A browser game is a game that uses a browser interface and usually does not require the installation of additional applications on the computer, except for the browser itself and sometimes a plug-in for it. Browser games can be divided into single player , multiplayer and massively multiplayer .
Single-player browser games
The most common games in the single-player class are Adobe Flash games . Recently, comparable capabilities have become available without plugins thanks to technologies from the HTML5 group . Previously, they were replaced by Java games. Single-player browser games are generally straightforward and easy to learn. Most of these games can be classified as casual .
Multiplayer browser games
This class includes games that imitate board games such as chess, backgammon , and card games . Such games can be played together (against each other) or with several partners. The browser provides communication between the players through the game server . The game may require the simultaneous presence of all players participating in the game party, or not. In the latter case, moves are made by each player in turn at a convenient time and are saved on the game server.
Massively multiplayer browser games
In such games, hundreds, thousands, or tens of thousands of players interact with each other. In most games of this class, the interface is made in the form of ordinary HTML pages with text and images. Minimal interactivity (usually various timers and chat ) is provided with JavaScript . A number of games use Flash technology , which before HTML5 made it possible to make the game more attractive in appearance, however, it introduces limitations and disadvantages inherent in Flash applications, such as overlapping standard browser functions(go back and forth, page refresh), delays associated with the loading of flash movies, which usually require a larger (than HTML and images) amount of data transferred to the browser. Recently, more and more games have begun to appear, based on the free Unity 3D game engine , which has made it possible to raise the bar for the quality of browser games to a new level and bring them very close graphically to a full-fledged MMOG . Such games are completely three-dimensional (PlaneWars, Battlestar Galactica Online ) and are not demanding on the resources of a personal computer, however, like a Flash game, they require the installation of proprietary software. There are also games with clients in Java that can work both through a browser plugin and throughJRE that runs separately.
The most numerous genre of games in this class is the RPG genre , followed by strategy and economic games . Also, the sites of virtual pets , which can be both browser-based and client-side, are referred to massively multi-user sites . Games of this class tend to be addictive, people play them for months and years.
Browser-based Massively Multiplayer Online Role Playing Games (BBMMORPG)
The BBMMORPG genre appeared in the late 90s. The first game was Tail , created in 1999. This text-based game was an advanced MUD that runs entirely in the browser and requires no installation. The game was combined with the chat, which created room for players to play and made it easy to find like-minded friends. The basis of the gameplay was a journey through the fantasy world and character development through PvE battles. Later, the game “Fight Club” gained great popularity, outwardly similar to “Tail”, but completely different gameplay, which was based on PvP battles.
Browser Game Business Models
Most browser games are focused on the Free-to-play business model , which allows the user to play for free and comfortably at first, gradually complicating his stay in the gaming world, pushing to purchase services, game currency and items for real money.
Flash game
Flash game is a computer game developed in the ActionScript language . Received the Flash prefix due to the same name as the most common application development environment using ActionScript . Best known in the form of browser games.
Flash games have gained widespread popularity through their distribution on the Internet since the release of Flash Player 5, which began to support a stable and functional version of ActionScript 1.0, developed by Macromedia (now Adobe ). With the subsequent evolution of ActionScript, Flash games have become more complex and more widely used, ranging from single-player casual games to browser-based MMORPGs .
Development
According to research in 2009 , more than 97% of game developers are male. 60% of developers work alone, 29% are independent teams and only 8% are in studios or other companies related to the game industry. The development time for an average game is usually from 1 to 3 months [1] .
Using
Modern Flash games have moved to a qualitatively new level due to the development of the field. Now games are represented mainly by game banners, applications for social networks, browser games; small toys are still popular, to which whole game flash portals are dedicated. Social networks, in particular Facebook and VKontakte, after the introduction of the API, also contribute to the growth of the market for flash gaming applications. Despite the free basis of such games, micropayments as a monetization allow development companies not only to stay afloat, but to move forward by inventing even more functional and visually beautiful games. The release of Flash Player 11 with a low-level API and built-in 3D support gave developers the ability to create full-blown 3D games with their exploitation right from the browser.