Summary
In the modern age of gaming, few things are free. Even free-to-play games likeFortniteorSmiteare full of in-game purchases that range between purely cosmetic and game-breaking. If you’re looking for a truly free-to-play experience, you’d be wise to turn your eyes from consoles to your internet web browser.
There are loads of superb games that are free to play on any internet browser. But one genre that has a large library of exceptional titles is choose-your-own-adventure. Whether it’s old schooltext-based classicsor more indie projects, these games are eternally accessible on your favorite web browser.
10The Gray Ascendancy
Available On itch.io
Because they are free of the restrictions and demands that often constrain big studios, games created by independent developers are typically beaming with creativity. The choose-your-own-adventure aka interactive fiction genre, has been blessed with several talented designers.
The Gray Ascendancy is an ambitiousdark fantasyproject that tells a totally unique story. For a game that you can play on a web browser, The Gray Ascendancy is an extremely deep adventure game with tremendous replayability and an immense amount of player freedom.
9The Dreamhold
Available On eblong.com
Andrew Plotkin is generally viewed as one of the foremost figures of the interactive fiction community. For a decade, Plotkin released several award-winning titles as well as designed platforms and tools for others to build their own choose-your-own-adventure games.
Unlike Plotkin’s other titles, The Dreamhold is more or less a tutorial for those looking to dive into the interactive fiction genre. Despite its more straightforward design, The Dreamhold boasts all the hallmarks that made Plotkin so renowned, including fantastic puzzle design.
8Spider And Web
While text-based games aren’t as graphically impressive as big triple-A titles, their simplistic structure allows them nearly limitless visionary freedom. Some of the most special and imaginative video games are often the ones with only text on the screen.
Spider and Web was created by Andrew Plotkin in 1988 using Z-machine. The story puts you in the shoes of a seemingly incidental tourist who is confronted by a menacing voice. Thus commences an unraveling plot of twists, turns, consequences, and deception.
7Torn
Available On Torn.com
The free-to-play MMORPG genre has seen sometruly amazing gameslikeWorld of WarcraftandThe Elder Scrolls Online. In 2004, one developer crafted one of the most remarkable MMORPGs of all time.
Torn was the brainchild of Joe Chedburn and is one of the largest text-based online video games ever created. Torn is all about you earning currency through various crime-related activities. With how extensive Torn is, the fact that you can play it on your browser is magnificent.
6Hitchhiker’s Guide To The Galaxy Text Adventure
Available On bbc.co.uk
Douglas Adams’sci-ficomedy masterwork Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy has been heralded as a genre classic, and for good reason. Between the myriad of adaptations and their overall cultural impact, Adams' series of novels has earned its place in the sci-fi fiction lexicon.
In 1984, Adams collaborated with Steve Meretzky of Infocom to develop a text-based video game adaptation of the first book in the series. The game might’ve been originally released on various consoles at the time, but it has since been made available on various websites.
5Fallen London
Available On fallenlondon.com
Many of the finest web browser games have persisted due to continuous support even years after their initial launch. Whether they are made by one person or 50, as long as the developers keep working on and updating their games, fans will stick with them.
Fallen London first launched in 2009 but continues to be updated all these years later. Set in a gothic subterranean London, this interactive fiction gem was created by Failbetter Games and remains a cherished web browser premier title.
4Anchorhead
Available On ifdb.org
Few writers have had an impact on fiction writinglike H.P. Lovecraft. A pioneer of the horror genre, Lovecraft’s work was renowned for stories about unspeakable terrors, unsettling tragedies, and unfathomable evil. Throughout the decades, he would inspire many artists across the entertainment industry.
Anchorhead is a Lovecraftian-infused tale written and published by Michael S. Gentry in 1988. Taking inspiration from Lovecraft’s iconic Cthulhu Mythos, Anchorhead was met with widespread critical acclaim upon its release and was nominated for Best Game at that year’s XYZZY Awards.
3Night House
Available On textadventures.co.uk
It’s no surprise that horror is often the genre with the best offerings of free-to-play choose-your-own-adventure titles. It seems that, with each passing year, some unexpected horror game will pop up out of nowhere and take the interactive fiction community by storm.
Night House is a no-frills horror game that acquired a cult following for its genuinely frightening scenario. Created by bitterkarella, Night House has you play as an eight-year-old forced to confront the dark and eerie disappearance of everyone you share a home with.
2Zork
Available On playclassic.games
Before the likes ofThe Legend of ZeldaandBaldur’s Gate 3were the talk of the adventure gaming landscape, there was Zork. In 1977, Zork was unleashed into the world and would revolutionize the entire industry.
The text-based adventure title was developed by Infocom and would become a tremendous success for the studio. Zork’s influence on gaming was so substantial that in 2007 it was included in the Library of Congress' game canon due to its historical significance.
1A Dark Room
Available On adarkroom.doublespeakgames.com
It’s unusual for any game originally released for web browsers to later have a console port. It’s just something that rarely happens. For an online choose-your-adventure game to achieve that level of success requires a lot of praise and luck. Enter, A Dark Room.
This open-source text-based RPG was developed and published by indie studio Doublespeak Games in 2013. After amassing a colossal following, A Dark Room would be ported to various mobile platforms, including the Nintendo Switch in 2019, allowing everyone to experience this one-of-a-kind game.
