For fighter info, seePac-Man (SSB4) andPac-Man (SSBU).

Pac-Man
Official artwork of Pac-Man's two main forms.
Universe	Pac-Man
Debut	Pac-Man (1980)
Smash Bros. appearances	SSB4 Ultimate
Most recent non-Smash appearance	Sonic Racing: CrossWorlds (2026, via DLC)
Console/platform of origin	Arcade
Species	Pac-Person
Gender	Male
Place of origin	Pac-Land
Created by	Tōru Iwatani
Designed by	Tōru Iwatani Tadashi Yamashita
Article on Wikipedia	Pac-Man (character)

Pac-Man, also stylized asPAC-MAN (パックマン,Pacman, originally writtenPuckman), is the main character in the eponymousPac-Man series. He isBandai Namco's mascot and one of the most widely recognized video game characters in the world.^[1]

Origin[edit]

Pac-Man debuted as the main playable character in the arcade game,Pac-Man, in 1980. His minimalist design is an icon of video gaming; according to designerTōru Iwatani, the popular story that he was inspired by a pizza missing a single slice is "half true", and his primary inspiration was a rounded stylization of the Japanese kanji 口 (kuchi, mouth). His name is derived from the Japanese onomatopoeia ぱくぱく (paku paku), meaning to rapidly open and close one's mouth.^[2] The toy companyTomy released products featuring a round, yellow character named "PacMan" prior to the release of the arcade game; while it is disputed whether this was a conscious inspiration, it is known that Tomy settled out of court in exchange for the right to produce licensedPac-Man toys.^[3][4][5]

Japanese promotional art for thePac-Man arcade game depicted Pac-Man with a slightly more humanoid design, featuring limbs with orange gloves and red boots, as well as a long nose; this design would be refined over time and subsequently featured in the games beginning with the 1984 arcade titlePac-Land. The international cabinet art, released byMidway Games, depicted Pac-Man as a more surreal, animalistic creature with red eyes and no arms, but this design would be short-lived, and international license holders were given leeway to experiment with the character design, a common practice in the 1980s, and typically either skewed much closer to the original Japanese design or made him more anthropomorphic by placing a yellow head on a human body.

As a character, Pac-Man initially began with very few personality traits, reflecting his simplistic appearance in the games. Cutscenes throughout the originalPac-Man arcade games titled "Coffee Breaks" would show various cartoon scenarios with Pac-Man, revealing a somewhat quick-witted character capable of outsmarting enemies on the fly, but not revealing much else. Later installments in the franchise, such as thePac-Man World series, expand on the character and his backstory. In these games, he is a father with a large family that he deeply cares about, and he is characterized as a relatively laid-back hero who is willing to help wherever he is needed. Both of these traits were first established in Hanna-Barbera'sPac-Man cartoon series, which — unlike American multimedia adaptations of other Japanese franchises such asMario andSonic — was greatly influential to thePac-Man universe and set the groundwork for most media that followed, thanks in part to a large portion ofPac-Man titles having been developed outside of the character's home country. His relationship with theghosts (Blinky, Pinky, Inky, and Clyde) has also changed over the years: they have been depicted as archenemies, allies of circumstance, or even friendly rivals.

VariousPac-Man games released during the 1980s, particularly those produced by Midway with minimal Namco oversight, would introduce new friends and family members for Pac-Man, primarily sharing his basic character design with some kind of stereotypical accessory added. These includeMs. Pac-Man, Pac-Man's wife who wears a bow and possesses a mole on her cheek;Baby Pac-Man, Pac-Man's daughter who initially bore a pink bonnet; andProfessor Pac-Man, who wears glasses and an Oxford cap. These characters held over in new games after Midway lost the license to use Pac-Man, though the majority of them would later be replaced by conceptually similar characters due to legal feuds with microconsole manufacturerAtGames. Pac-Man's world has also been developed with characters from other Namco games, such asPookas fromDig Dug andGalaxians from theGalaxian series, existing as a natural part of his insular universe as opposed to a multiverse or shared canon.

