Back to Jellybean Harbour
Fog on the harbour, games on the table

Eight browser games
to see you through a fog-bound week

When the fog horn starts and the dories stay tied up, Skipper Tuckamore pulls a chair up to the stove and opens a browser tab. These eight cost nothing to join and need nothing installed: railways and farmland, war maps and fortress walls, a basketball front office and one loud open-world firefight for when sitting still gets old.

8games in the Skipper's locker
0installers to run
5with an optional mobile app
Rail Nation key art
The Skipper's first pick

Rail Nation

Railway tycoon · Business & tycoon

Newfoundland lost its own railway years ago, which is half the fun of building one here. You lay routes between towns, buy and run a fleet of trains, carry the goods each city is short of and help those cities grow, all in an economic race against the other players working the same map.

Good for
Anyone who likes tycoon games and watching a timetable start to pay off.
Typical session
A few check-ins a day
Where it runs
Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Cost
Nothing to pay to join; buying in-game extras is up to you.
Your first session
  1. Link two nearby towns first and get one dependable route earning.
  2. Watch what each city is asking for and haul that before anything else.
  3. Add trains steadily rather than spending everything on the first day.
Play Rail Nation freeOpens rail-nation.com in a new tab

Seven more for the long evenings

Iron Order 1919 key artStrategy & war

Iron Order 1919

Dieselpunk Great War strategy

Here the Great War kept going, and walking iron Titans march beside the infantry. You run a few provinces, keep their economy humming, research new machines and bargain with the players around you, knowing a friendly border can turn cold overnight.

  • A few check-ins a day
  • Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Good for & first steps

Good for: Strategists who like diplomacy and a dieselpunk spin on early twentieth-century war.

Your first session
  1. Get your provinces producing before you raise a big army.
  2. Choose one research line early instead of spreading thin.
  3. Write to the players next door early; a quiet border is worth a lot.
Play Iron Order 1919 freeOpens ironorder1919.com
Throne: Kingdom at War key artStrategy & war

Throne: Kingdom at War

Medieval kingdom MMO

A medieval town of production buildings feeds an army drawn from several troop classes, which you march against rival Lords. Joining an Order brings shared goals and timed sieges for the throne, and resources gathered on the map become gear for your hero.

  • Short visits, longer for sieges
  • Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Good for & first steps

Good for: Players who like organized group sieges and a kingdom that grows over weeks.

Your first session
  1. Keep production buildings upgrading so training never stalls.
  2. Learn what each troop class beats before your first march.
  3. Join an active Order early; sieges are planned together.
Play Throne: Kingdom at War freeOpens plarium.com/en/game/throne-kingdom-at-war
Conflict of Nations key artStrategy & war

Conflict of Nations

Modern-era grand strategy

A present-day world map is shared out between players, each growing forces, industry and alliances in real time. Orders take hours to play out, so the game rewards thinking several moves ahead, reading your rivals and keeping your coalition talking.

  • Several short check-ins a day
  • Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Good for & first steps

Good for: Patient planners who enjoy modern militaries and slow-burning campaigns.

Your first session
  1. Build the home economy first; it pays for everything later.
  2. Scout before committing forces so you know what is out there.
  3. Settle terms with nearby players early to avoid two fronts.
Play Conflict of Nations freeOpens conflictnations.com
Combat Siege key artStrategy & war

Combat Siege

Fortress and siege strategy

Everything here turns on the wall. You raise defences, lay out your fortress and plan attacks on others, and an alliance working together across repeated sessions turns lone raids into proper campaigns. A well-built defence can hold off a much larger force.

  • Short to medium visits
  • Desktop browser
Good for & first steps

Good for: Defensive tacticians who enjoy getting a layout exactly right.

Your first session
  1. Shore up the defences around your key buildings first.
  2. Study a target before attacking rather than charging in.
  3. Find an alliance that plans together; sieges go better in company.
Play Combat Siege freeOpens combatsiege.com
War Brokers key artAction & arcade

War Brokers

Vehicle and infantry shooter

The odd one out in the locker: an open-world shooter where you can fight on foot or jump into a tank, APC or helicopter on the same map. Battle-royale rounds let you fly in and drop straight onto an objective, and loadouts can be set up your way.

  • A round or two at a time
  • Desktop browser
Good for & first steps

Good for: Players who want vehicles and infantry in one quick match.

Your first session
  1. Play a few rounds on foot to learn the map before taking a vehicle.
  2. Try the helicopter drop in battle royale to land near an objective.
  3. Tune one loadout you like and stick with it for a while.
Play War Brokers freeOpens warbrokers.io
Big Farm key artFarm, town & zoo

Big Farm

Countryside farming sim

Rocky outport gardens never grew much, so a whole green estate makes a nice change. You plant crops, raise animals and build up a cheerful countryside farm at an easy pace, with cooperative play for anyone who would rather farm alongside others.

