A big list of free games. No free-to-play games, only purely free programs.
Name inspired by neonaut's list.
Part of the Ultimate Curation List
I have not necessarily played all of these games.
More games can be found under the kits.
Standalones |
|
|---|---|
| Cave Story (Cave Story Engine 2 Archive) (NXEngine-evo) | The iconic one. |
| Pink Heaven (Steam) | Demo of Kero Blaster with a different character. |
| La-Mulana (Archive) | MSX-like platformer. |
| I Wanna Be The Guy Remastered (Itch.io) | The original masochist platformer, remade for modern systems. |
| OpenTTD (Steam) | Open-source transport management simulation game based on Transport Tycoon Deluxe. |
| The Ur-Quan Masters | Port of Star Control 2 (3DO version) to modern systems. |
| OpenRA (Itch.io) | Open-source recreations of Red Alert, Command & Conquer, and Dune 2000. |
| The Battle for Wesnoth (Steam) | Open source turn-based strategy game. |
| Zero-K (Steam) | RTS with 100+ units and terrain manipulation. |
| Warzone 2100 0 A.D. Widelands | Open-source RTSes. |
| Unciv | Open-source version of Civilization V. |
| Thrive | Spore-like. |
| Endless Sky | Space trading and combat. |
| Mindustry (Steam, paid) (Itch.io) | Sandbox tower-defense game. |
| Ultra Fight Da ! Kyanta 2 (Steam) | Ridiculous kusoge fighter. |
| Super Crate Box (Steam) | Hectic arcade platformer shooter where switching weapons gain points. |
| Transformice (Steam) | Semi-cooperative platformer MMO. |
|
Mibibli's Quest (Steam) (Itch.io) (Game Jolt) |
Surreal Mega Man like platformer. |
| N | Hyper-minimalist smooth platformer. There's also N++. |
| Space Station 13 | Role-playing game about a space station falling into chaos. Most popular game hosted on the BYOND platform. |
| Space Station 14 (Steam) | Remake of Space Station 13 in development. |
| Deltarune | Might not be free once the rest of the game is out. |
| Iji | Shooting platformer that changes based on your actions. |
| Hyper Princess Pitch | Mad top-down shooter in the style of Smash T.V. Describes itself as "...sort of a remake of DOS Operation: Carnage..." |
| Princess Remedy In a World of Hurt (Steam) | Shooter RPG thing about healing people. Has a paid sequel. |
| I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MB1ES 1N IT!!!1 (Steam) | The 2009 Xbox Live Arcade classic returns. Great song. |
| C-Dogs SDL (Itch.io) | SDL port of DOS freeware game C-Dogs. Has community-made levels. |
| Alien Swarm (Steam) | Top-down squad shooter by Valve designers who were mooders. Also a release of SDK for Source. |
| Off-Peak (Itch.io) (Steam) | Walk around a weird train station and talk to people. |
| Get In The Car, Loser! (Steam) (Itch.io) | Lesbian road trip modern JRPG. Free with a paid beach episode, so technically shareware. Soon to be paid, will remove when it is. |
| Butterfly Soup (Itch.io) | Visual Novel about lesbian asians. |
| Murder Dog IV: Trial Of The Murder Dog (Game Jolt) | Mad crime visual novel. |
| Samorost 1 (Steam) (Itch.io) | Surreal point and click game. |
| Sprout (Steam) | Puzzle game about a seed on a journey. |
| Mr.Boom | Bomberman clone. Also a RetroArch core. |
| Helltaker | Puzzle/VN game. |
| Of The Killer Series | Odd horror-adjacent comedy games. Walk around and weird stuff happens. |
| Duck Marines (Itch.io) | ChuChu Rocket with minigames. |
| If On A Winter's Night, Four Travelers (Steam) (Itch.io) | Point and click anthology. |
| Marble Blast | Classic Mac game. |
| SuperTux SuperTuxKart | Linux ond open-source mascot games. |
| The Elder Scrolls: Arena The Elder Scrolls II: Daggerfall Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory (All Steam) | Bethesda's old games. Guide for Enemy Territory on modern systems. |
