Pacman patterns

Back in 1980 a little ghost gobbling yellow circle was born, who would have known back then that Pacman would go on to become a video game icon.

As the popularity of Pacman grew, savvy arcade gamers were coming up with patterns to stay alive longer in the game and score the highest points possible. These patterns have been widely known for years but to some out there it is still news to them.

Just so you all know there are numerous different Pacman patterns available to help you achieve the highest amount of points possible. The reason being is that there are several different versions of Pacman. Midway did this to appease frustrated arcade owners who were losing out on money due to players who could spend literally hours on a game with one quarter after having the pattern memorized. What Midway did was just simply switch the order of the patterns in the different game versions. It didn't take long for people to realize this though and come up with a way of recognizing which version of Pacman they were playing.

You can find out what version of Pacman you are playing by watching the behavior of the monsters first.

Upon the start of the first maze, if the light blue monster "bashful" stays in the monster bull pin, you're on a 1-2-5 machine. This means that the cherry pattern is used during the first maze; the Mid-fruit pattern on the screen 2,3,and 4; and the apple pattern from screens 5 on till your arm falls off. If "Bashful" leaves the monster bull pin and goes stair-step fashion downward to the bottom right part of the screen, you're on a 1-3 design type machine, where the mid-fruit pattern is used on screens 1 and 2, and the apple pattern is used from screen 3 onward until you get throw out of the Arcade. If "Bashful" doesn't behave in any of these ways, most likely your on some type of machine that is a variant, bootleg, or other non-Midway machine.

Here are some of the patterns for you to try out on your own. With a little practice and memorization you may find yourself to be a high scoring Pacman hero!

The Cherry Pattern:
Start of by going left. (A) Make sure that you clear the entire bottom row of dots. You can stay out of the danger area if you do this quickly first. If you miss one dot, and have to return it, will blow the entire pattern. (B) Three monsters will be coming at you here. Don't hesitate and make the pattern as quick as possible. (C) Here eat your Energizer, then kill the three monsters running from you. The fourth monster will be running toward the bottom screen. Chase him to kill for 1600 point while he's still blue. (D) Once you've reached this area, you're on your own here. A few monsters will be following you at this point. Eat the top right energizer and kill the monsters. If the monsters stop following you and retreat, clear as many dots as possible on the top part of the screen and head for the energizer on the top left. The monsters will eventually close in, where you can eat the energizer and kill them.

The Mid-Fruit Pattern:
The pace picks up at bit here with the second mid fruit pattern. This pattern works with the next three screens. The first will have a strawberry: the second will have peaches. The monsters don't stay blue as long as they did in the first pattern. Point values for eating fruits are going up. The tunnels become more effective as the speeds increase here. Start off going to the left again. (A) Clear the bottom row of dots again, but this time retrace your steps on that bottom row. (B) Again, turning this corner is critical. Do not hesitate. The monsters are charging faster than the first maze. If you're slick, you'll survive. (C) Eat this energizer and kill the three monsters. One will try to escape though the tunnel, go get him before he goes into the tunnel. Then go to the bottom to get the forth monster for that 1600 points before they turn back from blue. (D) Once here, you're on your own once again. The strategy is similar again here. If the monster keeps after you, eat the top right energizer and kill them. If the monsters retreat, eat the dots on the top of the screen and make your way over to the top left.

The Apple Pattern:
The Apple pattern is the third and final Pacman pattern. If followed correctly, with hesitation, you'll successfully gobble up most of the small dots on the screen before you eat any monsters or energizers. Play these corners to your own style, but keep in mind that the monsters only stay blue for a very limited time now. You might be able to only eat 1-2 before they turn back. Do not get to greedy on eating monsters, your bigger points will come from eating the 2 fruits per level that this pattern will let you get. (A) Unlike the first two patterns, you clear only half the bottom row of dots, and move upward first. (B) at this point you have already been though here, but guide your Pacman down to the corner here, then double back. This is a decoy and will make the monsters slip right on by you. When the coast is clear, you resume the pattern. (C) 2 dots will remain here. Quickly, and we do mean quickly, snatch up these dots, reverse, and continue up. If you lagged previously in the plan, you may not be able to snatch up these dots. If you can do it, it will leave a nice clean maze. (D) If a monster is charging you right at this point, hesitate, and let the monster go past under you. Follow the monster though the tunnel, but do not overtake him. If no monster is approaching, simply follow the plan as show. (E) Go though the tunnel. At this point near 80% of the maze will be clear of dots. The only remaining dots will be conveniently around the energizers. Play each corner with your own style. Shake the joystick to lure the monsters into the energizer trap. Some screens during various levels keep the monsters blue for longer. Make sure you give yourself time needed to eat the monsters while there still blue if your going after them.