Back to Crookstaff Fell
When the mist comes down the fell

Eight games for a mist-bound day
while the sheep wait out the cloud

Some mornings the cloud sits so low on the fell that no handler can see the pen gate, and the trial is called off before the first whistle. Then Sprack curls up under the farmhouse table and the laptop comes out. Her eight free picks take in a farming village of old, a football club, a market run by players, a monster hunt, a tank base, two long medieval campaigns and one noisy squad battle; Enlisted is a free download, and the other seven load in a browser tab.

8free games for misty days
7run in a browser tab, no client
5also offer an official phone app
My Little Farmies key art
Sprack's farmyard pick

My Little Farmies

Combat-free medieval farm village · Farm, town & zoo

A medieval village sim with no fighting at all. Fields are sown, workshops kept busy and raw harvests turned into wares for the villagers, and the settlement spreads as each chain of crafts gets longer, never by conquest. Sprack picked it first because it is the nearest thing to the farm below the fell: every season a few more fields, a few more roofs and nobody in a rush.

Good for
Folk who would rather mill flour than storm walls.
A usual sitting, start to finish
A look-in with the morning milking and another at dusk
What it runs on today
Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Cost
Free to play; optional in-game purchases.
Your first session
  1. Plant the nearest fields before building anything grand.
  2. Keep workshops busy whenever you close the tab.
  3. Follow one production chain to the end before starting the next.
Play My Little Farmies freeOpens mylittlefarmies.upjers.com/en in a new tab

Seven more for the days the whistle stays in the pocket

Sim Companies key artBusiness & tycoon

Sim Companies

Raw-materials-to-retail company sim

A deliberately unhurried business sim. You build a company from raw materials through production to shops of your own, and every price on the market moves because other players moved it. It suits anyone who likes to plan a long way ahead and watch the numbers settle.

  • A few unhurried check-ins a day
  • Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Good for & first steps

Good for: Patient planners who enjoy a long-horizon economy.

Your first session
  1. Pick one simple product and learn its inputs first.
  2. Study a few days of market prices before you set your own.
  3. Grow production only when your sales can keep up.
Play Sim Companies freeOpens simcompanies.com
Trophy Manager key artSport & management

Trophy Manager

Touchline-detail football manager

A football manager with a lot of control on the touchline. You watch matches live or replay them later, shout detailed instructions, give each player a training programme of his own and stretch the budget across the transfer market, and every two years a national side may be yours to apply for.

  • Ten to twenty minutes before each match
  • Desktop browser
Good for & first steps

Good for: Tacticians who like to shout every instruction themselves.

Your first session
  1. Study the squad before changing the formation.
  2. Give your key players their own training programmes.
  3. Keep an eye on the budget before bidding for anyone.
Play Trophy Manager freeOpens trophymanager.com
Fallen Sword key artRole-play & adventure

Fallen Sword

Zone-by-zone monster-hunting RPG

A classic role-playing game of hunting monsters zone by zone, with snowfields at one end of the map and volcanic plains at the other. Blacksmithing or alchemy becomes your trade, other players turn up for duels, and an auction house and a buff market keep the next level always in sight.

  • Twenty minutes or a whole wet evening
  • Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Good for & first steps

Good for: Players who like a straightforward climb with depth behind it.

Your first session
  1. Hunt in the early zones until the controls feel natural.
  2. Choose a crafting profession that fits your hero.
  3. Check the auction house before selling anything cheaply.
Play Fallen Sword freeOpens fallensword.com
War Commander key artStrategy & war

War Commander

Hands-on modern-war base raider

A modern-war base builder where a raid is never left to resolve on its own: each tank and infantry squad moves under your hand while the attack unfolds. Between raids you patch walls, shift turrets about and work through blueprints from events.

  • Half an hour of raiding and rebuilding
  • Desktop browser
Good for & first steps

Good for: anyone who would rather steer the fighting by hand.

Your first session
  1. Get the base walls and turret lines sorted before any raid.
  2. Learn to handle a small squad against soft targets first.
  3. Rebuild between attacks rather than all at once.
Play War Commander freeOpens kixeye.com/game/warcommander/home
Lords & Knights key artStrategy & war

Lords & Knights

Real-time medieval castle realm

Medieval strategy on a big shared map where everything happens in real time: castles to raise, resources to manage and wars to wage. One castle becomes a small realm, and alliances settle who holds the land.

  • A few quick looks between other jobs
  • Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Good for & first steps

Good for: Strategists happy to tend a realm for months.

Your first session
  1. Strengthen your first castle before expanding.
  2. Never leave a resource building idle overnight.
  3. Join an alliance before your borders meet a rival's.
Play Lords & Knights freeOpens lordsandknights.com
Khan Wars key artStrategy & war

Khan Wars

Twelve-nation medieval empire game

A long-running empire game with 12 medieval nations to pick from, every one with its own bonus for economy, fighting or trade. Barracks hold as many as 28 unit types, while guilds join forces to storm citadels and keep the ground they win.

  • A daily check-in over many months
  • Desktop browser; mobile app also available
Good for & first steps

Good for: Loyal types who pick a banner and keep it.

