01 · BUILD THE GRID
Create a playable QR code maze
QACMAN turns text or a URL into a QR code that doubles as an arcade maze. Enter the destination you want to encode, choose how many ghosts should patrol the board, and generate a new layout in seconds. The result keeps the familiar finder patterns and data modules of a QR code while adding paths, dots, power pellets, and a player-controlled character.
Every input creates a different challenge because the encoded data changes the grid. A short web address produces a different arrangement from a longer message, so the QR matrix becomes both the content and the level design.
02 · KEEP IT SCANNABLE
How the scannable maze works
The generator uses Level-H error correction, the highest standard QR recovery level. QACMAN protects essential structural patterns, then carefully opens connected routes through modules that can tolerate controlled changes. This gives the game room to move while preserving enough information for compatible scanners to reconstruct the encoded text.
Scan performance still depends on display size, contrast, camera quality, and the surrounding quiet zone. Always test a captured maze on the devices and at the dimensions you plan to use before publishing it.
03 · PLAY YOUR WAY
Play, capture, record, and embed
Move with arrow keys, WASD, or a swipe gesture. Clear every dot while avoiding ghosts, or leave auto-play enabled and watch the maze solve itself. You can change the number of ghosts to make the board calmer or more chaotic, pause a run at any time, and regenerate the maze whenever the encoded content changes.
Capture Image saves a still version for sharing. Record Video creates a short playable demonstration, while the embed controls generate code for placing the current maze on another website. Auto-play and mute options let the embedded version match its surrounding page.
04 · USEFUL INPUTS
What can go inside the QR maze?
Encode a portfolio, product page, event registration link, menu, social profile, campaign destination, or a short message. Short, stable URLs are usually easiest to scan and maintain. Avoid entering private information because anyone who receives the image can scan and read the encoded value.
If the destination may change, use a redirect that you control instead of embedding a temporary address. The maze image contains the exact input supplied at generation time and cannot update itself after it has been exported.
05 · GO DEEPER
Learn about QR codes and maze games
Read the QR Code history and technology guide to understand finder patterns, data capacity, error correction, and the ISO standard behind the grid. Explore the Pac-Man history and character guide for the arcade ideas that inspired QACMAN, or browse retro games you can play online.