Gaming is hugely popular, and free gaming even more so. Below is a list of our picks of some of the best free PC games you can download directly to your computer right now. Some of them are even portable, which means you can put them on a flash drive and play them anywhere.
These titles include older and popular commercial games that have been released as freeware, home-brew remakes of popular games and games released by independent developers. They're identified by their genre, such as first-person shooter, real-time strategy, role-playing, simulation and platform games.
These free PC games are downloadable. In other words, you have to save them to your computer and install them before they're usable. These are not the same as free online games that can be played in your web browser. The revenant bear attack.
Before Downloading These Games
Remember that each of these free pc game downloads only work when installed on your PC. This poses a risk when compared to online games because it's possible the game files might contain malware.
Take caution when downloading these files. Know how to scan your computer for viruses should the need arise, and always keep your computer updated with the most recent security patches.
If you download a free game that won't open when you double-click it, chances are you need to extract the game out of the archive since some of them come in a RAR or ZIP file. ZIP files can usually be opened no problem but RARs and other non-ZIP archives require a file unzip program like 7-Zip.
Several of these PC game free download pages have multiple 'Download' buttons but only one of them is actually valid; the others are most likely advertisements or links to other websites. If any links take you elsewhere without downloading the game, return to the download link below and try a different button.
A
B
C
D
E
F
G
H
I
J
K
L
M
N
O
P/Q
R
S
T
U
W
X
Z / 0-9
If you’re planning to be in an area with no online coverage, such as on a long-distance flight or a sailing excursion, you can prepare your Windows 10 device to allow you to play offline. Most games available in Microsoft Store on your Windows 10 device support offline play, but check the details of the game to make sure yours is supported by searching for your game at http://www.xbox.com.
Most games with a campaign mode will be playable offline, but games with network co-op or multiplayer features will not work while you’re offline.
While playing offline, some features, such as the ability to purchase additional items from Microsoft Store, will not be available. Additionally, any leaderboards will be unavailable while you're offline.
Achievements
If you earn any achievements while playing offline, they will sync to your account the next time you sign in to Xbox Live on your device. You won’t see a toast notification letting you know that you unlocked the achievement until you sign in to Xbox Live on that device.
Cloud saves and offline game play
Before you go offline, connect to Xbox Live to sync your most recent game save to the cloud. While you play offline, your game save progress will continue to be saved locally, and it’ll sync the next time you sign in to Xbox Live. If you want to continue playing on a different device (or platform, if the game supports Xbox Play Anywhere), you’ll need to go online and connect to Xbox Live to allow your local saved game to sync with the cloud again.
If you’re on a Windows 10 device, your cloud saves will automatically start uploading once you’re signed in and connected to Xbox Live. Game save sync is usually fast, but allow a couple of minutes before you try playing on another device.