For some reason, flash games have always had a certain appeal to them. Although big title games, like The Elder Scrolls, or Battlefield, have huge teams working on them, and can have incredible graphics, they're not always so capable of drawing me in as simple flash games can be.
I think there are 3 main types of flash game that I really find addictive: adventure, puzzle and arcade.
Adventure games normally don't appeal to me. I don't dislike them or anything- I just tend to like having more control over what's going on, rather than letting the game tell me a story. That said, there is the occasional flash adventure game that really makes me want to keep going. I'm not sure exactly what it is about them- probably the aesthetics, along with the amount of exploring there is to do. One big thing, though, is that I don't want a challenge. Those indie platformer adventure games, despite putting a lot of work into the aesthetics, just really don't do it for me- from what I've seen, the controls are a bit too awkward, and they usually have the player do difficult jumps, or race the clock. The main thing though- I like to feel as though I'm progressing. Unlocking new abilities is a great way to keep things from getting repetitive. One game I remember playing is called Endeavour- though it's worth noting I hardly remember it at this point.
Puzzle games are just... Something else. Now, when I say puzzle, there's a very specific kind I mean, and I'm not sure that's quite the right word for it. Games like Bejeweled- very simple mechanics, yet strangely addicting. There's one game in particular (Chain Reaction Shooter) which I've probably logged at least a hundred hours on. It's so simple, and takes so little brain power, that it makes the perfect thing to play when you're only half-busy. For instance- when I used to play that tabletop game that I previously mentioned, we always played through Skype. There was a delay between messages, and since (for whatever reason) we never called, it got very boring. I ended up putting on music and playing Chain Reaction Shooter, only looking at messages when they appeared. (for the record- I just tried the game again, for the first time in months, and I can safely say I'm a lot worse at it with a touchpad than with a mouse).
The last type I'll be talking about is the arcade game. These can vary a lot from game to game, but the same basic principles apply- fairly simple mechanics, with room for a lot of features, and some sort of upgrading system. Something like Upgrade Complete, or Infectonator- they're not too complex, but I've played through both of them at least a few times (I realise "both of them" is misleading, since both have sequels- what I mean is that I've played through both series.) Another example would be Pandemic, because it illustrates a good point- I want to keep playing the game to see the unlockable content, if nothing else. I would play the game multiple times, as different disease types, trying to see all of the symptoms you could buy.
The main point here- flash games, by nature, tend to have very simple game mechanics, stylised (but not too overproduced) graphics, and in some cases, lots of content to discover. They're designed to be addictive, and I both love and hate them for it.
Anyways, hopefully you enjoyed today's post! If you find yourself stuck on any of the games I mentioned... Don't say I didn't warn you.
