Great "lunchtime length" games

Recommendations by MathBrush

These are games that can generally be completed in 30 minutes or less. Some can be completed much faster. Included in this list are games that have multiple endings that can individually be reached quickly. It also includes several Twiny Jam games, where the whole game must be 300 words or less.

As always, please make suggestions to add to the list.

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1. 9:05
by Adam Cadre
(2000)
Average member rating: (532 ratings)

MathBrush says:

The most-played game on IFDB probably needs no introduction. If you haven't played it, it is pretty short. You get a phone call at 9:05 telling you to get to work.

2. Alabaster
by John Cater, Rob Dubbin, Eric Eve, Elizabeth Heller, Jayzee, Kazuki Mishima, Sarah Morayati, Mark Musante, Emily Short, Adam Thornton, Ziv Wities
(2009)
Average member rating: (119 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A short, crowdsourced game with many endings. You are the huntsman, tasked to kill Snow White. Things aren't as they seem...

3. Andromeda Dreaming
by Joey Jones
(2012)
Average member rating: (18 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A charming, short piece set in the Andromeda universe. A sci-fi game toying with the boundary between waking and dreaming.

4. creak, creak
by chandler groover
(2015)
Average member rating: (33 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Twiny Jam horror game. Ultra short, very effective for a 300-word game.

5. A Day for Fresh Sushi
by Emily Short
(2001)
Average member rating: (96 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Sassy fish game. Try to feed a fish in a strange, alternate world. A SpeedIf game.

6. Everything We Do Is Games
by Doug Orleans
(2015)
Average member rating: (8 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Putting this game in this list is an attempt at being funny. We'll see if it works.

7. Glass
by Emily Short
(2006)
Average member rating: (105 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A retelling of Cinderella that is darker and completely conversation based. Short with high replay value.

8. Love, Hate and the Mysterious Ocean Tower
by C.E.J. Pacian
(2011)
Average member rating: (41 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A speed IF game by a great author. A sort of steampunk Indiana Jones romance game.

9. Pick Up the Phone Booth and Aisle, by David Dyte, Steve Bernard, Dan Shiovitz, Iain Merrick, Liza Daly, John Cater, Ola Sverre Bauge, J. Robinson Wheeler, Jon Blask, Dan Schmidt, Stephen Granade, Rob Noyes, and Emily Short (2001)
Average member rating: (107 ratings)
MathBrush says:

A short, one-move goofball type of game. Written by many people.

10. The Space Under the Window
by Andrew Plotkin
(1997)
Average member rating: (97 ratings)

MathBrush says:

An early experiment in keyword games. Typing a word you see alters the surreal scene.

11. Secret Agent Cinder
by Emily Ryan
(2015)
Average member rating: (26 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Interactive french revolution Cinderella webcomic.

12. The Tiniest Room
by Erik108
(2015)
Average member rating: (31 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Most complex Twiny Jam game I have found. Still can be beaten in 15 minutes or less just by trying everything. Really cool.

13. To Spring Open, by Peter Berman and Yoon Ha Lee (as Two-Bit Chip) (2015)
Average member rating: (18 ratings)
MathBrush says:

Twine game that looks like it will be long, but ends fairly quickly. A weird, alternate future.

14. You are a Chef!, by Dan Shiovitz (2000)
Average member rating: (49 ratings)
MathBrush says:

A silly game, where you collect ingredients falling from the sky.

15. Aisle
by Sam Barlow
(1999)
Average member rating: (320 ratings)

MathBrush says:

The most influential one-move game. You are buying pasta in a grocery store.

16. Eurydice
by Anonymous
(2012)
Average member rating: (37 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A beautiful, haunting modern retelling of Orpheus and Eurydice. Feels like it will be big, but ends up being short enough to play in 30 min.

17. Captain Verdeterre's Plunder
by Ryan Veeder
(2013)
Average member rating: (50 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A short game to play repeatedly. Escape a sinking ship and grab as much treasure as you can with a rat captain. Grab as much treasure as you can!

18. Thanksgiving
by Hannah Powell-Smith
(2015)
Average member rating: (16 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A Twine game with some timed events and nicely colored and organized links. Go to a tense Thanksgiving and hope your boyfriend's family doesn't discover your secrets.

19. Aayela, by Magnus Olsson (1996)
Average member rating: (24 ratings)
MathBrush says:

A short game about searching for a magical crystal in the darkness, for the queen.

