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Horace's rooftop shed shelf

Eight browser games for the shed
at the top of the Sootwell ladder

When the last bus has rattled back to the depot, Horace climbs to a little shed wedged between two chimney stacks and opens a laptop full of games that keep running while he sleeps. Eight free browser games share that shelf: a farm of fields and sheds, a dinosaur zoo, two sports managers, a dark-fantasy hero, a comic one, a siege fortress and a garage of battle tanks. None of them needs a download to start.

8games on the shed shelf
5with an official phone app too
5kinds of game to pick from
My Free Farm 2 key art
Straight from the garden wall

My Free Farm 2

Farming sim with processing chains · Farm, town & zoo

Horace has watched the quince garden fill its trugs every autumn, so his first tab is a whole farm. You plant fields, keep livestock and send raw produce through processing sheds to turn it into goods for sale, keeping an eye on growth timers and standing orders while the farm creeps outwards field by field.

Good for
Patient growers who like a farm whose sheds feed one another.
Typical session
Minutes to bring in a crop, an evening to lay out a new shed
Where it runs
Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Cost
Free to play; optional in-game purchases.
Your first session
  1. Plant a couple of fields you can tend comfortably before adding animals.
  2. Feed one processing shed steadily rather than building three at once.
  3. Accept standing orders only when your stores can fill them.
Play My Free Farm 2 freeOpens myfreefarm2.upjers.com/en in a new tab

Seven more games behind the shed door

Dinosaur Park: Primeval Zoo key artFarm, town & zoo

Dinosaur Park: Primeval Zoo

Fossil-hatching dinosaur park

Fossils are dug up, hatched into dinosaurs and settled into enclosures built to suit each species. Research slowly unlocks new kinds of dinosaur, and the visitors who stroll through the gates keep the park growing.

  • A short visit to hatch, feed and tidy
  • Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Who it suits & your first rung

Good for: Zoo builders who fancy a park with a prehistoric twist.

Your first session
  1. Settle your first species in a well-built enclosure before hatching more.
  2. Put early research into the dinosaurs your park can house.
  3. Expand the paths and gates as visitor numbers climb.
Play Dinosaur Park: Primeval Zoo freeOpens dinosaurparkprimevalzoo.upjers.com/en
PowerPlay Manager key artSport & management

PowerPlay Manager

Four-sport club office

One login looks after an ice-hockey team, a football side, a handball squad and a basketball club at once. You pick the team sheet and tactics to face human rivals, write every player a personal training plan, and add to the arena a little every season.

  • A few minutes before each match day
  • Desktop browser
Who it suits & your first rung

Good for: Club bosses who fancy juggling several sports at the same time.

Your first session
  1. Run the sport you follow most closely before taking on another.
  2. Give every key player an individual practice plan.
  3. Upgrade facilities in small, affordable steps.
Play PowerPlay Manager freeOpens ppm.powerplaymanager.com/en
iGP Manager key artSport & management

iGP Manager

Racing team on the pit wall

Nobody hands you a steering wheel. Instead you improve the car between races, settle tyres and fuel, call your driver into the pits, and follow the 3D race live while other managers in the league try to time their stops better than yours.

  • Set-up time plus the live race
  • Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Who it suits & your first rung

Good for: Motorsport fans who would rather plan from the pit wall than steer.

Your first session
  1. Choose a league that races at times you are usually free.
  2. Focus car development on one area at a time.
  3. Settle the tyre and pit plan before the lights go out.
Play iGP Manager freeOpens igpmanager.com
Drakensang Online key artRole-play & adventure

Drakensang Online

Real-time dark-fantasy hero

Grim forests and crypts are cleared sword stroke by sword stroke in real time, right inside the browser. Pick a class, grow its build with every level, then gather a party of other players to fight through cooperative dungeons together.

  • One crypt, maybe two
  • Desktop browser
Who it suits & your first rung

Good for: Players who want quick, hands-on combat with a class to master.

Your first session
  1. Try a class in the opening areas before committing to a build.
  2. Spend skill points on a few abilities and level them well.
  3. Join a group for your first co-op dungeon.
Play Drakensang Online freeOpens drakensang.com
Shakes & Fidget key artRole-play & adventure

Shakes & Fidget

Tongue-in-cheek fantasy quests

A cheeky fantasy RPG whose quests tick down on a timer while the kettle boils. Its dozen classes feel nothing alike: the shape-changing Druid fights as bear, tiger or eagle, and the Berserker piles several hits into a single turn.

  • A quick quest between other jobs
  • Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Who it suits & your first rung

Good for: Role-players who want jokes with their hit points.

Your first session
  1. Read the class descriptions before you choose one.
  2. Send the hero on quests that fit the time you have.
  3. Look for an active guild once the basics are clear.
Play Shakes & Fidget freeOpens sfgame.net
Combat Siege key artStrategy & war

Combat Siege

Siege and fortification strategy

Walls go up, defences are layered and attacks are planned with care. Combat Siege is built around fortifying your base and breaking someone else's, with an alliance coordinating every move across repeated sessions until the walls finally give way.

  • Short planning visits, longer siege evenings
  • Desktop browser
Who it suits & your first rung

Good for: Defensive tacticians who enjoy planning a siege properly.

