I cannot count the countless hours over the years that I’ve wasted playing stupidly addictive online flash and java games. I swear sometimes that the people that build them implement the same kind of human psychology techniques used in casino slot machines. The games are fun, colorful, they (usually) load pretty quick in a browser, and you can normally play a game in 2-5 minutes or less. Usually, you want to play again (and again, and again) to see if you can do better. Well, leave it to c|Net, they wrote a guide to the 10 Most Addictive Online Flash Games Ever Made. The article is 10 pages, and the reason I wrote this post was because many of the games hit close to home for me, having played them for countless hours. So – I’m going to give you some quick links here to the ones that I enjoyed the most. If you want the full list, just visit that last link I gave to get the full article.

Play Bejeweled
Wow, did I ever waste countless hours on end with this game. Probably one of my all-time favorites. I actually like this game more than I did Tetris back in the day because it seems a bit more fun and fast paced. My favorite type of “puzzle” game.

Play Bowman
This game is a bit more skillful. I can remember spending hours on end with this thing to try and get the perfect shot. Calculating that pefect angle and power combination was extremely difficult.

Play LineRider
This game has a cult following all it’s own. Linerider is insanely addictive, and I’ve previously written many articles about it here on The Smorgasbord.

Play Portal
There is an incredible amount of sophistication built into this game, it reminds me of the old days of the Nintendo.

Yeti Sports
This reminds of a bunch of ‘Snowman’ games I played before. I good one to test your skill level.

There you have it – the 5 online flash or java games I love best (out of c|Net’s list of 10). I’m sure I’m forgetting something that didn’t make their list. Can you remember any that we didn’t? Post your favorite online browser games in the comments now and share with everyone!