List of portable computer games

This is a list of computer games that do not require any kind of formal "installation" onto a computer's permanent storage device to be executed, and can be stored on a removable storage such as a USB flash drive and used on multiple computers. See also portable applications.

Action

 * Alientreasure (site) - 2D side scrolling space shooter where you defend your solar system against increasingly difficult masses of alien attackers with multiple levels, items, options, and powerups.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Bug Squish (site) - a simple, but addictive point and click game where you defend your arm against ever increasing waves of blood sucking insects.  Based on the game Blood Suckers for Mac OS.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, Linux, BeOS and others
 * Counter-Strike 2D (site) - A homebrew clone of the famous 'Counter-Strike Game'in 2D from bird's-eye-view.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Defendguin (site) - as Tux you fly about defending your Penguin brethren against the evil clutches of hundreds of airborne Bill Gates clones whose goal it is to turn them into ghastly penguin mutants.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, Linux, BeOS and others
 * LBreakout2 (site) - compact Breakout clone with many interesting bonuses, features, and items.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, and Linux
 * Liero Xtreme (site) - feature rich, unofficial sequel to the original Liero DOS game expanding and improving on many features. The game is downloaded as a folder and can be directly downloaded to your portable media.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Neo Sonic Godspeed (site) - Sonic the Hedgehog game clone
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * One Must Fall 2097 - 2D multiplayer, fighting robots
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Seek & Dread Online (site) - 2D multiplayer, which includes a variety of weapons and playing modes.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Space Invaders OpenGL (site) - 2D/3D game based on the old arcade classic Space Invaders
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Swarmers (site) - 3D game where you fly around in your airplane and shoot down bugs until they fly up and kill you.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Vectoroids (site) - a clone of the original Asteroids game from Atari where you shoot the Asteroids around you into smaller and smaller pieces until none are left.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Linux, BeOS, and others

Adventure

 * Battle for Wesnoth (site) - a turn-based strategy game where you gather and train new recruits into specialied and skilled warriors in order to eventually regain the throne of Wesnoth. Installation is the same as in Cube.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, Linux, and others
 * Bernard and Hank (site) - run and jump game similar to Super Mario where you try to steal back the deeds to your farm before a ruthless businessman builds a factory farm on them.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Crimson Fields (site) - an open-source, tactical game based off the popular game Battle Isle where you decide where and when to send your units in support of a variety of mission objectives.
 * Head Over Heels (game) (site)
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, Linux, and BeOS
 * Transcendence (video game) (site) - as pilot of a sapphire class cruiser you fly throughout the galaxy encountering pirates, outlaws, and slaves, strange alien lifeforms, and other creatures that may mean you well or ill. Game plays like the action adventure game Nethack and is largely based off it.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Vega Strike (site) - yet another 3D futuristic space based game where you a merchant travel across the an impressive, dynamic galaxy trying to make the most profit possible given certain limitations. Also included in the game are multiple mission modes, including: bounty hunt, patrol, battle, and escort and a variety of customizations to your ship.  Keep in mind it's a huge 199MB executable file.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, and Linux
 * Cave Story Cave Story, or Doukutsu Monogatari, is a Japanese freeware PC side-scrolling platformer game developed by StudioPixel. It has been translated into English by Aeon Genesis Translations and will have an official translation script published sometime in the near future. however the current translations work fine. the gameplay style is a mixture of nes/famicom game style very addicting
 * Compatible with: Windows

Board games

 * Mahjongg 3D Solitaire (site) - electronic version of the popular Chinese board game Mahjongg.
 * Compatible with: Windows, and Linux
 * Nagaskaki (site) - 2D chess program, which supports many advanced features
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Othello (game) (site) - electronic version of the strategic board game.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Slow Chess Blitz (site) - another 2D chess program, which in addition to supporting various levels of difficulty in many categories includes network support where you can play the game against others.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * XO (site) - electronic version of the board game Renju where you play against the computer.
 * Compatible with: Windows

Card games

 * Uno (site) - PC version of the card game where you can play against 1-3 computer players. Download executable file directly to your portable media.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Portable PokerStars (site) - Requires install, copy the directory to your USB drive, it will work as portable. While pokerstars.com may be a banned web address, the game uses other server addresses that may work from your place of employment.
 * Compatible with: Windows