  • Short, unhurried visits
  • Desktop browser
Good for & first steps

Good for: Players after something calm and cheerful at the end of the day.

Your first session
  1. Plant fields first so something is always growing.
  2. Add animals once crops are ticking over.
  3. Plan where buildings go before the estate fills up.
Play Big Farm freeOpens bigfarm.goodgamestudios.com
BuzzerBeater key artSport & management

BuzzerBeater

Basketball manager

You are the general manager, not a player. Set the depth chart and both offensive and defensive formations, then draft, trade and train your roster. Games play out in a live match viewer, and national tournaments give a season something to aim for.

  • A short visit before each match
  • Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Good for & first steps

Good for: Basketball fans who want a front-office job rather than a jersey.

Your first session
  1. Look over your roster and set a depth chart that suits it.
  2. Pick offensive and defensive formations, then watch one match in the viewer.
  3. Train with a plan in mind before you start trading.
Play BuzzerBeater freeOpens buzzerbeater.com

All eight, lined up on the wharf

GameGenrePacePlaying with othersTypical sessionWhere it runs
Rail NationRailway tycoonSteady real timeCompeting with other railway playersA handful of looks a dayDesktop browser; mobile app also available
Iron Order 1919Dieselpunk Great War strategyRuns in real time for daysAlliances with fellow playersA handful of looks a dayDesktop browser; mobile app also available
Throne: Kingdom at WarMedieval kingdom MMOSteady real timeOrders of allied LordsShort visits, longer for siegesDesktop browser; mobile app also available
Conflict of NationsGrand strategy, present dayRuns in real time for daysCoalitions across the mapA few short looks, several times a dayDesktop browser; mobile app also available
Combat SiegeFortress and siege strategySteady real timeAlliancesShort to medium visitsDesktop browser
War BrokersVehicle and infantry shooterFast, round by roundOnline matches with other playersA round or two at a timeDesktop browser
Big FarmCountryside farming simRelaxed, at your own speedCooperative play with other farmersShort, unhurried visitsDesktop browser
BuzzerBeaterBasketball managerMatch by matchLeagues of other managersA short visit before each matchDesktop browser; mobile app also available

Cost, all 8: Nothing to pay to join; buying in-game extras is up to you.

01

What free means at these studios

Making an account costs nothing at any of the eight, and the main game stays open to you for good: laying track, planting, marching, managing and fighting are all part of the free version.

Each one also runs an optional shop for speed-ups, premium currency and the like. Plenty of players never open it, and the account settings on each studio site are worth checking if you want spending kept switched off.

02

Getting aboard the first time

Every game on this page has a button that opens the studio's official site in a new tab. Sign up there with an email address and your railway, farm, club, fortress or provinces are ready a few minutes later.

Most of them start with a guided tutorial. Stick with it to the end on day one; it explains resources, queues and controls far better than poking around does.

03

Fitting them around a working week

The map games, the railway, the farm and the basketball club all carry on with the tab closed. Trains run, crops ripen and matches get played, so a check before work and one after supper keeps you in it.

War Brokers is the exception: it lives in the match you are playing. Save it for evenings with half an hour to spare, and keep the quick visits for the slower games.

04

Eight logins, battened down

Type your password only on the studio's genuine web address, never on a look-alike page. Give all eight their own password, and turn on a second sign-in step wherever a studio offers one.

Real studio support never asks for your password. A message promising free extras in exchange for your login is after the account you built, so let it sink unanswered.

What earned a spot in the Skipper's locker

  • Each one opens in a computer browser; there is no client to download before your first evening.
  • Joining is free at every studio, and the shop inside each game stays optional from first login to last.
  • Most of them keep ticking over while the tab is shut, so a cup-of-tea visit is enough to stay in it.
  • Between them they cover slow planning, gentle farming, sport and a fast shooter, so any mood has a match.

No. Every game here runs in a desktop browser tab. Rail Nation, Iron Order 1919, Throne: Kingdom at War, Conflict of Nations and BuzzerBeater also offer an optional mobile app; Combat Siege, War Brokers and Big Farm are listed for the desktop browser.

Five of the eight have a mobile app as an extra: Rail Nation, Iron Order 1919, Throne: Kingdom at War, Conflict of Nations and BuzzerBeater. The other three are listed for the desktop browser only.

No. Signing up costs nothing at any of them, the main game is open to everyone, and the shop inside each is optional.

No. They come from separate studios, so each game needs its own sign-up and its own login.

No. Independent studios build and run them; this page simply points you to where each one lives.

Big Farm for something gentle, Rail Nation or BuzzerBeater for steady planning, and the strategy maps for long campaigns. War Brokers is the one for a quick, noisy round.

Yes. The strategy games have coalitions, Orders or alliances, Big Farm has cooperative play, Rail Nation and BuzzerBeater pit you against other players, and War Brokers matches are played online with others.