| Minetest | Open-source Minecraft clone. |
| Krystal Drop | Magical Drop clone. |
| The Most Officialest SkiFree Home Page! | Has a version of SkiFree for modern systems, by the guy who made the original. |
RPG Maker |
|
|---|---|
| Chef Boyardee’s Barkley, Shut Up & Jam: Gaiden, Chapter 1 of the Hoopz Barkley SaGa | The iconic and infamous basketball RPG Maker RPG. Sequel to both this and Space Jam. |
| OFF Alternate download (not Fandom, with additional links) | Famous old RPG Maker game. |
| Yume Nikki (Steam) | Infamous old RPG Maker game. Has a paid 3D remake. |
| Grimm's Hollow (Steam) (Itch.io) (Gamejolt) | Short and mildly spooky. Multiple endings. |
Also see: vgperson's site in Find More |
|
MUGEN and IKEMEN |
|
|---|---|
| Ikemen GO | "Remake of the IKEMEN (open source fighting games engine that supports M.U.G.E.N resources) in Google's Programming Language “Go”." |
| VSelect (Mirror) | Edit MUGEN select screen with drag-and-drop. |
| Famicom Fighters | 8-bit styled 6-button fighting game. |
| Arm Joe | Les Misérables (musical) fighting game. |
| Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles X Justice League Turbo | Impressive and has art and music by former SNK employees. |
| Pokémon: Type Wild (MyAbandonware) | Made by former animators of the Pokémon Anime. |
Rouge-esques |
|
|---|---|
| NetHack (Online/SSH/Telnet) | Rougelike about discoverability, known for the dev team thinking of everything. |
| ZangbandTK | Variant of rougelike game Angband. Also see the Zangband website. |
| Desktop Dungeons (Main Site) | Rougelike that's actually a puzzle game. Also has a paid full version. (Steam) |
| UnReal World (Steam, paid) | Graphical rougelike RPG set in the Far North during the Iron Age. |
| Brouge: Community Edition (Site for old version) | A more accessible traditional rougelike. Just download the community edition. |
| Dungeon Crawl Stone Soup (SSH/Telnet) | Well-known open-source rougelike. |
| Slaves to Armok: God of Blood Chapter II: Dwarf Fortress (PeridexisErrant's Starter Pack) (Steam, paid) (Itch.io, paid) | The ultimate complex game. Generate a world, then look at its lore, live in it, or manage a fortress. Paid version has a built in graphical tileset and mouse controls. |
| DRL: Doom RougeLike | Self-explanatory. |
| HyperRogue | Non-Euclidean, world is a hyperbolic plane. |
| Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead | Turn-based post-apocalyptic survival game. |
| Spelunky Classic | The first iteration of Spelunky. Rougelike platformer. |
| Ancient Domains Of Mystery (ADOM) (Steam, paid) (GOG, paid) | Started development in 1994 andactively maintained since then. |
Rhythm Games |
|
|---|---|
| Stepmania | Dance Dance Revolution clone and engine. |
| osu! | Based on Osu! Tatakae! Ouendan/Elite Beat Agents. |
| Clone Hero Frets On Fire | Guitar Hero clones. |
Competitive |
|
|---|---|
| Xonotic | Open-source arena shooter. |
| Bitfighter | Top down space arena shooter with level editor. |
| Liero | Competitive worms deathmatch with grappling hooks. |
| Soldat | Competitive 2D shooter with jetpacks. |
| Teeworlds (Steam) | Online sidescrolling shooter. |
| NEOTOKYO (Steam) (Mod DB) | Futuristic Counter-Strike styled Half Life 2 mod with a godly soundtrack by the Deus Ex composer. Beginners guide. |
| Uchu Mega Fight | Pico-8 fighting game and spiritual successor to Joy Mech Fight (NES). |
BrowserFree-to-Play browser games are listed under websites |
|
|---|---|
| Cookie Clicker (Steam, paid) | The ur idle game. |
| Melvor Idle (Steam, paid) | Like if Runescape was an idle game. |
| Blaseball | Fictional baseball simulator. |
| Tough Love Arena | Simple fighting game. |