Shooters

 * AssaultCube (site) - a total conversion of Cube set in a more realistic environment
 * Assault at Wounded Ankle (site) - as an American Indian of the Wild West you defend your tribe with a Gatling gun against hordes of American cavalry. From the setup file you can install the game directly onto your portable media. Start menu and desktop icons may appear after install, which can be deleted. Remember to create a folder to install the game files to, since this is not done for you automatically.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * BattleTanks II (site) - 3D game where drive about in one of three types of tanks shooting down your enemy and trying to take over their base before they regenerate. You can act as commander, a common foot soldier, or just observe the course of the battle from above.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Cube (site) - single and multi-player shooter which includes over 100 detailed original maps, level editing functionality, and various other items and features. To use, download the installer and extract it to your desktop.  Then delete the uninstall folder and drag it onto your portable media. Newer computers may be able to run Sauerbraten, Cube's successor.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, Linux, and FreeBSD
 * Counter Strike 2D (site) - Counter-Strike 2D is a 2D Clone of the most famous Multiplayer Game ever: Counter-Strike by Valve Software. Its difference to the original game: It is completely transferred to 2 Dimensions.
 * D-Day: Normandy (site) - 3D multiplayer online shooting game based on Quake II.
 * Compatible with: Windows and Linux
 * Idinaloq (site) - 3D rapid fire, first person space based shooting game with 4 levels.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Nexuiz (site) - 3D shooter using the DarkPlaces and Quake engine, which can being used as both a first person and multiplayer shooter and includes some impressive graphic backgrounds.
 * Compatible with: Windows and Linux
 * Doom - 3D Shooter developed in 1993 by ID Software. Note that most 3rd-party Doom add-ons and enhancements (such as Skulltag) are also portable.
 * Quake 3 - A game developed by ID software released in 1999, is known to play directly from the compact disk. Transferring the files from the disk to a USB flash drive will allow for another portable solution, rather than carrying the CD with you.
 * Quake 2 - Will play as long as you do the FULL install into your computer then simply copy all of the files onto a flash drive.
 * OpenArena (site) - open source Quake III arena clone along the lines of Cube and Nexuiz, although not nearly as far along in development.
 * Compatible with: Windows and Linux
 * Sauerbraten (site) - single and multi-player shooter which includes over 100 detailed original maps, level editing functionality, and various other items and features. To use, download the installer and extract it to your desktop.  Then delete the uninstall folder and drag it onto your portable media.  Be mindful of the computer you use this game on as, as it is relatively graphics intensive. Its predecessor, Cube, can be run on older hardware.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, Linux, and FreeBSD
 * Soldat (site) 2D shooter.  Simply install it into its own folder and it's portable.  Created by Michał Marcinkowski in 2002.  Has both singleplayer and multiplayer modes.  Shareware, but can be played both on and offline without purchasing.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Starsiege: Tribes can easily be turned into a portable application by the user. The user can easily download the full game from Vivendi Universal's web-site. site The game must then be installed and patched. The whole directory can then be moved or copied for use as a portable app without having to install the game on individual computers the game is played on. Brian "Ayavaron" Jeffrey Ross II made a zip containing the game in this form, it can be downloaded from here.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Tremulous (site) - as part of one of two races (either human or alien) you work with your other team members to attack and destroy the other team along with their means to respawn in this 3D game.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, and Linux
 * Unreal Tournament Demo(site)3D FPS. Once installed on computer may be copied to flashdrive and run with all settings saved.
 * War§ow (site) - 3D game based on Qfusion with cartoon-like visuals and various player modes
 * Compatible with: Windows and Linux
 * X Operations (site) - realistic 3D shooter where you are a special operative sent on over 33 missions.
 * Compatible with: Windows

Puzzle

 * Acter World (site) - Japanese puzzle game (an English manual can be found on the site) where you act as Princess Lina to catch the enemy soldiers in a Magic ring. The lzh archive can extracted or directly drawn onto your portable device.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Babble Deluxe (site) - come up with as many words as possible from the 25 letter board before time runs out.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Bricks2000 (site) - tetris clone. Though the program necessitates an initial system-wide installation.  You can easily drag the folder onto your portable media device after the fact and then delete it off your system.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Clicking (site) - click on groups of three or more blocks to make them disappear; the larger the groups the higher the points. Once extracted all other files besides Clicking.exe can be deleted.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Gem Drop X (site) - based on the original Gem drop for Atari you clear gems off the screen by grabbing three or more of the same color.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, Linux, BeOS and others
 * Neverball (site) - game where you roll a small ball through an obstacle course before the clock runs out; includes a level editor.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, Linux, and others'
 * Sudoku Portable (site) - the wildly popular and addictive puzzle game
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Within a Deep Forest (site) - as a small blue ball you (the hero) solve various puzzles in order to save the world from being frozen solid
 * Compatible with: Windows

