GameJar
Fourteen good games.
No signal required.
A small jar of games for you and your kids. Mini crosswords, word puzzles, and two-player games that work on a plane, in a car, or anywhere the bars run out.
The shelf
14 gamesMini Crossword
A 5x5 grid, a new one every day. Check a letter when you get stuck.
Guess the Word
One word a day, six tries. Then practise as long as you like.
Picture Logic
The numbers say what to fill in. Get it right and a picture turns up.
Color Sort
Pour the paint until every cup is one colour. No reading needed.
Pipe Link
Join every matching pair and fill the whole grid.
Four in a Row
Two players on one phone, or take on the computer. Four in a row wins.
Dots & Boxes
Draw a line, close a box, go again. Pass-and-play or vs. the computer.
Salvo
Hide four ships. Find theirs first. No peeking when you pass it over.
Five Dice
Roll five dice, keep the good ones, fill the card. One to four players.
2048
Slide, merge, chase a high score. No timer, nothing to buy.
Block Drop
Fit the pieces, clear the lines. No timer, nothing to buy.
Fruit Drop
Drop the fruit, match two, grow a watermelon.
Mini Sudoku
4x4 for a quick win, 9x9 when someone wants a real fight.
Tower Defense
Build towers, hold the road, survive twenty waves.
Three promises
- Works with no signal.
- Every game is stored on your device after the first visit. Airplane mode, basement, road trip - it all still works.
- No account, no ads, no tracking.
- Open it and play. There is no sign-up wall, no advertising, and no third-party tracking of any kind - your kids' names and scores stay on your device unless you sign in to sync them.
- Free, and staying that way.
- Every game is free today. If a paid shelf shows up later, the six GameJar launched with are not on it.
Built for 10-13 and the adults who play with them. No mascots, no baby talk, and puzzles that are actually a bit hard.
Everything is calibrated for a player who has taste and would be embarrassed by a toddler app: the crossword clues assume a reader, the computer opponents can beat you at the top level, and a win is one line of text rather than a shower of confetti.
How it works
- 01
Open it
The jar is right there. Nothing to download first, nothing to agree to.
- 02
Pick a name and a colour
One profile per person, kept on this device. First names are plenty.
- 03
Play
Solo dailies, or hand the phone back and forth for the two-player ones.
There is no sign-up. If you want your scores on more than one device, a parent can sign in later - that's the only account GameJar has.
Installing it to the home screen
On iPhone, the easiest way is the App Store app. In the browser on iPhone or iPad: Share, then Add to Home Screen. On Android and desktop Chrome: Install app from the browser menu. It then opens like an app, full screen, and keeps working with no signal.
What's next
More games will be added to the jar. Some of the later ones may end up on a paid shelf - we would rather say that now than pretend otherwise. The six GameJar launched with stay free either way, and there is nothing to pre-order, no waitlist, and no place on this site to leave your email.
Everything in GameJar is free right now. The pricing page says so in one sentence, because there is nothing else to say.
Questions
Does my kid need an account?
No. There is no kid account, no kid email, and no field to type one into. A profile is a name and a colour, stored on your device.
Does it really work on a plane?
Yes. After the first visit the games and the puzzles are saved on the device, so they open with no signal. Sign-in and syncing are the only things that need a connection, and both are optional.
How do I get it on the home screen?
On iPhone, get GameJar from the App Store (an Android app is coming soon). Or open it in your browser, then Share > Add to Home Screen on iOS, or Install app on Android and desktop Chrome. After that it opens like any other app.
What do you collect?
Nothing about a child. Profiles and results live on the device. If a parent signs in to sync, they move into that parent's household and nowhere else. Crash reports are off by default.
What does it cost?
Nothing, and there is no checkout in the app to change that. More games may arrive later, and some of those may be paid - these six will not be.
How old is this for?
Roughly 10-13, and the adults who play with them. Younger kids can play 2048 and Four in a Row fine; the crossword and the word game assume a reader.