Free Games
Whether you're in need of some light entertainment or simply bored at work, the Internet never fails to provide a high level of amusement. In this section we review the best free games on the Web, both to download or play online through your Web browser. In fact, we think you'll be pleasantly surprised with the sheer quality of games here, especially considering they're totally free. The console gaming industry is not the only place where games have become more sophisticated, progress has also been seen on the Internet. In particular, some online Flash-based games can provide hours of fun and with thousands of games to choose from, you'll be spoilt for choice. If you happen to stumble across an outdated link, we'd very much appreciate it if you could report it.
Travian
A free online browser game where players establish a village settlement in a world filled with thousands of other players. As you grow your village, you can make alliances with others, conduct diplomatic relations, attack other settlements, and perform many other actions. This is a great game if you have the time and patience to play it.
Freeloader.com
At this site, you will find some of the best quality free games available on the Internet. Freeloader.com offers 15 high-quality PC games to download, including their top title "Beneath a Steel Sky", and they're all legal and completely free of spyware and adware. What's more, they release two extra games every month and provide almost 100 free browser games. All you have to do is complete a free registration.
> Don't stop by this site without checking out their Ultimate Flash Sonic game. It's the most realistic online Sonic game we've seen yet!
Runescape
Here's an exciting and immensely popular 3D Java game, which you can play online either with friends or as a single player. Runescape is set in a fantasy Medieval realm and involves quests, fighting monsters and exploration. To play, you create and customise a character, then gain tools and upgrades as you progress through the game, gathering money and establishing your character in the virtual world.
Candystand
Wrigley's Candystand is one of the best Shockwave gaming sites on the Internet today. In fact, their virtual pool game, which you can play directly in your Web browser, is the best we've seen. With more than 20 games available, such as Monster Trucks, Ping Pong 3D and Bowling, being bored will never be an excuse again! You require the Shockwave browser plug-in to play games at Candystand.
> Although the Candystand site has changed beyond recognition over the years, they continue to provide some of the best online games on the Internet. Their selection of games may have expanded but quality has not been compromised. We are particularly impressed with the "Sports" section, which includes virtual table tennis, surfing, ten pin bowling, golf and more. Other categories include: Arcade, Card Games, Puzzles, Multiplayer and Trophy Games.
Fetchfido Free Online Games
This site offers an extensive and addictive collection of the latest free online games. No registration is required at Fetchfido (you can begin playing their games straight away), and the site features Shockwave, Java and also Flash-based games. As well as this, Fetchfido includes file sizes for their games so you can judge how long each will take to load.
Arcade Town
Arcade Town is a bright and colourful site, offering lots of addictive online games to play, in various categories: shooting games, arcade games, board games, puzzle games, sport and skills games, etc. New games are added regularly and the site also counts the highest scores. Note: many of the games here require a Java plug-in to function correctly.
Free Flash Games
A superb site, featuring over 200 free Flash-based games, all with screenshots included. Free Flash Games provides a neat and slick navigation system, and organises all games into a number of different categories, some of which are: "Arcade Games", "Card Games", "Strategy Games", "Word Games", etc. To receive updates, you can also subscribe to their e-mail newsletter.
Little Fighter 2
This addictive "Street Fighter" type game is one of the best freeware programs of its kind. Little Fighter for Windows allows you to select from a number of characters, which you must defeat by punching and kicking in order to be victorious. Multiplayer options are also available. A DOS version (created back in 1997) is still available to download. The Windows game is 12.7MB.
Gobs of Games
A quality free games portal featuring over 1000 online games to play, including Battle Ships, Ice Hockey, Street Fighter, Office Paintball and more. This site is updated weekly with new games to play and organises games into the following categories: Action, Sports, Puzzles, Arcade Classics, Miscellaneous and "Entertain Me", for cool sites, cartoons and Flash movies.
Mindgames
This site offers "an eclectic collection of games to pass the time and challenge the mind." The Mindgames site includes over 40 freeware games to play, which are sectioned into categories. Card games, board games, word games, along with some miscellaneous applications can be found here. Each game has a detailed description and screenshot accompanying it.
Clickomania
Here's a really cool program for the young and old alike. It is a simple game where you try to remove as many stones as possible with the same colour block. Clickomania has many options where you can increase the speed, the difficulty and the view. Runs under Windows 95 (or higher) and NT systems. Multiple language support is provided. The file size is 0.4 Megabytes.