Role playing

 * Fanta Scape (site) - with a team of several characters, each with their own individual strengths and weaknesses, you fight your way through 4 different worlds constantly updating and upgrading your characters to meet new challenges.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Goody The Remake (site) - as the bank robber Goody you steal money, buy tools, and find bank vault combinations in order to eventually rob the Bank of Spain all while avoiding the police.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Portable Guild Wars - Play Guild Wars on any computer, without installation. Note that you must own a copy of the game for access to the servers, and you need to temporarily install the full game on your personal computer to be able to copy the game folder onto the portable media. After copying the game folder, it can be uninstalled from your computer. (site)
 * Compatible with: Windows and Linux
 * Iter Vehemens ad Necem (site) - small but powerful 2D game where you a "rogue" gather items, items, and allies by advancing through increasingly difficult levels.
 * Compatible with: Windows and Linux (only portable on Windows)
 * Nethack - famed roguelike.
 * Compatible with: Cross-platform (may not be portable on all operating systems)
 * Runesword 2 (site) - turn based medieval game where you lead a party of unique characters across a wide open scape of land on one of 5 different adventures.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Shadowflare: Episode One (site) - as a mercenary you start out working to improve your skills, profit, and inventory and in so doing expand the game and your option in it. Similar to Diablo in its gameplay style.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Wandering Knights (site) - freeform hack and slash game with a loose plot line where the world is created around you.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * World of Warcraft - The game can be run on a Windows computer from any location without installing. Note that you must have an account to play, and you need to install the full game on a computer in order to copy the game directory onto the portable media. After copying the game folder, it can be uninstalled from the computer. When run on Windows systems, the game automatically creates registry entries under HKCU\Software\Blizzard Entertainment and HKLM\Software\Blizzard Entertainment. Patches for the game can be downloaded and applied as normal, provided the aforementioned registry entries exist.
 * Compatible with: Windows

Racing

 * GeneRally (site) - fairly customizable racing game where you race 2D cars with from 1 to 6 players using various tracks and settings
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Motocross The Force (site) - 3D off-roading motorcycle game where your objective is to complete the course in the shortest period of time possible, with 5 unique levels.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Stunt Playground (site) - drive your car about the racetrack performing different stunts in order to score points. There is also an editor included where you can create your own stunt playgrounds.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Sunday Drivers (site) - 3D racing game with cartoon style graphics, unlockable cars and multiple tracks, levels, and vehicles. The file can be downloaded directly to your portable media with no need to be extracted.
 * Compatible with: Windows

Simulation

 * Racer (site) - customizable where cars and tracks can be easily and realistically created. Download the installer and then install it to your desktop. From there copy all files on this folder to your portable media except uninstall and then launch Racer.exe
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, and Linux
 * The Ocean Battle (site) - Japanese fighter jet simulator consisting of three levels
 * Compatible with: Windows

Sports

 * SkiFree (site) - classic skiing game where you various obstacles and win points by performing tricks.
 * Compatible with: Windows

Strategy

 * Bontago (site) - create a shadow in order to reach a designated flag by building your tower up with variously sized blocks while also making sure your opponent doesn't get their first by way of specific items called "gifts".
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Falcon's Eye (site) - medieval, isometric role playing game where you compete for control of the mythic Falcon's Eye.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Linux, BeOS and others
 * Freeciv (site) - turn based strategy game where you vs. the computer and/or various players via a network and fight to decide who will become the greatest civilization.
 * Compatible with: Windows, Mac, and Linux
 * Lord Monarch (site) - as ruler of your domain you take into account various factors in order to expand your domain.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Master of Orion 2 - One of the finest (non-free) 4X strategy space games; can still be had from bargain bins in computer stores for little money, or downloaded from abandonware sites. Runs flawlessly (albeit a little slowly) off a thumbdrive with only minor editing of its configuration file.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Mineral Miner (site) - mining game where you acquire natural resources to sell for profit in order to by upgrades and modifications for your vehicle.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * OpenTTD (site) - create the ultimate transportation empire
 * Compatible with: Windows, Linux, Mac and others
 * Paradox Interactive strategy games - A series of interrelated grand strategy games including Crusader Kings, Europa Universalis, Victoria, and Hearts of Iron. The install directories can all be moved onto a portable device or other hard drive without any problem in running the game. Registry data is only used when patching or upgrading the software.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Tic-Tac-Toe (site) - simple open source adaptation of the popular pen and paper game.
 * Compatible with: Windows, and others

Super Mario

 *  Mario In Worlds Unknown 2 (site) - simple Mario clone with 8 stages.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Mega Mario (site) - clone of Super Mario Brothers, which expands or improves upon just about every feature of the original.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Super Arab (site) - unique derivation of a classic Mario game.
 * Compatible with: Windows
 * Super Bart World 3 (site) - French based Super Mario World clone with Bart as the main character. Can be downloaded directly to your portable media via the Setup file, though it may leave an entry on the start menu after download, which needs to be deleted. Remember to delete the uninstall file after download.
 * Compatible with: Windows


 * Many emulation programs such as ZSNES are portable.