Online Board Games:
Blocks (Just Like Tetris)
It may take some practice to master the controls for this Tetris-like game; you move pieces with letter keys and the spacebar. However, two nice features of this Java applet will help kids become pros at placing the blocks: a preview and a pause button.
Close Circuit: A Game of Micro-Strategy
The object of this game is to capture zones of micro-circuitry by hard-wiring tiny solenoid points with your mouse. Whoever captures the most zones wins, and you can either play the computer or an opponent. Make your own game with the customizing options.
Daka Game Page
Grouped together on one page are pointers to five Java-powered strategy games for kids. Test your skill at connecting four red coins in a row, making all the checkmarks in a grid disappear, arranging colors on a cube and removing marbles from a board.
Desdemona: Interactive Othello for the Web
Othello is a classic example of a game that only takes a minute to learn, but a lifetime to master. This online version offers five levels of play and several display options, along with game instructions and an FAQ.
Java on the Brain
Gathered together on one handy page is a collection of Java-powered strategy games, including marble solitaire, Mastermind, a full 3-D Rubik's cube and puzzle-type games called 3D-Blox (sic) and Autocrazy.
JTed
Yet another variation of Tetris, this Java game calls the falling colored blocks Teds. Beware the white ones; they're killers. The object of the game is to align Teds of the same color to eliminate them from the board -- easier said than done.
MasterWeb
This logic game has existed in one form or another for hundreds of years. It challenges players to decipher a code represented by a series of colored balls. The game ends once you solve the code or make 20 incorrect guesses.
Peg Game
You must make a move in this game before the screen displays a link to the instructions. There you'll learn that the object is to remove more of your pieces from the board than the computer, but the process is complicated by some tricky adjacency rules.
Stellar Crisis
A free, interactive war/strategy game, Stellar Crisis lets players create an empire name, enter a game, and either conquer foes or make friends with them. The game is similar to Risk, except that Stellar Crisis is played on a galactic scale.
Tablut Hnefatafl
The name may look a little unusual, but this board game, discovered in 1732, is believed to be an Old Norse game mentioned in the Icelandic sagas. The site includes background and rules, a Java-powered game board and ordering info for a Windows version.
World Wide Web Talking Page
The Hasbro company won't let the site creators call this thing a Ouiji board, but that's what it is. Consult the info page for suggestions on how to coax the best answers from the oracle and for links to other boards.
WWK Chinese Checkers
This Java-powered version of the family favorite offers three play levels -- beginner, advanced and expert -- and a two-player option if you want to pit your skills against a human opponent. There's even a sound option that you can turn on or off.