55 Pac-Man

First appearance :
Pac-Man (1980 - Arcade)

Pac-Man is an unpredictable character thanks to his projectiles that can be sent in improbable angles. That makes of him a fun character that grants you a great creativity when controlling him. It is also a character who can count on his hand-to-hand attacks to be a versatile character who can both shines in attack and defense.

Characteristics

 

Strengths

  • Unpredictable
  • Versatile
  • Good recovery
  • Great combo game
  • Great projectiles
 

Weaknesses

  • Struggles to kill
  • Bad mobility
  • Lacks range
  • Double-edged attacks

Matchups

Favourable

  • icône de ganondorf
  • icône de king-k-rool
  • icône de felinferno
Combo food
  • icône de terry
  • icône de ryu
  • icône de ken
Shotos
  • icône de pichu
  • icône de inkling
Not bothered by the small size

Unfavourable

  • icône de fox
  • icône de palutena
Better speed
  • icône de lucina
  • icône de chrom
  • icône de cloud
Swordsmen
  • icône de rob
  • icône de harmonie-et-luma
Struggles in the neutral  

Stages

Favourable

  • Needs space for neutral
  • Can easily camp

Unfavourable

  • Blocks projectiles and setups
  • The fruits break on the ledge
 

Skills

Pro Tips

Features

coup spécial de Pac-Man coup spécial de Pac-Man

With his neutral b, Pac-Man can have access to eight different fruits. In order of importance, we have the Galaxian which can realize big combos with his trajectory. The bell leads to a kill confirm with a smash. The apple allows you to kill upwardly as well as to realize combos at some %. The orange serves you to space and to bother your enemy when he tries to recover from offstage, and it can also lead to a tech chase situation at low %. The key can quickly kill while dealing 19 %. The melon is useful to put pressure on your opponent, to kill and for setups. Finaly, the cherry and the strawberry are small and fast projectiles, that you can follow with a kill confirm.

Best moves

  • DOWN B

    Called the fire hydrant, this attack makes an item appear on stage which offers you a great stage control. The object can thus cause damage when it lands on someone. It can also repulse the opponents and the objects thanks to the water jets or you can also hit the hydrant in order to send it in different angles.

  • NEUTRAL B

    This attack is a very good option because you can choose among 8 projectiles, each having its own interest. The more you charges the attack, the more the object can be interesting. With 8 possibilities, Pac-Man can really do everything : initiate combos, kill confirms, bait the opponent, … Nevertheless, we have to mention a very important point : each of Pac-Man’s projectiles can be picked up by the opponent, so you have to be very careful so that it can’t be used against you.

  • NEUTRAL AIR

    This attack comes out very quickly at frame 3, which makes of it a very good out of shield option to break combos that are not true. Moreover the hitbox stays active for a long time enough which can surprise the opponent if he releases his shield too early,. You can also start combos at low % with the Forward Air.

  • FORWARD AIR

    The move is interesting for the same reasons than the Neutral Air : it comes out quickly (frame 5) and it’s a good out of shield option (frame 8), you can even launch a combo on another Forward Air or a Neutral Air at low percents. It also puts the opponent in a tech situation situation if he misses his tech and it’s a good tool to edgeguard. To sum up, it’s a versatile move and you have to learn how to efficiently use it because it is very important in Pac-Man’s arsenal.

  • FORWARD SMASH

    This move deals a lot of damage, even for a Smash attack. Furthermore, Pac-Man uses a ghost to attack giving a disjointed hitbox to this move and a great range while remaining active for 10 frames. An interesting move that can follow up a bell to lead to a kill confirm or that can be used to send the hydrant on the opponent.

  • GRAB

    Even if his grab takes a while to get out, it lasts longer than the average grabs, this allows Pac-Man to sometimes grab ennemies while they are attacking. You can even grab opponents who have performed a spotdodge thanks to the good range and the long active frames of the move.

    • Contextual Options

    Quick Moves

    Safe on Shield

    OOS Options

    Neutral Air

    Jab, Up B

    Forward Tilt, Forward Air

    Neutral Air

    Dash Attack

    Forward Air, Up Air

    Up B

    Neutral Air

    Forward Air

     

    Before leaving

    Last tips

    The key from the labyrinth

    You will have to master the eight Neutral B’s projectiles and know when to use them all. Many players only throw the same items and that is a mistake, whether it concerns the key or the orange that goes in straight line. Remember that those can be quite predictable. Likewise, watch out for the melon that is very slow and that can be easy for the opponent to quickly catch it. Finally, don’t forget to wait after charging your projectile it’s the best way to be unpredictable. Remember that you always have to find the best possible time for each projectile to use it, especially for the bell that can lead to kill confirms.

    Round like a ball

    The Side B is a move that you should not spam in the neutral because the opponent can easily read it and easily punish it as well. Furthermore, even if the move has a good knockback, it’s too difficult to hit your enemy with it, thus an careful opponent will easily avoid it and will punish your commit. Offstage, you have to mix-up your recovery using the Side B AND the Up B and not only rely on the Side B like many do.

    Don't erase your grab with the gum

    Even if his grab is one of the best Pac-Man’s moves, you should not forget that it remains quite punishable because it lasts for a long time. It’s also the best way to die if you miss one and if your opponent dodges it especially at high %. However, it’s a very important tool in Pac-Man’s arsenal because it goes through shield and spotdodge. Thus you have to get used to the particular physic of this grab to use it at its full potential.

    In a nutshell

    By playing Pac-Man, pleasure will come from his ability to create setups with which he can trap his opponent. The use of its projectiles is then very pleasant when everything goes as you planned it or when you also succeed to correctly setup something you just improvised. He is therefore a character who requires you to think when you are playing him and to know how to rapidly take decisons. Beyond this, we can of course appreciate his versatile side and the fact that his attacks are fast, which make of him a rather pleasant character to play with, and which can suit to a lot of different players.

    Going furhter

    For more informations and to progress faster

    Thanking ...

    Foxa / Terence / Yazagi