20 games · free · no signup
Give Your Brain a Workout
20 Mahjong, card and board games that open straight in the browser — nothing to download, no account. Rules and tips sit under every one, so you can start something you have never played.
Mahjong
Match tiles, clear the board, keep your focus sharp.
Card games
Trick-taking and solitaire classics, dealt fresh every round.
Classic
Arcade and board staples that never needed an update.
What you can play here
A Clockwork Brain is a collection of 20 tile, card and board games, split into three groups: Mahjong, card games, and classic arcade and board titles. Each game has its own page with the game itself on top and the rules, objective and a few tactical tips underneath.
Mahjong — 6 games
All of them are Mahjong Solitaire: you remove free tiles in identical pairs until the layout is clear. Mahjong Solitaire is the standard version, and Mahjong Titans is the one Windows 7 shipped with. Mahjong Connect changes the rule — pairs have to be joined by a path with no more than two turns — while Mahjong Impossible keeps the classic rules on much denser boards. Black and White Dimensions puts the tiles on a cube you rotate, and Mahjong Halloween is the same puzzle with seasonal artwork.
Card games — 6 games
Three are open solitaires, where every card is face up from the start and the outcome depends on planning rather than luck: FreeCell, Baker’s Game, which builds by suit instead of alternating colours, and Eight Off, which is stricter again. The other three are trick-taking games against computer opponents: Hearts, where the aim is to collect as few points as possible; Spades, where you bid your tricks before the hand and play with an AI partner; and Euchre, a fast two-against-two game with a 24-card deck.
Classic and arcade — 8 games
Tetris Classic, Bubble Shooter and Pinball are the reflex end of the list. The rest are board games you play against the computer: Connect Four, Tic-Tac-Toe, Reversi, Gomoku, and Xiangqi, the Chinese form of chess.
Pick one by what you want out of it
- Quiet ten minutes. Mahjong Solitaire or Bubble Shooter — no timer, no opponent.
- Logic with no luck involved. FreeCell, Eight Off, Baker’s Game.
- Someone to beat. Hearts, Spades, Euchre, Reversi, Xiangqi.
- Speed and reaction. Tetris Classic, Pinball.
- Two minutes flat. Tic-Tac-Toe, Connect Four.
How it works
- Free to play, no registration, nothing to install.
- Everything is HTML5 and runs in Chrome, Safari, Firefox and Edge, on desktop, tablet and phone.
- Tile, card and board games are played by clicking or tapping. Tetris Classic uses the arrow keys.
- Rules sit on each game page; longer guides and background are in the blog.
Questions we get asked
Still stuck? Write to us.
Are the games free, and do I need an account?
All 20 games on A Clockwork Brain are free to play and none of them ask you to register. There is nothing to download or install either — click a game, wait a second or two for it to load, and play.
Do the games work on a phone or tablet?
Yes. Every game is HTML5, so it runs in Chrome, Safari, Firefox and Edge on desktop, tablet and phone. Mahjong, solitaire and board games are played by tapping or clicking; Tetris Classic uses the arrow keys, so it is easier on a device with a keyboard.
What is the difference between Mahjong and Mahjong Solitaire?
Mahjong is a four-player game where you draw and discard tiles to build a winning hand, similar in shape to rummy. Mahjong Solitaire is the single-player puzzle built from the same tile set: you remove free tiles in identical pairs until the layout is clear. Everything in the Mahjong section here is the solitaire kind.
Where do I find the rules if I have never played a game before?
Every game page has the objective, the rules and a few tactical tips below the game itself. Longer guides — how to play FreeCell, Hearts, Spades or Mahjong Solitaire, plus the history behind them — live in the blog.
Do these games actually train your brain?
They give working memory, pattern recognition and forward planning a workout, which is why tile and card puzzles are a common way to keep the mind busy. They are not medical treatment and no browser game will raise your IQ — pick one you enjoy and the attention it demands takes care of itself.