Your first session
  1. Compare all twelve nation bonuses before picking one.
  2. Get the economy humming before you muster a large army.
  3. Find a guild early, since sieges need a team.
Play Khan Wars freeOpens khanwars.com
Enlisted key artAction & arcade

Enlisted

1940s squad-command shooter

The loudest card on the farmhouse table, and the only pick that wants a client instead of a tab. A small squad of soldiers obeys your commands through 1940s campaigns and wider team battles, and you hop between them as the fighting shifts. The free client runs on Windows PCs, PlayStation and Xbox.

  • One or two battles before tea
  • Free PC download (Windows); also on PlayStation 4/5 and Xbox One/Series X/S
Good for & first steps

Good for: Anyone after noisy team-based military action.

Your first session
  1. Fetch the free client from Enlisted's own website.
  2. Keep your squad together in the opening matches.
  3. Rotate through different squads until one feels right.
Play Enlisted freeOpens enlisted.net

All eight laid out like entries on a trial card

Game on Sprack’s listWhich kind of gameHow briskly it moves onOther players on the courseA usual sitting, start to finishWhat it runs on today
My Little FarmiesCombat-free medieval farm villageGentle, one workshop at a timeA village that is yours aloneA look-in with the morning milking and another at duskDesktop browser; mobile app also available
Sim CompaniesRaw-materials-to-retail company simDeliberately slow, like a long fell walkA market run entirely by other playersA few unhurried check-ins a dayDesktop browser; mobile app also available
Trophy ManagerTouchline-detail football managerSteady, one match day at a timeLeagues full of real managers like youTen to twenty minutes before each matchDesktop browser
Fallen SwordZone-by-zone monster-hunting RPGSteady, zone by zoneDuels, trading and a busy buff marketTwenty minutes or a whole wet eveningDesktop browser; mobile app also available
War CommanderHands-on modern-war base raiderBursts of hands-on battleRaids on other players' basesHalf an hour of raiding and rebuildingDesktop browser
Lords & KnightsReal-time medieval castle realmLive on the map, week after weekAlliances on one large mapA few quick looks between other jobsDesktop browser; mobile app also available
Khan WarsTwelve-nation medieval empire gameA long campaign that asks for loyaltyGuilds laying siege togetherA daily check-in over many monthsDesktop browser; mobile app also available
Enlisted1940s squad-command shooterLoud, quick team battlesTwo teams of live playersOne or two battles before teaFree PC download (Windows); also on PlayStation 4/5 and Xbox One/Series X/S

Cost for all eight: free to play, while each one sells optional extras in-game.

01

Free to start and free to stay

All eight are free to join, and someone who never spends can carry on for months; the village, the company, the club, the zones, the base, the castles, the nations and the squads all come with the free game.

Studios earn from optional extras that nobody is obliged to buy, such as premium currency or skipping a timer. A family sharing one laptop can usually turn purchases off in each studio's account settings.

02

Your first misty afternoon

The button on every card leads to the official home of that game in a fresh tab. Seven ask you to register briefly and then play right there; Enlisted wants its free client on your PC first.

Nearly every one begins with a guided opening. Let it walk you round the course once, the way a young dog learns the field; it teaches menus and resources faster than wandering off alone.

03

Quick runs or long campaigns

With Enlisted and War Commander you are steering the action from the opening second, and Fallen Sword repays a spare half hour of monster hunting.

Lords & Knights, Khan Wars, Sim Companies and Trophy Manager reward steady planning, and a daily ten minutes does more for them than one marathon evening. My Little Farmies sits happily in between.

04

Keep every login on a short lead

Every studio keeps a login of its own; type yours only on that game's real web address. Never reuse a password between two games, and add the extra login check by text or app whenever one is available.

No genuine helpdesk wants your password. A message offering free in-game currency in exchange for your sign-in details comes from someone hoping to steal the account, so report it and leave it unanswered.

How Sprack sorted the eight

  • Seven load in a plain desktop browser tab, Enlisted alone needs a free download, and each card spells out which sort it is.
  • No game asks for money at the door, and the heart of each one is reachable without spending a penny.
  • Some suit ten minutes over a mug of tea, others a whole wet afternoon, so there is something for a short wait and a long one.
  • Every game still has a studio tending it, so the markets, leagues, kingdoms and battle queues stay busy with real people.

Seven of the eight play straight away in a desktop browser. Sim Companies, My Little Farmies, Fallen Sword, Lords & Knights and Khan Wars have an optional official mobile app too; Trophy Manager and War Commander are desktop browser games. Enlisted differs: it is a free Windows PC client, and PlayStation and Xbox owners can play it on console.

Nothing to start. All eight are free to play, the main game is there without paying, and buying anything inside a game is up to you alone.

No. Eight independent studios build and run them; every card's button simply links to the game's official home.

No. Every game comes from a different studio with its own registration, so you sign up for each one separately.

My Little Farmies, with its fields, workshops and no fighting at all. Sim Companies is just as unhurried if you would rather run a business than a farm.

Yes. Trophy Manager lets you set the tactics and training, follow matches live and apply for a national side every two years.

Enlisted and War Commander. In Enlisted you fight alongside your squad, and in War Commander you steer the tanks and infantry yourself during every raid.