Due to his simplistic character, Pac-Man's personality has also varied between depictions; while he is universally shown to have a ravenous appetite (owing to the original game's focus on eating dots andBonus Fruit), the way he is depicted often reflects trends in children's entertainment in the Western world.

For instance,Pac-Man 2: The New Adventures, released in the 1990s during a large-scale revival of vintage slapstick cartoon tropes, portrays the character as an archetypal golden-age cartoon anti-hero who is overly emotional and often selfish, needing the player's intervention to succeed in his goals.Pac-Man World 3, released in the 2000s following a shift towards snide verbal comedy in children's media, portrays Pac-Man as a flippant, sarcastic hero who is prone to cracking somewhat edgy jokes and does not take the conflicts he faces seriously. ThePac-Man & the Ghostly Adventures franchise, introduced in the 2010s at a time where children's cartoons were embracing serialised plotlines, reinterprets the character as an orphaned high school student with a mysterious, tragic backstory.

In the present day, most depictions of Pac-Man feature his abstract form and depict him with little to no personality, as in the original arcade games. When shown in his anthropomorphic form, the current-day Pac-Man is most consistently depicted as compassionate, athletic, and supportive; promotional materials feature the character living an active lifestyle and giving motivational advice. This iteration of the character is prominently featured inPac-Man World Re-Pac andPac-Man World 2 Re-Pac, the latter of which gives Pac-Man plenty of in-game dialogue that did not exist in the original. Particularly emphasized is his pacifism; he prefers not to fight if given the opportunity, and he will unconditionally forgive his enemies if he believes he can reason with them. This aspect is best shown inPac-Man World Re-Pac, which adds a "true" ending not present in the original game — where Pac-Man forgives the game's villain Orson for stealing his identity and kidnapping his family — and relegates the original game's ending — where Pac-Man simply eats Orson — to a non-canon "false" ending, which is achieved by not clearing goals that were mandatory in the original. When necessary, Pac-Man is willing to defend himself in combat, and he does not hold back towards truly evil villains who mortally threaten him, his family, or his home, such as Wormwood and Spooky.

InSuper Smash Bros. Brawl[edit]

While Pac-Man is completely absent fromBrawl, he was reportedly requested byShigeru Miyamoto to be another third-party character inBrawl. However, Sakurai rejected the idea as he felt that Pac-Man appearing in his famous 2D form seemed too far-fetched.^[6]

InSuper Smash Bros. 4[edit]

As a playable character[edit]

Pac-Man inSuper Smash Bros. 4.

Pac-Man is a playable character inSuper Smash Bros. 4, revealed behind closed doors at the E3 Smash Bros Q&A and made known to the general public viaNintendo of America's official Twitter account before being covered on 'Pic of the Day' the following morning.

Pac-Man ranks at 46th place on theSmash 4tier list in the F tier. HisBonus Fruit special move acts as an effective projectile with differing attacks depending on its state upon being thrown. He also has a strong combo game at his disposal, able to perform combos both on the ground and in the air. However, his Bonus Fruit,Power Pellet, andFire Hydrant specials can all be turned against him easily, creating some risks for himself in battle. He also suffers from an unreliable grab due to its high lag, and has trouble scoring KOs. Nevertheless, Pac-Man can excel by using his combo ability and the versatility in his specials. Currently, Pac-Man has a few dedicated players, but low tournament results.

Trophies[edit]

PAC-MAN's trophy inSuper Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

PAC-MAN's trophy inSuper Smash Bros. for Wii U

PAC-MAN

The yellow, circular hero of the game PAC-MAN, which is recognized as the "Most Successful Coin-Operated Arcade Game" by Guinness World Records. In Smash Bros., he uses several moves inspired by the original PAC-MAN. Wakawaka your foes by charging up the Power Pellet move and aiming at them.

Arcade:PAC-MAN (1980)

Arcade:PAC-LAND (1984)

The yellow, circular hero of the game PAC-MAN, which is recognised as the "Most Successful Coin-Operated Arcade Game" by Guinness World Records. In this game, some of his attacks are based on the original PAC-MAN. Charge up his Power Pellet move, then aim it right at an opponent to wakawaka them extra hard.

