Gaming on the cheap: the best in free games

Everywhere you go, you see signs of the economy tanking rapidly, and it seems that no sectors have been spared. Frugal is in, cheap is chique, and that goes for games as much as anything else. The good news is there’s a lot of great games out there, just waiting for you to get your grubby hands on at no cost. The inevitable downside: most of the free stuff is crap. I took the liberty of perusing the great gaming blogosphere and browsing all the browser games to give you the best in free games for January 2009.

Left 4k Dead – an awesome little browser shooter that’s not-so-subtly inspired by the excellent Valve title, this little gem will have you blasting away for hours. From Indie Game Mag‘s description: “The game definitely succeeds in creating a great horror mood and some panic when you realize that tons of zombies are surrounding you. A great little free online game definitely worth the time…”

Dodge – I cannot stop playing this game. It’s a browser “shooter” without any actual shooting – well, not by you, anyway. You need to evade attacks and draw enemy fire to the other day-glo ships onscreen. It’s seriously addicting and ultra intuitive. Found on the GameLife blog.

Beyond Negotiation – another find from the excellent folks at Indie Games Mag, this is an excellent Geometry Wars clone that has all the polish and refined controls of a commercial-level product.

Puzzle Quest: Galactrix (Demo) – Finally, we have the sequel to the maddeningly addictive Puzzle Quest, in snazzy (and free!) browser form. Galactrix changes the formula up a bit, with a different sense of gravity (it’s set in space, after all) and a shield system, making it totally worth diving into even for gamers with PQ burnout.

Read [Indie Games Mag] Read [GameLife]