PACWORDSSpell the terms. Dodge the 404s.
Spell real hosting terms. Outrun the 404 ghosts.
Character stats are powered by real HRI data. No host can pay to appear in this game.
INSERT COINPACWORDS
Spell real hosting terms letter by letter while 404 ghosts hunt you. Cache nodes flip the chase.
EAT LETTERS IN ORDER. SPELL 3 TERMS. WIN A COUPON.
Arcade lobbyAll-time top spellers
Monthly boards reset on September 1. No scores this month yet, so the all-time greats hold the marquee.
No scores yet. Be the first on the board.
PACWORDS is a free browser maze game published by HostList.io. You play a real hosting company drawn from an independent directory of more than 30,000 hosts and spell real hosting terms - DNS, UPTIME, FIREWALL and more - by eating their letters in order while 404 ghosts hunt you. Your runner's stats are computed directly from that host's live HRI component scores: Freshness sets speed, Performance sets the cache purge window, and Trust sets lives. No hosting company can pay to appear or to improve its stats. Spelling all three terms reveals a verified web hosting coupon code from the same deals database the rest of the site uses. Scores post to a monthly leaderboard called WORD KINGS.
Every runner is a live HRI signal
HRI is HostList's independent 0 to 100 rating. Read the HRI methodology.
| HRI component | Maze stat | Formula |
|---|---|---|
| Freshness | SPD | Run speed (3.5 + Freshness x 0.05 tiles/s) |
| Performance | PRG | Cache purge window (3 + Performance x 0.12 s) |
| Trust | LIF | Lives (2 + Trust / 9) |
Learn hosting while you dodge
Every word you spell is a real hosting term. Levels step up from acronyms to full infrastructure vocabulary, and each one is explained in the HostList glossary.
How do I unlock a hosting coupon in PACWORDS?
Spell all three hosting terms, one per level, by eating their letters in order before the 404 ghosts catch you. The game then reveals a verified web hosting coupon code from the same deals database used across HostList.
What words appear in the game?
Every word is a real hosting term: things like DNS, UPTIME, and LATENCY. Levels step up from short acronyms to full infrastructure terms, and each is drawn from the vocabulary the HostList glossary documents.
How do character stats work?
Freshness becomes run speed, Performance sizes the cache purge window (how long ghosts stay purgeable after you eat a cache node), and Trust sets your lives. Stats come from each host's live HRI components. No host can pay to change them.
Are the coupon codes real?
Yes. Codes are admin-verified, live, and tied to claimed host listings - the same pool as the verified hosting deals page. Soft daily unlock caps apply across all arcade games.
Does this work on phones?
Yes. Swipe on the maze to steer. On desktop use the arrow keys or WASD, and P or Esc to pause. Sound unlocks after your first tap.