When you're trapped in a world filled with nightmares made flesh and are out for YOUR blood, your best bet is to... RUN FOR YOUR LIFE! Nightmare Runner puts you in the depths of hell in this run and jump shooting game built with a player level upgrade system and in-game pick ups to aid in your escape. With an ambient choir-meets-action movie soundtrack and an easy one button click interface, you get easily entranced into 2D world that flows smoothly with the music and the difficulty. You have an infinite clip of bullets and finite distance to travel for salvation so this evil can be trounced in a single, well-lit sitting.
Fly through a beautiful forest as Pixle, a mysterious multi form Shade. Along the way, collect power-ups and evolve into bigger, faster forms, while staying clear of shadow tunnels. Pixle is a short game with a beautiful sense of style and easy to learn gameplay.
It was once the dream of man to fly through the sky as the birds. Now, a cat is dreaming of it too. David Ngo and Don-Doung Quach, rocket scientist turned game designer and a programmer respectively, decided to bring some of their nerdiness to the iOS marketplace in the form of an action adventure game. Cannon Cat follows the story of Meo in his quest to save all the skyfish from the clutches of Evil Emu and his flightless bird army. A determined cat has never looked so cute being fired from a cannon, and it will fly straight in to your heart, free of charge. After eight months at the scratching post, a high-flying adventure is born that 'haz mad skillz' to go with the fantastic visuals and wonderful story for all ages.
A one button journey from cradle to grave with a mouse driven twist and decent production values. NTFusion takes us on a Canabalt-esque adventure as you nab power-ups and meditate on what's really important in life... aside from high scores, of course.
So, whales can't fly, right? Keep that in mind while playing Whale Trail, a colorful one button arcade "cave flying" game that has recently spread from iOS devices to include other mobile markets. Baron von Barry is chasing Willow the Whale, and in order to escape, she has to take to the skies, staying afloat by collecting bubbles scattered throughout the clouds. It's cute and colorful,
The title says it all: Canabalt HD is Canabalt in HD! The epically popular one button running game that originally appeared in browsers back in 2009 has made its way to the mobile scene before. There's even C64anabalt for the Commodore 64! Now, with bigger, more powerful mobile devices around, this high-definition version of the game comes along, featuring remade 3D backgrounds and smoother animation. Don't worry, though. It's still just as easy to leap out a window and smack into another building!
A physics-arcade game from Pastel Games, Mission to Uranus plays like a mouse-driven, one-button version of Lunar Lander. Touchy controls test the patience, but Mission to Uranus is a beautiful game. Just be sure to stock up on fuel in early levels, so you don't crash down the line. Uranus has enough debris as it is.
Games don't get much simpler than this; just hit a key to jump over an obstacle. Easy, right? Well, Chris Jeffrey's reflex-demanding one-button arcade game might just prove you wrong across twenty sadistic levels. With its snappy presentation and straight-forward gameplay, Space is Key 2 is hardly innovative, but it is a well polished little torture device for your reflexes. More than anything, it's a great illustration of how hard you can force players to push themselves at a simple concept just by implying it should be easy.
Playing a secret agent is always fun, even when it's pared down to a simple one-button game, like in Agent Turnright by Pencilkids. 16 levels of mini-games await you and your right pointer finger as you help Turnright work his way to defeating the boss and winning the girl. In how many clicks can you complete this adventure?
The middle of the first decade of the 2000s brought us an extremely well-made one button arcade browser game by the name of Twin Spin. The simple concept spawned two sequels shortly after, and then the series vanished for some time while the developers went on to other projects. Now, thanks to the lovely mobile iOS platform, TwinSpin is back, and it's just as fantastic as it ever was!
No one ever said being a bandit was easy. Especially not a righteous Beat Sneak Bandit! This impressively creative game from Simogo (Bumpy Road, Kosmo Spin) combines the most basic musical elements with a visually sparse but stunning art style. The gameplay is different from just about every other iOS game out there, and you'll absolutely fall in love with it from the very first level!
Trigger Knight is an experimental one-button RPG where your mouse button is all you need to keep a cute little warrior upgraded and healthy as she relentlessly charges towards the right side of the screen. A nice proof-of-concept that's fun for a coffee break and hopefully a precursor to a more fleshed-out version later.
