Checked 23 October 2026 · 6 games · free to start

Strategy games that run in a browser tab, labelled before you start

Read the label before you start a war. PlayWharf lists 6 free strategy games, from a Generals.io match of a few minutes to a Planets.nu empire that runs for months. All 6 opened in an ordinary browser on 23 October 2026, and each gets the same label: how long one game lasts, how often it wants you back, what it sells and who can message you.

See the six gamesPick one for your week

A paper campaign map on a table at night, with red and blue wooden blocks, an hourglass, dividers and a laptop showing a coloured map
A campaign map under a lamp, with wooden army blocks and a laptop showing territories. Illustration made for PlayWharf, not a screenshot.

The stack: six games, from minutes to months

All 6 opened on 23 October 2026
  1. PW-01Territorial.ioA few minutesNone
  2. PW-02Generals.io5 to 15 minutes (est.)None
  3. PW-03Lichess2 minutes to weeksNone live; set days per move in correspondence
  4. PW-04webDiplomacyWeeks to months (est.)Once a day (est.)
  5. PW-05Freeciv-webHours solo; up to a year in LongTurnNone solo; daily in LongTurn
  6. PW-06Planets.nuMonths (est.)1 to 7 times a week

The games

Six games, one label each

Each container carries the same plate: one game's length, how often you need to look in and how many players share a map. The stickers under the plate come from each game's shop, terms and chat settings as they stood on 23 October 2026.

Quick matchesAgainst the computer

Territorial.io

David Tschacher · app since 2020

PW-01Territorial.io
One game
A few minutes
Check in
None
Players
Dozens per map
  • Paid membership
  • Shows adverts
  • Public chat
  • Try it without an account
  • Phone app

Real-time land grab, from 1v1 to battle royale. A single-player scenario ran with no sign-up at all.

Open the game page →

Quick matches

Generals.io

MUGA Gaming, LLC · online since 2017

PW-02Generals.io
One game
5 to 15 minutes (est.)
Check in
None
Players
2 or more
  • Paid membership
  • Shows adverts
  • Public chat
  • Username, no email

Capture the other generals on a grid. 1v1, 2v2 and free-for-all; a username is enough.

Open the game page →

Quick matchesTurns over daysAgainst the computer

Lichess

Lichess, a French charity run by volunteers · since 2010

PW-03Lichess
One game
2 minutes to weeks
Check in
None live; set days per move in correspondence
Players
2 per game
  • Players message you
  • Try it without an account
  • Sells nothing
  • No adverts
  • Phone app

Free chess with no adverts or shop. Play the computer with no account.

Open the game page →

Turns over daysAgainst the computer

webDiplomacy

Kestas Kuliukas and volunteer developers · code public since 2011

PW-04webDiplomacy
One game
Weeks to months (est.)
Check in
Once a day (est.)
Players
7 per game
  • Shows adverts
  • Players message you
  • Daily turns
  • Try it without an account
  • Sells nothing

Seven players, secret orders, no dice. A game against six AI players needs no account.

Open the game page →

Turns over daysAgainst the computer

Freeciv-web

Freeciv volunteers · Freeciv since 1996

PW-05Freeciv-web
One game
Hours solo; up to a year in LongTurn
Check in
None solo; daily in LongTurn
Players
Up to 20 seen
  • Players message you
  • Daily turns
  • Try it without an account
  • Sells nothing
  • No adverts

A civilisation from 4000 BC. Single-player with no account, or one turn a day in LongTurn.

Open the game page →

Turns over daysAgainst the computer

Planets.nu

Geographical Media Inc. · app since 2015

PW-06Planets.nu
One game
Months (est.)
Check in
1 to 7 times a week
Players
11 in most games
  • Email account needed
  • Paid membership
  • Paid perks in play
  • Players message you
  • Turns on set days
  • Phone app

A space empire for 11 players, with turns on set days and games that run for months. Needs an email account.

Open the game page →

Filter the games and see the fact table

Game picker

Find a game that fits the time you have

Answer 4 questions about your time and your device. The list reorders from a few-minute Territorial.io match to the once-a-day turns of webDiplomacy, and each line says why.

How often can you look in?
How long should one game last?
On what?
Spending

    The stickers

    What each label on a container means

    An amber sticker is something to know before you start; a green one is good news. Each comes from the game's own shop, terms or chat settings, checked on 23 October 2026.

    • Email account needed

      Only Planets.nu asks for an email address before the first game; the other 5 let you try first.

    • Paid membership

      Monthly plans paid with real money, in Territorial.io, Generals.io and Planets.nu. Prices run from $2 to $20 a month, and each game page says what the plan adds.

    • Paid perks in play

      In Planets.nu the paid plan changes play: Premium lifts starbase tech past level 7 and adds races.

    • Shows adverts

      Adverts appear in Territorial.io, Generals.io and webDiplomacy. The paid plans of Territorial.io and Generals.io remove them.

    • Public chat

      A chat room open to everyone sits on the first screen of Territorial.io and Generals.io.

    • Players message you

      Players write to you inside a game or by private message in Lichess, webDiplomacy, Freeciv-web and Planets.nu. Each game page lists the mute, block and report tools.

    • Daily turns

      Turns in webDiplomacy and Freeciv-web resolve on a timer of about 24 hours, so expect one visit a day.

    • Turns on set days

      On Planets.nu the server hosts turns on set weekdays, from once a week to every day.

    • Try it without an account

      A real game with no account is possible in Territorial.io, Lichess, webDiplomacy and Freeciv-web.

    • Username, no email

      In Generals.io a username is enough; no email is asked for.

    • Sells nothing

      No shop, membership or premium currency in Lichess, webDiplomacy and Freeciv-web, which live on donations.

    • No adverts

      We saw no adverts in Lichess and Freeciv-web on 23 October 2026.

    • Phone app

      An official phone app exists for Territorial.io, Lichess and Planets.nu. webDiplomacy and Generals.io run in a phone browser instead.

    An adult and a teenager at a kitchen table looking at a laptop with a territory map and a chat panel, the adult pointing
    A parent and a teenager looking at a map of territories and a chat panel together. Illustration made for PlayWharf, not a screenshot.

    Before the first turn

    4 things to check before your first turn

    • Pick the rhythm before the gamewebDiplomacy and Freeciv LongTurn expect orders every day, and Planets.nu hosts turns on set weekdays. webDiplomacy records missed turns in a reliability rating, and Freeciv LongTurn players idle for two early turns can lose their nation.
    • Type the address with careFreeciv-web lives at www.freecivweb.com. On 23 October 2026 its old address, freecivweb.org, showed a slot-machine site. The buttons on our game pages go to the official sites, with no referral codes.
    • Know what the money buysThree games sell nothing at all. Territorial.io and Generals.io sell memberships that remove adverts. Planets.nu Premium changes play: tech past level 7 and extra races.
    • Expect strangers to writeTerritorial.io and Generals.io show public chat on the first screen. Lichess has a kid mode that hides public chats, and webDiplomacy has shared anonymised messages for AI research.

    Play safe: chat, spending and time →

    Dock notes

    Why these 6 games, and which ones we dropped

    All notes →
    1. 23 October 2026Why War.app, the old Warzone, is not on the list
    2. 23 October 2026Why the Supremacy war games are missing
    3. 23 October 2026The Freeciv address that now leads to a slot site
    How we checkMethodWhat we opened, where each fact comes from, and what is an estimate. QuestionsFAQAccounts, phones, premium currency and paid random items. Two at a timeComparePut any two of the six games side by side. PicturesArt creditsHow the illustrations were made.