Playaholics is back!
The games site you may remember from the 2000s is back, now with daily puzzles, word and number games, and leaderboards that reset every day.
If you spent part of the 2000s at a desk you should probably have been working at, there's a fair chance you passed through Playaholics. It started around 2002 and was home to a lot of very popular flash games. Swords and Sandals had people fighting their way through the arena one lunch break at a time. Lightning Pool did more damage to office productivity than any meeting ever managed.
After about six years Playaholics went quiet, and the internet moved on. Flash itself went out of fashion, taking a whole era of browser games with it.
Why bring it back
Those of us who played the first time round are a little older now. The arena has given way to the crossword, the daily Wordle and a sudoku with the morning coffee. We still want to play. We'd just like it to keep the mind busy while we're at it.
So that's what the new Playaholics is for: puzzles, word games, number games and other brain and strategy games you can play in a few minutes, on a phone or at a desk. It's for anyone who remembers the original, and for anyone who doesn't but likes a good puzzle. You don't need to have been there in 2004, though if you were, welcome back.
What's new
A new puzzle every day, the same for everyone. Each daily game gives every player the same puzzle on the same day, and a new one arrives every day. Compare notes over breakfast, or quietly check how you did against your brother-in-law.
Leaderboards. Every ranked game has a board for today, this week and all time. Your best score in each period counts, and if two players tie, whoever finished first goes ahead. Early risers, take note.
Accounts, if you want one. You can play straight away without signing in. If you'd like your name on the leaderboards and your streaks kept, a free account takes a minute: sign in with Google, or with your email and either a password or a code we send you. Scores you achieved as a guest in the last week come with you.
Fair play
Your score is worked out on our server from the moves you made, so the leaderboards show what people actually played. You get one go at each daily puzzle, and if you leave part-way through, coming back picks up where you left off.
What's next
More games are on the way. And yes, we've been thinking about Lightning Pool. We're not promising anything yet, but something like it is on the list.
Say hello
Found a bug, have an idea for a game, or a fond memory of losing an afternoon to the original? Email hello@playaholics.com. We read everything.