
Frightened mode: when the ghosts turn blue
Eat an energizer and all four ghosts reverse direction, turn dark blue and wander at random at reduced speed. For a few seconds you can eat them — 200 points for the first, then 400, 800 and 1,600 — and an eaten ghost's eyes float back to the pen in the centre to respawn. The blue timer shrinks every few levels and is gone entirely from level 19 onward, which is when the game stops being forgiving. Our mechanics guide has the full timer table.
Sue, and the ghosts in later games
In Ms. Pac-Man (1982) the orange ghost is renamed Sue; the other three keep their names. Sue was later made purple in some versions to tell her apart from Clyde. Pac-Mania (1987) added two more: Funky (green) and Spunky (grey), the latter able to jump like Pac-Man. Pac-Man 256 (2015) brought back Sue, Funky and Spunky and added Glitchy, a ghost made of the game's corrupted graphics. The cartoon series used different names again (Blinky, Pinky, Inky, Clyde and Sue as a family). Full history in every Ms. Pac-Man game.
The other Pac-Man characters
Beyond the ghosts, the main Pac-Man game characters are Pac-Man himself (1980), Ms. Pac-Man (1982), Jr. Pac-Man (1983, the one in the propeller beanie), Baby Pac-Man (1982) and Professor Pac-Man (1983, a quiz game). The 2010s cartoon added Pac-Man's friends Cylindria and Spiral and the villain Betrayus, and Pac-Man Museum+ introduced Pac-Mom as a stand-in for Ms. Pac-Man. Old Pac-Man games covers where each of the classic characters first appeared.
Why the names matter for playing well
Because each ghost has a different target, the four of them never do the same thing at the same time — and that's what makes the game beatable. If Blinky is directly behind you, Inky is probably ahead; if Pinky is closing in, reversing direction usually breaks her line. Learn the four rules and the “random” danger in Pac-Man becomes four predictable pursuits. Try it on Classic Pac, or play the ghosts' side in Anti-Pacman.
Try it now
Apply this knowledge on Classic Pac. For the full mechanics including scoring chains, fruit timing, and the kill screen, read How Pac-Man Actually Works · Related: Is Pac-Man Faster Than the Ghosts?.
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