Four ghosts, two tunnels and four power pellets. Eat a pellet and the ghosts turn pale for a few seconds, which is the only time you can chase them.
What Is Google Pac-Man?
Google Pac-Man is a full playable version of the arcade game built into a Google doodle. The maze, the ghosts, the tunnel wrap and the power pellets all behave the way the 1980 original did, and the score sits above the board.
It is the largest game Google has ever put on its homepage, and unlike most doodles it was never taken offline.
How the Pac-Man Doodle Started
Google published it on 21 May 2010 for the game’s 30th anniversary. Ryan Germick and Marcin Wichary built it in JavaScript, added a second player as Ms. Pac-Man on the insert coin button, and kept the original ghost behaviour rather than simplifying it.
It was meant to run for 48 hours. The response was large enough that Google gave it a permanent home in the doodle archive instead, which is why it still plays today while the zipper doodle and others were retired.
How to Play Google Pac-Man
- Press start, click the maze, then steer with the arrow keys or the pad above.
- Clear every pellet to finish the maze.
- Grab a corner pellet before a ghost closes in. Each ghost eaten during that window is worth 200 points.
- Use the side tunnels to escape. Ghosts slow down slightly going through.
- Losing all three lives resets the score.
FAQs
Can I still play the Pac-Man doodle on Google?
Yes. It is one of the few interactive doodles Google kept permanently available in its archive.
Do the ghosts behave differently from each other?
They alternate between chasing you and scattering to their own corner, which is what makes the pattern feel unpredictable.
How do I play as Ms. Pac-Man?
The original doodle added a second player when you pressed the coin button twice. This version is single player.
What other arcade classics has Google rebuilt?
The space invaders trick and block breaker are the other two people look for.