Swift Stitch, from Sophie Houlden, author of some fan-favorite browser games like Linear RPG and BOXGAME, is a one button (almost) arcade game that's all about speed, direction, and crashing into walls because you got confused as to which way your ship was going to go when you pressed the "switch" button. Smart decisions and quick reflexes get you through this game, and if the 20 odd levels in the free browser demo get you excited, there's more than twice that content awaiting you in the full version!
In this one-button, simple-idea, action game of skill, you control a sleepwalker moving from the left edge to the right edge of the screen. Your only recourse to help save him from an untimely death from spikes and moving platforms is to press either [space] or click the left mouse button to stop him in his tracks. Your decisions involve when to stop him and for how long, so it's key to observe the level and plan accordingly. The music and graphics create a fitting atmosphere, setting you in this dreamland that could be a nightmare.
Straight from the ghastly hallows of Nitrome comes the hobbling horror of a humdinger, Stumped! As a hopping foot that can only make right turns, can you bounce your way to the exit while dodging piercing spikes, frightening firepits, and eerie eyeballs?
Don't you just hate when you wake up and find out that the sun is exploding? Yeah, me too. What with the shock waves of the supernova and the imminent threat of incineration, it just about ruins your whole day. Then you have to pack up everything into the family rocket ship and blast from world to world in your solar system, and because of the ever-approaching wall of flame, there's no time for sight-seeing. All you can do is try to stay one step ahead of the heat-death. Such is the premise of Run from the Sun, by FreakyZoid. And considering the title, it's kind of ironic that it's a game you'll want to run towards as quickly as possible.
Control an adorable unibrowed cycloptic hero in this twist on the RPG genre, killing monsters, finding weapons, collecting loot and exploring dungeons. The twist is, all the inputs are controlled with the repeated clicks of a single mouse button. Quite entertaining, if a little bit repetitious, and yet addictive, too.
Flabby Physics, by Every Day the Same Dream creator Paolo Percini, is a short and simple one button physics puzzle game. The goal is pretty obvious: move the ball to the star. The method for doing this is generally pretty obvious, too: use the [spacebar] to switch positions of the various on-screen blobs. Making the magic happen, though, will take some practice.
Following in the footsteps of Bob, it's... King Arthur? Yes, the liberator of Excalibur and avid collector of round tables has his own 'one click' action game. How many click does it take you to finish his adventure? And can you beat the records in the comments?
Poto and Cabenga are minding their own business, riding along and collecting golden feathers, when a giant skybeast swoops down and swallows Poto whole! Now you need to control both characters, racing along on the top and bottom of the screen, to eventually reunite horse and rider under usual circumstances with this challenging one button game of reflexes and action.
Enter The Dragon and face the Big Boss at the top of the Tower Of Death in this one-button game featuring a series of short mini-games. It's a challenge of concentration and timing, packaged with retro graphics and an air of simplicity. There is no doubt that sufficient practice will awaken the mouse-click Shinobi in you.
A one-button jump and run game, G-Switch takes the formula that made Canabalt so successful and adds an eponymous gravity-switching mechanic to create a twitchy, fast-paced experience with surprisingly zen-like results. It's a flawed masterpiece of a game, which is a shame because when it shines it really shines. More than just a clever combination of two well-tread game ideas, G-Switch is a reinvention.
One Button Bob is a side-scrolling action-platformer that uses just the left mouse button for control. Click. Click and hold. Click to stop. Rapidly click. Click, hold, and release. You get the idea. Make it through each screen using a combination of trial-and-error and careful timing!
An experiment in concept, Record Tripping is a short game that you control using your mouse scroll wheel. Play a series of mini-games that take you through Alice in Wonderland with one very pretty presentation. The whole package is a cool little showcase of a neat idea with lovely trappings, well worth the short time it takes to complete.
In a sketchy, notepad world, a doodled character moves with ninja-like precision over the landscape and deadly terrain. Under birds, over spikes, avoiding pitfalls and collecting floating clocks en route to the exit is a lot more difficult than it seems in this tricky one-button platformer.
