The area in the center of the original Pac-Man maze where the ghosts start is called the ghost house.
It is the rectangular enclosure near the middle of the maze, sometimes described informally as the ghost pen or cage. At the beginning of a round, the ghosts leave this area one by one and begin patrolling the maze. Their release order and timing are part of the game’s carefully tuned rhythm, giving the player a brief opening before the full ghost group becomes active.
The ghost house is not merely decorative. When Pac-Man eats a ghost after consuming a Power Pellet, the ghost disappears and its eyes travel back to this central box. The ghost then regenerates and exits again. Bonus fruit also appears just below the ghost house after enough dots have been eaten.
The four original ghosts have different personalities and targeting rules: Blinky generally chases Pac-Man directly, Pinky aims ahead of him, Inky uses a more complex calculation, and Clyde alternates between pursuit and retreat. The house therefore acts as both their starting point and their temporary recovery area.