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Games That You Can Play for Free

Games give people a chance to exercise their brains, build rapport with others, learn new skills and just have fun. It is human nature to play, according to the online consumer information site "Help Guide." For children, play also sets the stage for lifelong learning, making complicated things seem less so, and helping to make repetitive drills fun instead of tedious. Despite the fact that it sometimes seems like games must be costly to be enjoyable, in reality, many games cost nothing at all yet provide many hours of entertainment for the players.

Outdoor Games
- Games that are played outdoors offer the chance to improve physical fitness and burn off excess energy. Some outdoor games require some accessories, such as a ball, but these can often be borrowed for free from the library or parks department. Such games include volleyball, basketball and touch football. Other free, outdoor active games that have stood the test of time are kick-the-can, hide and seek, tag and red rover. A scavenger hunt can be adapted to almost any age group. Marco Polo is a water game that can be played by any number of players.
Brain Games
- Guessing games have long been popular pastimes. The Native Americans had a game called Pass the Stone, where a player has to guess what stones the player next to her is holding. Online memory games such as Metro Match are played like the Concentration card game, with players making matches from hidden cards or tiles that can only be revealed in pairs. Simon Says is a free game on the University of Washington website where a player must repeat a random pattern of lights and sounds that increase every round until the player makes a mistake.
Car Games
- Travel time can be difficult with kids, especially if the trip is long. Car games help to pass the time, giving passengers eager to arrive something to think about besides how long they have been sitting. In a rural setting play Counting Cows, where kids can score points by counting cows along the way. Horses are worth double and fire engines and schools add points as well. License Plate Bingo challenges players to find plates from as many different states as possible.
Learning Games
- Many games are designed with the intent of making learning easier or more fun. Educational sites abound on the Internet, offering math games, spelling, grammar, English, Spanish, science and more. Younger kids can play such games as Bug Math and Math Man and older kids can travel around on the Internet seeking the answers to questions posed on various subjects. Teachers and parents can also create online scavenger hunt games to introduce kids to online research concepts.

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