Arcade:PAC-MAN (1980 (JP))

Arcade:PAC-LAND (1984 (JP))

PAC-MAN (Alt.)'s trophy inSuper Smash Bros. for Nintendo 3DS

PAC-MAN (Alt.)'s trophy inSuper Smash Bros. for Wii U

PAC-MAN (Alt.)

PAC-MAN's Fire Hydrant down special pushes opponents away with blasts of water. You can drop the hydrant on top of your opponents to damage them, but they can also attack it to damage you if you're standing on it! His Pac-Jump up special spawns a trampoline he can jump on three times—the third jump is especially high!

Arcade:PAC-MAN (1980)

Arcade:PAC-LAND (1984)

PAC-MAN's Fire Hydrant down special pushes opponents away with blasts of water. You can drop the hydrant on top of your opponents to damage them, but they can also attack it and hit you with it to cause damage! His Pac-Jump up special spawns a trampoline he can jump on three times, and the third jump is especially high!

Arcade:PAC-MAN (1980 (JP))

Arcade:PAC-LAND (1984 (JP))

InSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate[edit]

As a playable character[edit]

Pac-Man inSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate.

Pac-Man returns as a playable character alongside the series' entire playable cast inSuper Smash Bros. Ultimate, this time as an unlockable character.

Spirit[edit]

Names in other languages[edit]

Language	Name	Meaning
Japanese	パックマン,PAC-MAN	—
English	PAC-MAN	—
French	PAC-MAN	—
German	PAC-MAN	—
Spanish	PAC-MAN	—
Italian	PAC-MAN	—
Chinese	吃豆人,PAC-MAN	Bean eater
Korean	팩맨,PAC-MAN	—
Dutch	PAC-MAN	—
Russian	ПЭКМЕН	—
Portuguese	PAC-MAN	—

Trivia[edit]

• With his debut in May 1980, Pac-Man is one of the earliest-created characters introduced in theSuper Smash Bros. series, alongside Mr. Game & Watch. He is the oldest third-party character, and the oldest character introduced inSmash 4.
• Pac-Man appeared as a playable character inSuper Smash Bros. 4 34 years after his debut, therefore having the largest gap of any playable character in theSmash series between their first appearance andSmash debut.
• Super Smash Bros. 4 is not Pac-Man's first appearance in a crossover fighting game; he had previously appeared inStreet Fighter x Tekken in aMokujin mech, as an exclusive guest fighter on the PlayStation 3 and PlayStation Vita versions. This game also featuresRyu andKen from theStreet Fighter side,Kazuya from theTekken side, as well as a version ofMega Man based on the North American box art of the originalMega Man game for the NES.
• Pac-Man has had several prior crossovers with Nintendo franchises (mainly Mario) beforeSuper Smash Bros. He previously appeared in all threeMario Kart Arcade GP titles as a playable racer. In addition, Mario appeared as the announcer in the Nintendo-developed installment of his series,Pac-Man Vs.
• Masahiro Sakurai stated in an interview that he would have considered dropping Pac-Man fromSmash 4 entirely if Namco didn't allow them to use his classic design over his more modernPac-Man and the Ghostly Adventures design.^[7]
• Pac-Man is one of the three playable third-party characters with no voice clips. The other ones areMega Man andSteve.
• Pac-Man andKazuya are the only characters to have ataunt with an official name, with Pac-Man's beingNamco Roulette. Incidentally, they are both owned byBandai Namco.
• Pac-Man is the first third-party character to debut in the arcades.

References[edit]

External links[edit]

• Article onPAC-MAN Wiki

v • d • e Pac-Man universe
Fighter	Pac-Man (SSB4 ·SSBU)
Assist Trophy	Ghosts
Stages	Pac-Maze ·Pac-Land
Trophies andSpirits	Trophies ·Spirits
Music	SSB4 ·Ultimate
Masterpiece	Pac-Man
Related universes	Galaxian ·Dig Dug ·Xevious ·Namco series
Related content	Gil ·Special Flag

• Characters
• Pac-Man universe
• Pac-Man
• Third-party characters
• Bandai Namco
• Trophies (SSB4-3DS)
• Trophies (SSB4-Wii U)
• Spirits