Blinky

Blinky is a fictional character in the Pac-Man video game franchise. He is one of the four ghosts that pursue Pac-Man in the maze, and is distinguished by his red color. In the North American arcade release of Pac-Man (1980) Blinky is the lead pursuer and is commonly referred to as the Chaser. Alongside Pinky, Inky, and Clyde, Blinky is one of the original quartet of ghosts.

Blinky's behavior is defined by simple AI: during Chase he directly pursues Pac-Man, while during Scatter he targets one of the maze’s corners. The ghosts switch between Chase and Scatter modes, with Blinky also moving at similar speed to Pac-Man. If Pac-Man eats a power pellet, all ghosts become Frightened and blue, then scatter randomly until the effect ends, after which Blinky resumes chasing Pac-Man.

In later games, Blinky maintains the same red coloration and chaser role but is given different patterns or speeds depending on the title. Beyond Pac-Man, Blinky has appeared in several spin-offs, compilations, and media adaptations.

As a symbol of early arcade games, Blinky is widely recognized and referenced in gaming culture, with the character appearing in merchandise, emulation communities, and parodies.