Good free games to kill a LOT of time.

[Gamegeneral]

Heya FPers.

My job, on fridays, usually requires me to sit in front of a computer while it takes its sweet-ass time processing video files before burning them to a DVD. Total doing-nothing time lasts anywhere between 3-5 hours. Factor in that I'm already starting around 10 PM, and I'm stuck in late night boredom hell.

Now I'm wondering:
What are some good free games that you guys use to kill a lot of time?

(I'm sure there's a thread asking a similar question, but I didn't see it when I flipped through the pages, and I'm only going to search so far)

Basically, there's only a few limits here.

-Free (Obviously)
-Can run on a laptop (It's capable of running HL2 at 30FPS, if that helps)
(Bonus points if it has USB controller support)
-Little or no internet requirement (I'm forced to use a heavily restricted internet connection)
(Does not mean it can't have internet as an additional feature, though)
Mostly Safe for work (Basically, everything but nudity is fine.)

[junker|154]

What genre?

If you like strategy games and 4X games, definitely check this:

-Master of Orion 2
-Galactic Civilization 2
-Civilization 3/4
-Disciples 2
-Heroes of Might and Magic 3

[Gamegeneral]

[QUOTE=junker|154;25020614]What genre?

If you like strategy games and 4X games, definitely check this:

-Master of Orion 2
-Galactic Civilization 2
-Civilization 3/4
-Disciples 2
-Heroes of Might and Magic 3[/QUOTE]

I really wasn't trying to be genre specific, mainly because when I'm THAT bored, I'll try anything.
But how many of those games are free?

[Goldenboy]

Minecraft Classic.

[Gamegeneral]

[QUOTE=Goldenboy;25020644]Minecraft Classic.[/QUOTE]
I own minecraft and frequently play Survival and SMP on it at work. My usual server's disappeared, though, so I'm combing through the web for new games.

[junker|154]

Fuck, I completely forgot that it should be free.

Well Master of Orion 2 is a very old game but still a great one. Maybe it's Free Ware I don't know.

Well the other games are relativly cheap to aquire and don't cost that much.

[ventnor]

There's a thread about this, Free games that don't suck.

[Gamegeneral]

[QUOTE=junker|154;25020691]Fuck, I completely forgot that it should be free.

Well Master of Orion 2 is a very old game but still a great one. Maybe it's Free Ware I don't know.

Well the other games are relativly cheap to aquire and don't cost that much.[/QUOTE]

Yeah, but I'm rarely able to make online purchases. So they might as well be full price titles.

[junker|154]

You get these games for ~10$ or less.

[spanaren]

The older Elder Scrolls games are abandonware now. Daggerfall and Arena that is. Dungeon Keeper 2 is abandonware aswell if I remember correctly.

[Gamegeneral]

Man, free games should get its own subforum. It would make this a hell of a lot easier for a lot of people, considering that every third or fifth thread is about a freeware game.

[editline]12:29PM[/editline]

[QUOTE=spanaren;25020728]The older Elder Scrolls games are abandonware now. Daggerfall and Arena that is. Dungeon Keeper 2 is abandonware aswell if I remember correctly.[/QUOTE]

Ooh, you're right about TES. I should get those.
Also, what kind of game is Dungeon Keeper 2?

[junker|154]

Have a look my friend

[url]http://www.facepunch.com/showthread.php?t=907651[/url]

This one is V3, it's more updated.

[spanaren]

[QUOTE=Gamegeneral;25020738]Man, free games should get its own subforum. It would make this a hell of a lot easier for a lot of people, considering that every third or fifth thread is about a freeware game.

[editline]12:29PM[/editline]

Ooh, you're right about TES. I should get those.
Also, what kind of game is Dungeon Keeper 2?[/QUOTE]

Instead of being the nice guy raiding an evil dungeon, [I]you[/I] are controlling the dungeon and trying to get rid of all those white knights. Or something like that. It's good to be evil.

Oh and you should also get Diablo 2. I know it isn't free, but everyone should have this game. That and it's an awesome time killer.

