There are points in even the busiest of schedules where you’re left with five minutes to spare and nothing to fill it with. The chances are you don’t have your gaming console with you, but a video game is always such a fun way to pass the time. Thankfully there are plenty of brilliant games that you don’t need a console for, just an internet connection and a smartphone, tablet, or laptop.
We’ve chosen some of our favorite browser-based games that you can get started with in as little as five minutes. Some of the games will save your progress, making them the perfect option to come back to time and time again, others will be over in under five minutes. So, whichever kind of gamer you are, we’ve got you covered.
Slither.io
Remember the original Snake game of Nokia 6110 fame? Slither.io takes that exact idea and brings it firmly into this decade. The game requires you to chase and eat the dots in order to grow your snake, exactly like the original. However, there are some differences too. In Slither.io your body becomes slightly wider as well as longer whenever you eat a dot. You also have competition in this game in the form of other snakes. These guys will try to eat the dots too, so force them to run into your tail in order to make them vanish from the map. Finally, the last difference in this game and without a doubt the most exciting one is that you have the ability to customize your own snake. You can change the color of their scales, and as you make your way further through the levels you can even buy them custom accessories, bringing a comedic element to this simple quick-play game.
If you’re looking for another snake-based adventure to add to your quick play collection then Cobra Cash is an excellent option. Just like slither.io, this game also features a super simple user interface which will enable you to be up and running in less than a couple of minutes. Plus, you can play for free if you make use of one of the free spins offers that are available, or enter the game on free mode. This is a great way of working out whether or not a title is right for you, before committing to spending your own money.
Wordle
Sometimes the simplest games are the best and Wordle is the perfect example of that. This game was invented by a doting boyfriend, whose girlfriend loved word games but was getting a little bored of the daily crossword. He came up with Wordle, a game where you need to guess the five-letter word in six tries or fewer. The game was so ingenious that the New York Times bought it from him for in excess of a million dollars.
If you want to play then you don’t have to pay a penny, simply head to the games section of the New York Times website and you’ll find it there. Pop your five-letter word into the boxes and see how you score. If a letter is correct it will turn green, if it appears in the word but is in the wrong space then it will turn yellow and if it doesn’t appear in the word at all, it will turn grey. Use these clues to help you to narrow down your guessing until you hit the right word. The puzzle changes once a day, perfect for the time-pushed and competitive gamers out there.
Townscaper
If you prefer a game that saves your progress, allowing you to dip in and out, then Townscaper might be the perfect choice for you. This game reminds us a little of Animal Crossing, because of its cute graphics and lack of rules. You simply open up the browser and you can use the color palette to paint a scene. The illustration style is pared back and beautiful and the town that you’ll paint is just the same. You can treat this like a seaside vacation that you can access from your work desk, the perfect antidote to a stressful day. The music that plays in the background isn’t bold enough to interfere, but is nonetheless beautiful and very relaxing.
If you’re the kind of gamer who enjoys a shoot-em-up, or car racing then this might not be the game for you. However, if you enjoy beautiful indie games that push the boundaries of what a video game can be then this Swedish masterpiece could become your new favorite way to relax.