It's time to kick back, relax, and get ready to be wooed by the trademark soft visuals and simple, addictive casual gameplay of Ferry Halim's newest Orisinal flash game, Drifting Afternoon. Guide a kitten racing through a field on a windy day leaping from bubble to bubble as you try to rack up the highest score.
Adam Atomic's "minimalist" action/arcade side-scrolling game about a man fleeing the destruction of his city is both remarkably well presented, and fiendishly addictive. Vault over the obstacles in your path as you try to stay alive and get the high score. Those giant robots rampaging in the background? They're not there to play patty-cake, so we'd keep moving, if we were you.
Older material from SKT Products, known for oddball classics like the Moai games and Mr. Sweets, Escargone brings you 30 levels of one-switch snail platforming. Although it drags a bit in the beginning, the patient player will be rewarded when it hits its stride in later levels.
Onekey is a character-based platform game played with only "one key", and thus the mystery of the title is solved. The catch is that you can't affect the main character directly. Instead, you control various objects in the environment while he blunders around falling off of things. This is a good one.
Immediately upon opening Ferry Halim's latest, Sunny Day Sky, you feel as if the sun has just come out, the birds are singing and all is right with the world. Grab your trusty umbrella and embark on a journey cross-country. Take a leap (by clicking the mouse) and sail as far as the winds (and your umbrella) will take you. But be sure not to land in traffic, land ON it! If you land between vehicles your journey is over, and so is the game.
Stardrone is a genre mashup download game, featuring a mix of elements including arcade action, pinball, breakout, gravitational physics and collect-the-objects. Although it might sound a little confusing, the game simply boils down to you (a ball) lighting up stars to reach an objective, and it's remarkably fun to play!
Fans might remember TBA as the ultra-fast-paced, eye-popping, ball-shooting game with an insane techno soundtrack, all of which blended together quite nicely to create a surprisingly simple and fun game. "TBA Two" grows from the same roots as its predecessor and surpasses it in many ways. If you're a fan of the original, it's a safe bet you're going to love this sequel. If you've never played the original, it's a game that's definitely worth checking out.
At first glance, TBA appears to be of a game of extreme simplicity. As you blast through the first level of this arcade action game, doing nothing but striking the space bar until the ball flies into the goal, you may wonder "What's the point?" But don't let any first impression fool you. Once you get going, the game really shows it's true colors.
It's official. D_of_I has gone off the deep end. His cat has gotten bored shooting his bow and poling himself about and wants to travel across the ocean, so he enlists the help of a dolphin to provide the locomotion, while he hangs on for the ride of his life in this excellent one-button game!
Timed Climb is yet another simple idea made into a unique and challenging Flash game. Using only a single button for platform jumping, the objective is to reach higher platforms to 'conquer' them. Timing is everything in this game, as the name suggests, with one bad jump often ending it all. An addictive game with a novel high score system.
This next game is one of a few quick posts that deserve your attention, if but for a few moments of your time.
UFO Panic is another GlobZ mini-game that is simple to play and uses only a single button to play. And while there isn't much depth to the one-level gameplay, there is just the right number of power-ups and UFOs thrown in to keep the play...
Just when you thought you had mastered the art of waddling back and forth in a straight line across the screen using only one button, the folks at GlobZ release 40 new and more difficult levels for you to waddle through. Truly for the hardcore and not for anyone who gets annoyed when frustrated by a game. Level 37 is a killer. Consider yourself warned.
From the excellent French Flash games site, Globz.com, comes this creative action arcade game with a unique and addictive gameplay mechanic. The objective in Twin Spin is to 'walk' a baton around the play field and explode all of the balloons that exist for each level.
3D-SF Cave is a fun little Java applet game that can be played quickly and easily in any Java-enabled browser. Although there is not much to the gameplay, the game's no-frills presentation cuts right to the chase.
The game is played from a first-person perspective, flying through a cave. Walls of...
One of my favorite casual games that I keep returning to when I have just a few moments to spare is an early Orisinal game called The Amazing Dare-Dozen. The object of the game is quite simple: climb as high as you can by repeatedly landing an egg into the basket above.
Enter Hamure-su. A very simple game from Japan in which you guide the little hamster around the track by clicking the mouse. For as long as you hold the mouse button down, the hamster will turn to the left. Run off the course and the game is over. How far can you make the little bugger go?