| Townscaper Demo | No goals. |
| VGM Quiz | Live music quiz. |
| TETR.IO | Tetris. |
| Ocarina of Time Randomizer Sudoku | Zelda themed sudoku, with mechanics based on the game. |
| Jinteki | Fanmade recreation of Android: Netrunner. |
| FreeCiv | Civilization but open-source and in the browser. |
| lainTSX | Recreation of Serial Experiments Lain for PS1. |
| Advance Wars by Web | Advance Wars in the browser. |
| WAD Commander | Play DOOM WADS in the browser. |
| PrinceJS (Github) | The original Prince of Persia as a browser app. |
| Lode Runner | HTML5 remake. |
| micropolisJS | Port of Micropolis (Open-source SimCity) to Javascript. |
| PCjs | IBM PC emulation. Does applications, too |
| Yolkfolk.com Games | Almost all the Dizzy games. |
| Line Rider | The original artistic time-waster. Also see Line Rider: Advanced in other. |
| Free Rider HD | Like Line Rider but you can control the bike. |
| The Wiki Game | Jump from one Wikipedia entry to another. |
| 2048 | Tile-sliding. |
| Wordle | Daily word game. |
| Squabble | Competitive Wordle. |
| Acrofever | Acrophobia clone. |
| Lichess | Libre chess server. Patreon subscription just adds a profile badge. |
| Kung Fu Chess | Real time chess. |
| Dinosaur Game | The Chrome no internet game with leaderboards. |
| Tak | Online implementation of this. |
| A Dark Room (Github) | Minimalist unfolding text adventure. |
| Radüm (Github) | Abstract strategy. |
| Gridland | Match-3 survival. |
| PlayOK igGameCenter | Various online board games. |
| hexy.games | Hex and Havannah. |
| Chess Tempo | Free chess. |
| ARMAGAD (also Tetrageddon Games) (Itch.io) (Gamejolt) | "What the internet does to people" |
| Battle Of Flags | RTS in beta. |
| Defender Of The Favicon | Defender in 16x16. |
| Bemuse | Web-based beatmania clone. |
| Space Awesome | Oreagon Trail like by Font Awesome. |
| Fast Four Word | Daily timed word game. |
| Stone Harbor | Interactive short story. |
| Lexy's Labyrinth | Unofficial Chip's Challenge emulator. More levels available here. |
| Amnesia : Restored | The 1986 adventure game by Thomas M. Disch and Electronic Arts with restored cut content and modern UI features. |
| Black Room (info, Itch.io) | Feminist dungeon crawler about browsers. |
Fangames |
|
|---|---|
| Another Metroid 2 Remake Community Launcher Internet Archive Zip | Remake of Metroid 2 GB Nintendo shot down, but you can still play it. Get the launcher, and give it the v1.1 zip. The launcher can also make an Android APK. Also has mods. |
| Power Bomberman | The ultimate Bomberman game, complete with online. |
| Rayman Redemption | Complete remake that makes the game so much better. Also has a level editor. And a place for those levels. |
| Mega Man Maker | Super Mario Maker for Mega Man. Comes with account system and in-game level browsing. |
| Mega Man Arena | Platform fighter that plays like Mega Man. Also comes with co-op boss fights. |
| Street Fighter X Mega Man | Officially licensed fangame for both of their the 25th anniversaries. |
| Super Mario War (Forum mirror) (SMWStuff Reloaded α) (2.0 Fork) | Famous open-source Mario multiplayer battle fangame with tons of custom stuff. I recommend getting the 2.0 fork. SMWStuff hosts more custom stuff. |
| Super Mario Bros X2 (X1) | Extensive Mario fangame with level editor. |
| Psycho Waluigi | Platformer about grabbing anything. |
| Zelda Classic | Replica of The Legend of Zelda (NES). Extendable and moddable with new quests, music, etc. TV Tropes page lists some notable ones. Also available in the browser. |
| Super Smash Flash 2 | Well-known fangame. |
| Super Smash Bros. Crusade (Gamebanana) | Another good Smash fangame. Has a modpack, Crusade Modding Community Plus. |
