Tuesday, August 2, 2011

Top 25 Best Free Downloadable PC Games


There are numerous free games for the PC, but not all of them are great. Many of them don't even run without the proper tweaks. With that in mind, we've curated a list of 25 of the best free games available for the platform that you'll be able to play without having to deal with any hassles.

#25 Octodad
Octodad is an independently developed third person adventure game. The player controls Octodad, an octopus masquerading as a human, as he goes about a day of his life. His existence is a constant struggle, as he must master mundane tasks with his unwieldy boneless tentacles while simultaneously keeping his true nature a secret from his human family.

#24 Alien Swarm 
Released by Valve for free, Alien Swarm is a remake of the Unreal 2004 mod that brought classic Gauntlet-style cooperative gameplay to Steam. With several classes to choose from, a host of upgrades and a ranking system, Alien Swarm provides countless hours of cooperative play.  

#23 Knytt Stories 
Knytt Stories is the brainchild of indie developer Nifflas. It combines platform action with art—surreal landscapes are its heart and soul. As a bonus, Knytt Stories even comes with downloadable stories that greatly extend its experience.   

#22 Within a Deep Forest 
Within a Deep Forest is another one of Nifflas’ creations. In the game, the player must control a ball that can be transformed into different substances and materials found in the landscape and use its transformative abilities to bypass obstacles to get to the next area.  

#21 TribesNext 
TribesNext is a fan-made release of Tribes 2. Arguably the best multiplayer shooter for its time, Tribes 2 can now be enjoyed for free. TribesNext offers continued support for the game, allowing players to browse game servers and play online matches in a hack-free environment.  


#20 Spelunky 
Spelunky takes players into a randomly generated underground world with every new adventure. Every cave is riddled with traps, angry monsters and untold riches. Players with a low tolerance for failure need not apply!  

#19 Cave Story 
Cave Story is an epic adventure told in gorgeous 16-bit. Inspired by games like Metroid, Castlevania and Commander Keen, Cave Story puts players in the role of an amnesiac boy who awakens in the strange world populated by floating islands. Players journey through the world completing platform puzzles and shooting enemies.  

#18 D&D Online 
D&D Online is an attempt to bring the magic of the pen and paper game Dungeons & Dragons to the PC. As a massively multiplayer game, D&D Online invites players to group up in parties or much larger raids to clear dungeons and progress through a pre-written story. Players will have emergent experiences that color their character’s personal story.  

#17 Command & Conquer: Tiberian Sun + Firestorm Expansion 
Tiberian Sun is regarded by many as one of the best real-time strategy games ever created. Developed by Westwood Studios as a sequel to the groundbreaking Command & Conquer, Tiberian Sun and its expansion pack Firestorm continue the story of the GDI’s war against the sinister Brotherhood of Nod.  

#16 Red Alert 
Like Command & Conquer: Tiberian Sun, the original Red Alert was released for free by its publisher EA as part of a promotion for Red Alert 3. In this RTS, players can play as either the Americans or the Soviets in an alternate history, altered by the death of Adolf Hitler.  


#15 Star Control II: The Ur-Quan Masters 
Star Control II is arguably the best game in the trilogy of Star Control titles. Like other titles in the trilogy, it is a story-driven space exploration adventure game where the player (in control of the Captain’s Ship) interacts with strange alien races through hours of dialogue and occasional ship-to-ship combat.  

#14 Quake Live 
Quake Live is a new variant of Quake III Arena, designed to run on Windows, OSX and Linux platforms through a web browser plugin. The FPS features a number of updates over Q3A and allows players to go head to head in online duels. Players can participate in free-for-alls, capture the flag, and team deathmatch, to specialized modes like InstaFreeze. Quake Live enjoys an active community of both amateur and professional gamers and is one of the few online games intended to be played as a professional sport.  

#13 Return to Castle Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory 
Before there was Team Fortress 2, there was Enemy Territory. Developed as a free multiplayer add-on to Return to Castle Wolfenstein, players took on the roles of axis and allies in this heavily stylized Gothic take on World War II in an objective-driven multiplayer FPS.  
 
#12 League of Legends 
This DOTA-inspired game is one of the most popular online multiplayer games the internet has to offer. It may not be entirely possible to thrive on League of Legends by sticking to the free mode, but that shouldn’t stop you from playing the game and—if you don’t like the idea of spending time to unlock champions—pay to unlock the ones you’d like to play.  

#11 Passage 
Passage is the definition of “games as art.” The game manages to elicit more emotion through its 8-bit graphics than most triple A titles. It’s the best 5 minutes you’ll ever spend playing a game. 


#10 Dwarf Fortress 
Dwarf Fortress is the only game on this list to favor a text user interface over graphics. It’s critically regarded as being one of the most intensive economic and strategic simulations to ever exist. Fortunately for players who can’t get used to the game’s text interface, there are a number of graphical mods that make it not only accessible, but even more enjoyable to play.

#9 Battle for Wesnoth 
Battle for Wesnoth is a free downloadable turn-based game in the same vein as classics like Panzer General and Fantasy General, where battles take place on a hex map. Loosely based on the Sega Genesis title Warsong, Wesnoth is an open source strategy game with very simple rules yet remains both challenging and fun thanks to its strong AI.  

#8 Simutrans 
Simutrans is an open source remake of Transport Tycoon, where the player strives to run a successful transport system by setting up railroads, travel routes and mass transit. 

#7 OpenTyrian 
Tyrian is without question one of the best top-scrolling shooters to ever exist on the PC, standing among the likes of Raptor and Raiden 2. Tyrian differs from the competition with its story-intensive single player campaign and RPG-like elements, as players can upgrade their craft with all kinds of weaponry. Players can even ditch their existing craft for all new ships. Thanks to the open sourcing of the game, fans have made it possible to play Tyrian natively on both Windows and OSX platforms in high resolution.  
 
#6 OpenTTD 
OpenTTD is a remake of Transport Tycoon Deluxe. As an urban planning and transport simulation, the player’s goal is to earn profit through the transportation of passengers and freight by land, water and air. OpenTTD offers a multitude of customizations and even supports multiplayer gaming through LAN and Internet.


#5 King's Quest I Remake 
King’s Quest I is a fan remake of the Sierra’s original adventure game, released in 1984 and subsequently remade in 1990. It features all new graphics, a point and click interface, as well as full speech for all the characters in the game.  
 
#4 King's Quest II: Romancing the Stones 
King’s Quest II takes off after the events of the first game. Like its predecessor, it has been remade with new graphics, interface and audio. The quality of the remake rivals Sierra’s own King’s Quest VI.  
 
#3 King's Quest III Redux 
King’s Quest III is the final planned remake, and like the two previous games, adds new audio and visuals. The game also features several fleshed-out characters, new areas, and puzzles not seen in the original Sierra version.  
 
#2 MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries 
Released for free by Studio MekTek, MechWarrior 4: Mercenaries is the final game in the fantastic MechWarrior series of mech simulations. Players take on the role of a mercenary pilot named Spectre who finds himself in the employ of the Inner Sphere. The player makes a living by performing missions and completing contracts for the game’s various factions. The outcome of the story depends on the missions the player chooses to take on and the choices he or she makes during the game. 
 
#1 MechCommander Gold 
MechCommander is a real time tactical game which puts players in command of a company of mechs. Tasked with taking back the planet of Port Arthur, players start out with the weakest of mechs and must salvage equipment and acquire superior mechs while completing various objectives in missions. Much like an RPG, pilots also increase in skill as they use them during missions.

at 5:02 PM
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