[antary]

Dwarf Fortress will eat all your time when you`ll learn how to play it.

Which isn`t easy.

[wasphone]

All of Our Friends are Dead and Au Sable

[Gamegeneral]

I already know how to play Dorf Fortress, friend. And I enjoy it. It's just not a super laptop-happy game. 'Specially if you don't have a numpad.

[Sabrina]

Street Fighter IV

[Gamegeneral]

[QUOTE=wasphone;25020842]All of Our Friends are Dead and Au Sable[/QUOTE]
Oooh! Horror themed! Don't see enough free horror games out there!

[editline]01:01PM[/editline]

[QUOTE=Sabrina;25021119]Street Fighter IV[/QUOTE]

Neither free, nor, probably, laptop happy. But I would if I could, totally.

[spanaren]

Emulators are pretty good time killers as well.

[wasphone]

[QUOTE=Gamegeneral;25021190]Oooh! Horror themed! Don't see enough free horror games out there!

[editline]01:01PM[/editline]

Neither free, nor, probably, laptop happy. But I would if I could, totally.[/QUOTE]

Those two are similar to Contra but really freaky.

If you like any horror, then the Chzo Mythos games (made by Yahtzee) are adventure horror and they're legitimately scary. They could easily knock out 30 hours. There are four games in total

[spanaren]

[QUOTE=windwakr;25021496]There really isn't too much you can get for free. TES Daggerfall and Dwarf Fortress would probably be the biggest time wasters you can get.

I'd lean towards Daggerfall. When you set it up right, it's an amazing experience. All the dungeon exploring, horse riding, monster slaying, magic casting, etc, etc...(But don't follow the included instructions, refer to here if you do decide to play DaggerFall: [url]http://www.facepunch.com/showthread.php?p=18845389#post18845389[/url] . Also, a start towards a good key configuration in-game: [url]http://www.facepunch.com/showthread.php?p=22184293#post22184293[/url])

TES Arena and Daggerfall are not "abandonware". Bethesda released them as free downloads but they ARE NOT "abandonware". The DK2 IP is owned by EA and it is not "abandonware".

Also, the term "abandonware" is not a recognized legal term, it was made up by people so they can try to justify their pirating.[/QUOTE]

I'm sorry for using bad wording? :confused: I didn't know that.

[little.sparrow]

classic doom? ya could try trackmania nations forever, but thats on steam, various demos and quake live. (it has an offline practice mode)

[gman003-main]

Marathon, Marathon 2: Durandal, Marathon: Infinity.

Imagine Doom. Now replace the sci-fi/horror/action with sci-fi/military/action. Add some mouselook, allied NPCs, and a surprisingly intelligent story that, if you wish to, can be totally ignored.

Made by Bungie (Marathon 2 is still, IMHO, the best game they ever made), released as GPL several years back. There's a few enhancement packs for better graphics, if you want them. Runs on damn near anything.

[macdoo999]

Happy Wheels
Spelunky

[RubberDuckeh]

League of Legends.

DotA clone, it's pretty fun. Games are anywhere from 15 minutes to an hour. You don't get access to every champion in the game but they give you like 10 free each week (then take them away and give you new ones the next week). You can unlock champions so they remain usable at all times, though.

It's F2P with a cash shop but most anything you can unlock with bought points you can unlock by just playing (short of XP bonuses and new skins for champs you can buy everything with points earned by playing)

[Arsonist]

[QUOTE=PrusseluskenV2;25021794]Runescape?

:unsmith:[/QUOTE]

This

[ToXiCsoldier]

Company of Heroes: Online, its a 8Gb large free RTS, its in open-beta however but nonetheless good.

[Drasnus]

X-com. It's not free but it's extremely cheap and runs on DOSbox. Very time consuming and addicting.

[Meller Yeller]

[QUOTE=PrusseluskenV2;25021794]Runescape?

:unsmith:[/QUOTE]

If you want to kill a lot of time by clicking a tree or monter every couple of minutes until a level goes up.

[Jakkalen]

Try Stranded 2, it's pretty fun