*This is a guest post, the thoughts and opinions expressed are those of its author and do not reflect on Techaeris or its staff.
Are the top game sites any good anymore? Is it all just advertisements and politics? Yes, there is an overabundance of ads on websites that offer free online games, but that is mostly how such websites are supported these days. As for politics, it is usually only gaming review websites that have been politicized; the free gaming sector is still generally untouched.
So, here are the best online game sites available today.
Kongregate
You may have heard of the company and you cannot remember why. It is because Kongregate built the brilliant game Animation Throwdown, which is probably one of the most addictive card games since the game within a game in Final Fantasy 8. Animation Throwdown is a game you can download for free on your mobile device, and it features syndicated cartoon characters like American Dad, Bob’s Burgers, and more.
However, Kongregate is more than just a game developer. It also hosts hundreds of free games from all types of developers. There are the spammy nasty ones that we are all used to (like many other game sites), and there are some that were created by small-but-dedicated developers. The top-rated games are always the ones that are promoted the most, which is a little misleading. However, if you dig deep, you will find some gems, including world-famous ones like Infectonator 3. Kongregate is becoming one of the most popular games sites thanks to the increasingly popular games that it is developing.
Armor Games
The Armor games website has been around for many years and has been giving away games long before platforms like Steam even existed. You can play games without signing up, and the Flash function works very well. The only downside to this website is that it looks a little dated, which makes it difficult to sift through the hundreds of games it offers.
Armor is another gaming website where you have to dig deep to find the best games, like The Last Stand – Dead Zone, which is a top-down version of the Microsoft exclusive State of Decay. However, if you are looking for a good game, then try Cargo Bridge 2, it is better than any other bridge-building game you will find for any console or device ever, and it is completely free. It is also burningly addictive.
Mini Clip
The Mini Clip online game sites get a mention partly because it is popular, and partly because it has tried to bring free gaming up to date. Most people think of low-quality and spam-driven games when they think of free games, but Mini Clip tries to promote only its best looking games to try and distance itself from the spammy free game theme that other free gaming sites perpetuate, and that Steam is allowing to infest its catalog.
One of the problems with Mini Clip is that they advertise their mobile games side-by-side with their browser games. This means you may click a game you want to play, only to discover you have to download and install it on your mobile device. Still, you can play games without having to sign up, but many of them will only work on Chrome or Firefox.
Big Fish Games
Its primary function is to host free games for people to play on their desktop computers. Its most popular games are its hidden object games; primarily because they are promoted through other websites that link back to Big Fish. Sadly, many of the games on Big Fish games are of low quality, but the good thing is that they are easy to spot.
The awful spammy games often have very poor or very cliché covers, graphics, screenshots, and promotional text. It is often obvious which are the poorly produced games that were churned out quickly just to make advertising revenue. It would be easy to get angry at Big Fish games because they have some great and well-developed games, but they do not promote them very well. A downside to Big Fish games is that many of their games are paid games, and it is hard to tell which are paid and which are free without clicking on them. Some of the paid games offer a free trial before purchase.
Shockwave
The Shockwave games library is a little limited when compared to the others in this list, but it mostly has good-quality games. You will be hard-pressed to find any spammy games that were born just to snag affiliate advertising revenue. However, there are two issues that make Shockwave a little annoying. The first is the sheer weight of ads that pollute the website. There are ads everywhere, including unskippable ads that play before you can play the games.
The second issue is loading times. Each game may be played for free and without signing up, but each game needs to load on your browser, and it can be annoying if you are itching to play. Each game needs a robust amount of loading time because the games are rather sophisticated (at least for browser games). Some of the games are better suited to touch screen devices, especially games like darts where you need to swipe to make your shots. Nevertheless, the games are of high quality and you do not have to pay for them, so it makes its way onto our list of cool game websites.
Conclusion – What Makes A Top Gaming Site
Part of the equation is popularity because if a website is popular, then it attracts better developers. Another consideration for top game sites is compatibility and ease-of-use since nobody wants to click on games only to have them not work. However, keep in mind that your Internet connection plays a big part, so check out some Verizon Fios deals before playing. Another part of the equation is safety, since clicking on games and using Flash can be a little dangerous if your computer or mobile device is unprotected. Finally, the last part of the equation is the quality of the games since people do not want to waste their time with games that concentrate more on advertising than they do the user experience.
What do you think of online game sites? Let us know in the comments below or on Twitter, or Facebook. You can also comment on our MeWe page by joining the MeWe social network.
Last Updated on February 3, 2021.