Your first session
  1. Strengthen your defences before planning any attack.
  2. Scout a target thoroughly before committing troops.
  3. Join an alliance and agree its plans before you march.
Play Combat Siege freeOpens combatsiege.com
Tanki Online key artAction & arcade

Tanki Online

Hull-and-turret tank battles

In the garage you pair interchangeable hulls and turrets into your own tank, then trundle out to deathmatch and capture fights. What you earn in battle pays for upgrades, and rank tiers gate the better gear.

  • Three or four short rounds
  • Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Who it suits & your first rung

Good for: Players who want real tank battles without a download.

Your first session
  1. Try a few hull and turret pairings in early battles.
  2. Upgrade the parts you actually use most.
  3. Stick with your team in capture modes rather than wandering off.
Play Tanki Online freeOpens tankionline.com/en

The whole shed shelf at a glance

Game from the shedGame genreHow quick a round playsOther players aboutA usual evening with itWhere the game runs
My Free Farm 2Farming sim with processing chainsGentle, crop by cropA quiet patch of fields, mostly yours aloneMinutes to bring in a crop, an evening to lay out a new shedDesktop browser; mobile app also available
Dinosaur Park: Primeval ZooFossil-hatching dinosaur parkEasy-going, one paddock at a timeVisitors flock in as the park growsA short visit to hatch, feed and tidyDesktop browser; mobile app also available
PowerPlay ManagerFour-sport club officeMatch after match, all seasonRival club bosses, all humanA few minutes before each match dayDesktop browser
iGP ManagerRacing team on the pit wallOne grand prix at a timeLeagues of managers racing liveSet-up time plus the live raceDesktop browser; mobile app also available
Drakensang OnlineReal-time dark-fantasy heroQuick, blow by blowParties formed for crypt runsOne crypt, maybe twoDesktop browser
Shakes & FidgetTongue-in-cheek fantasy questsQuests ticking down on a timerGuild halls and arena boutsA quick quest between other jobsDesktop browser; mobile app also available
Combat SiegeSiege and fortification strategyPlanned, siege by siegeAlliances working togetherShort planning visits, longer siege eveningsDesktop browser
Tanki OnlineTank fights built from hulls and turretsBrisk team fightsDeathmatch and capture battles with other playersThree or four short roundsDesktop browser; mobile app also available

All eight cost nothing to start; any in-game purchases are optional extras.

01

No fare at the shed door

The farm, the dinosaur zoo, both managers, both heroes, the siege fortress and the tank garage all open in full on day one, and weeks can pass without spending anything.

Every studio keeps a shop of optional boosts, and many players go through years without visiting it. If the laptop is shared at home, check the game account or the app store for a cap on spending, which most of them offer.

02

Your first visit to a new game

Pressing a game's button opens its makers' own website in a new tab. Register free with that studio, and within a few minutes a farm, a park, a club, a team or a hero is waiting under your chosen name.

Every game starts with a short tutorial. Finish it: menus open up one at a time, much as Horace learned each chimney on the route before leading anyone over the roofs.

03

A peek at dawn, a long night later

Nearly everything on the shelf carries on without you: crops ripen, eggs hatch, races finish and heroes walk home from quests. A look over toast and one after tea will usually keep each game on track.

Use quick visits for harvesting, queueing and replying to team-mates. Keep a long, quiet evening for the big decisions: a new shed, a fresh league, a siege plan or a dungeon run.

04

Keep every login safe

Type your login only into the official address each studio gives for its game. Horace carries a different key for each door on his route; keep one password per game in just that spirit, and accept any second login check you are offered.

Studio staff will never need your password from you. If a message dangles free extras in exchange for your login, the sender is after the farm, the club or the hero you built; delete it unread and tell the studio.

How these eight earned a place in the rooftop shed

  • Every game here starts in a plain computer browser tab, so the first evening on the shelf begins without a download.
  • Signing up to the farm, the zoo, the clubs, the heroes, the fortress or the tanks is free, and each stays complete for players who leave its shop well alone.
  • Crops grow, races run and quests tick on with the lid closed, so a peek while the kettle comes to the boil still pushes everything forward.
  • The mix runs from wheat fields and hatching eggs to pit calls, siege walls and tank turrets, so there is something for every kind of evening.

No. Each of the eight starts in a computer browser tab, with no download needed.

No. Every one lets you register free and play without spending; the shops are optional.

No. Horace only dusts the shelf. Every title is made and kept running by its own outside studio, whose official site opens when you press its button.

No. With eight different studios behind them, you make a free login at each game in turn. PowerPlay Manager does keep all of its sports under a single account of its own.

Five of them. The farm, the dinosaur zoo, iGP Manager, Shakes & Fidget and Tanki Online all have an official phone app on top of the browser game. PowerPlay Manager, Drakensang Online and Combat Siege are for a computer browser.

Shakes & Fidget, where a timed quest fits a tea break, or the dinosaur park, where hatching and feeding takes a few minutes. The siege fortress and the dungeon runs reward a longer evening.

Yes. Both sports managers pit you against human rivals in leagues, the dark-fantasy dungeons are cleared in groups, the comic hero meets others in arena duels and guilds, the siege fortress lives on alliances and the tank garage feeds team battles.