| Super Smash Land | Smash Game Boy demake from the guy behind Rivals of Aether. |
| Sonic Boll | Mario-styled Sonic crossover platformer. Moddable (Gamebanana). |
| Chao Resort Island | Standalone Chao garden. |
| Pokémon Showdown | Battle simulator. |
| ET: Legacy | Open source client and server for Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory. |
| Command & Conquer: Twisted Insurrection | Standalone mod based on the Tiberian Sun engine. |
| THUG Pro | Requires an install of Tony Hawk's Underground 2. Total conversion mod. |
| The Dark Mod (Mod DB) | Standalone total conversion of Doom 3 into a Thief game. |
| Sven Co-op (Steam) | Half-Life co-op. |
| OpenLara | Open-source Tomb Raider. |
| Merry Gear Solid: Secret Santa Merry Gear Solid 2: Ghost of Christmas Past | Simpler, Christmas-themed MGS games. |
| Make a Good Mega Man Level | Official site for the contest and games. Also includes guide for the Megamix Engine. |
| FreeSO | Reimplementation of The Sims Online. |
| Lemmini | Java game engine for Lemmings. Requires Lemmings for Windows 95. |
| OpenXcom | Open-source clone of the original. |
| Ultimate Stunts | Remake of Stunts for DOS. |
| Façade | Experimental marridge counselling. Type anything to say it. |
Also see: Advance Wars By Web in Browser |
|
Make and Play |
|
|---|---|
| ZZT Heaven | Fansite with good resources for ZZT, famous old game known for its level creator and being made by the founder of Epic Games. |
| MegaZeux | Like a modernized ZZT. |
| Knytt Stories + (Levels) (Recommended Levels) | Platformer with level creator. |
| I Wanna Maker (Steam) | Mario Maker for I Wanna Be The Guy. |
| Solarus | Game engine for ARPGs (Zelda-likes). Launcher can download games. |
| BYOND | Old platform for online multiplayer games. Famous for Space Station 13, Mitadake High, and Nestalgia. |
Also see: Mega Man Maker in Fangames |
|
Other |
|
|---|---|
| The Unofficial Homestuck Collection | Special offline browser for reading Homestuck and related media as originally intended, complete with new reader mode that hides spoilers. |
| The Powder Toy | Physics sandbox toy. |
| Line Rider: Advanced | Open Source version of the classic Flash art tool game. For more Line Rider, see browser games. |
| Skeal (Itch.io) (Web version) | 5 minute Christmas-adjacent game. |
| YSFlight FlightGear | Free flight simulators. |
Find More |
|
|---|---|
| Nitrome | Lot of flash games, emulated with Poki. |
| Open Source Game Clones | Open-source remakes of old games. |
| Awesome Game Remakes | Open-source remakes of games. |
| Games on GitHub | Open source games and game-related projects. |
| My Abandonware | Abandonware site, 1978-2010. |
| Collection Chamber | Abandonware games and movies. |
| Zomb's Lair | Abandonware. |
| Macintosh Garden | Abandonware site, focus on Macintosh. |
| SCUM Games (Neocities) | Games for the TempleOS. See also: TempleOS in Websites. |
| Flashpoint | Huge archive of Flash games and animations, and other internet plugins too. |
| rpgmaker.net | Host of a whole bunch of games. |
| Free Games vgperson Translated | Some translated RPGMaker games. |
| DOS Haven | New homebrew DOS games. |
| Delicious Fruit | IWBTG-style fangames. |
| TV Tropes List of Freeware Games | Organized, also has links to other sites. |
| /v/'s Recommended Games Wiki | Sorted by genre. |
| Glorious Trainwrecks | Celebration games with low polish. |
| Mac Source Ports | Old games on new Macs. |
| Kliktopia | Games made in Klik & Play, The Games Factory, Click & Create, Multimedia Fusion and Clickteam Fusion. |
| Locomalito | Many retro-style games. |
| Arcane Kids | Fantastic Dreamcast-like games. |
| Cool Math Games Newgrounds | Famous web game portals. |