20. Ex Nihilo
by Juhana Leinonen
(2013)
Average member rating: (32 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A visually gorgeous speed-if written with the web-based engine Vorple. Can be played 2 or 3 times in 15 minutes. An omnipotent being deals with solitude.

21. The Northnorth Passage.
by Caleb Wilson (as Snowball Ice)
(2014)
Average member rating: (25 ratings)

MathBrush says:

The family curse means you can only go north. No matter what.

22. Leap Time, by Sarah Morayati (2008)
Average member rating: (12 ratings)
MathBrush says:

A polished speed if about a star leaping to the earth

23. Fingertips: Come On and Wreck My Car, by Paul Laroquod (2012)
Average member rating: (10 ratings)
MathBrush says:

A one move game with a ton of interesting branches

24. Fingertips: I Hear the Wind Blow
by Jacqueline A. Lott
(2012)
Average member rating: (22 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A one-move horror game. You wake up in darkness and hear the wind blow.

25. Fingertips: Leave Me Alone, by Kevin Jackson-Mead (2012)
Average member rating: (11 ratings)
MathBrush says:

A small one move game with about a dozen endings, each with sharp writing.

26. See the Constellation, by ed blair (2012)
Average member rating: (8 ratings)
MathBrush says:

A short, poignant game about stars and leaving home.

27. Which Describes How You're Feeling, by Adam Parrish (2012)
Average member rating: (9 ratings)
MathBrush says:

A quickly timed game where you have to rhyme to describe how you feel.

28. What Fuwa Bansaku Found
by Chandler Groover
(2016)
Average member rating: (29 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A haiku-like game about a samurai exploring an abandoned shrine.

29. Tangaroa Deep
by Astrid Dalmady
(2016)
Average member rating: (40 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Explore deep water in a submarine in this surprising Twine game.

30. Skull-Scraper
by chandler groover
(2016)
Average member rating: (15 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A tiny game about a scraper of skulls

31. The Paper Bag Princess
by Adri
(2013)
Average member rating: (20 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A cute, short game based on the book by the same name.

32. Six Gray Rats Crawl Up The Pillow
by Caleb Wilson (as Boswell Cain)
(2015)
Average member rating: (19 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A short, medieval-era light horror game about spending the night in the house of a deceased noble. Innovative inventory system.

33. Damnatio Memoriae
by Emily Short
(2006)
Average member rating: (57 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A miniature, Roman version of Savoir Faire. Remove pieces of evidence of your magical ability before the police storm your house.

34. It Is Pitch Black
by Caelyn Sandel
(2014)
Average member rating: (23 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A short game about being trapped in a darks shop with a horrible monster. Uses Twine and deals with light sources.

35. The Queen's Menagerie
by Chandler Groover
(2016)
Average member rating: (37 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A short texture game about feeding animals.

36. brevity quest
by Chris Longhurst
(2017)
Average member rating: (10 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A really broad but shallow game. Each run is short, but there are many many runs.

37. left/right
by chandler groover
(2017)
Average member rating: (14 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A series of micro-stories. The game can be played start to end in 15 minutes.

38. Let's Play: Ancient Greek Punishment: The Text Adventure
by Pippin Barr
(2019)
Average member rating: (9 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Short Greek Mythology punishment simulator.

39. Congee
by Becci
(2020)
Average member rating: (27 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A heartwarming story about home. Nice graphics, too.

40. Tuuli
by Daurmith and Ruber Eaglenest
(2017)
Average member rating: (21 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A short atmospheric game centered on Scandinavian witchcraft.

41. What They Don't Know
by alyshkalia
(2023)
Average member rating: (2 ratings)

MathBrush says:

Part of the Single Choice jam, three people in a medieval setting have completely different views on their inheritance situation.

42. Buck Rockford Heads West
by J. J. Guest
(2023)
Average member rating: (6 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A 500 word game about a mountain man heading west. Humorous and uncanny.

43. In a minute there is time
by Aster
(2023)
Average member rating: (9 ratings)

MathBrush says:

A clever game that has a time limit, forcing you to click and read as fast as possible.

44. The Usher Foundation VIII: The Spiral
by Apollosboy
Average member rating: (4 ratings)

MathBrush says:

One of the Usher Foundation games, a series of short games inspired by the Magnus Archives. This one deals with the loss of coherence in your reality, in a sewer.

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