What are the best free war games online? We at Wargamer play rather a lot of war games, and – despite what you might assume – some of the best experiences are actually free to play. Here, we list our top tier recommendations, from full-scale 3D multiplayer battlers right through to surprisingly good, totally free military games you can play in your browser.
The games we’ve chosen include some of the best grand strategy games available for free, but there’s a range of genres on offer, including FPS games, battle royale, and even a superb World War Two card game. If you’d like to zoom in on a particular area, we can recommend our guide on the best free strategy games, and our all-time picks of the best WW2 games.
As with any free-to-play games, many of these have in-game currencies to buy extra content, but it’s optional – you can pick up and play any of these right away without paying a penny. While everyone will have a different experience, our choices have a good balance of stuff you can unlock by playing, and they’re not overly ‘pay to win’, so you can have yourself a great time without getting stomped by richer players.
The best free war games are:
1. World of Tanks
Free-to-play classic World of Tanks is a massive, vehicular battler, with all the big guns, big explosions, and frenetic armour brawling you could hope for. Pick a tank, and plunge into fast-paced skirmishes, as you nip about gallic fields and tight urban landscapes, blasting shells at enemies in competitive, instant action battles.
Although World of Tanks isn’t the most serious of simulations, it’s not all dumb shooting. You’ll have to carefully angle your cannon to pierce the armour of opposing tanks, and tactically manoeuvre around the battlefield to flank and pincer enemies. Dive in for a quick gunfight if that’s your thing, or learn its gameplay intricacies to rise up the leaderboards.
The game has spawned a loyal following of hardcore tankers that know its tech tree inside out, and can angle shells faster than you can say, ‘That’s a jolly big gun!’. But it’s also a treat for casual players that fancy a quick fight with their friends. Or, join a clan, and work your way up the regular clan tournaments for extra unlocks, and kudos.
World of Tanks is a treat for history buffs, too. With over 400 mid-twentieth century American, British, USSR, Chinese, and other tanks lovingly recreated with historical reverence, climbing up the game’s tech tree is a reward in itself. Put in a fair few hours of skirmishing and you’ll find a game that’s instantly enjoyable, and surprisingly cerebral.
You can play World of Tanks free right now – even if you’re on your phone, there’s World of Tanks: Blitz to give you a handheld version of the game. Once you’ve learned the ropes, check out our guide to the best tanks in World of Tanks to up your game.
2. World of Warships
WoW (no, not that one) takes the free-to-play arcade action of World of Tanks and transports it to the open ocean. Command a ship in team battles, as you fight to capture objectives and sink enemy vessels, leveraging teamwork and shrewd positioning to get a foothold over the enemy team.
You can enjoy World of Warships for its casual competitive multiplayer, in which you’re guaranteed a frenetic watery firefight. But look deeper, and you’ll find a more cognitively demanding game.
Planning the direction, speed, and course of your ship is vital to claiming a successful position on the battlefield, and simultaneously managing your ship’s pivoting and the lead-time of your shells makes for high-octane matches in which every shot counts.
Spanning destroyers, cruisers, battleships, and aircraft carriers, each ship brings particular martial strengths and moveability requirements, changing how you approach battle. Add to that over 450 ships from WWI right the way through to the early 1950s, and World of Warships is a joy for anyone keen to see their favourite naval vessels, both famous and niche, in action.
Play World of Warships for free.
3. War Thunder
A competitive multiplayer vehicular battler, War Thunder might seem a little redundant next to the other games on this list. But it has one shining feature that sets it firmly apart: air, land, and sea battles all wrapped together in a single game. There’s no reason to choose one mode of warfare over the rest, you can dive into every method of vehicular fighting, and switch between them with ease.
Far from spreading itself too thin, War Thunder tank battles, War Thunder plane dogfights, and battleship skirmishes are some of the best in the action wargame space. As with World of Tanks, angling and positioning are of prime importance in land battles, but its armour penetration system is far more complex. Naval skirmishes, too, put greater focus on objective-based scenarios, as well as team communication. They’re quick to get to the action, but don’t expect any punches to be pulled when the shells start flying.
If you’re keen to take to the open air, you can do little better than War Thunder. Its aerial combat is unequalled in the free-to-play space. New pilots can jump into the cockpit for a quick firefight and feel the adrenaline rush fast-paced, free-flowing action, while flight sim veterans can enjoy its more demanding mechanics, or jump into a Simulator Battle for a fully immersive experience.
You’ll unlock more vehicles as you progress, while earning experience or purchasing in-game currency to upgrade their stats and features. Just in its sheer number of tanks, planes, and ships available to play, War Thunder’s wealth of content is bound to have something to offer.
4. Enlisted
A newer entry in the free-to-play games space, Enlisted is a hardcore, squad-focused, multiplayer, first-person shooter that comes from War Thunder developer Gaijin. Drop into the muddy boots of a Second World War infantry unit, and shoot your way through tactical skirmishes, as you capture objectives, and dwindle the enemy team’s reinforcements.
When we say Enlisted is squad focused we really mean it. You’ll lead a personalised squad of AI infantry in each battle, giving orders and storming strategic locations to capture territory. And these squadmates aren’t merely decorative. If you get killed on the field, you’ll take control of one of your comrades, living on to continue the fight. It keeps you in the action, and ensures that a single mistake made in the thick of battle doesn’t cost you vast reload times.
As in War Thunder, there’s a slew of gear upgrades to unlock, or purchase with premium in-game currency, as well as various squad types that bring distinct combat specialisations. Engineers are adept at constructing defensive fortifications, Radio Operators can call in air strikes, Pilots fly fighter and bomber planes, and plenty more to choose from. Individual soldiers within your squad can be upgraded and specialized with new weaponry or abilities, letting you create a truly customized fighting force.
Enlisted’s multiplayer maps are split across thematic ‘campaigns’, involving different forces, unlocks, weapons, equipment, and a variety of Enlisted tanks, each offering a tangibly new experience of playing the game. The Battle for Moscow and Invasion of Normandy expansions introduced the Soviet, Nazis, and US forces, while the Battle for Berlin and Battle of Tunisia add British forces and more maps to the game.
Enlisted stands out for its detailed squad customisation, rewarding progression, and commitment to authentic WWII realism. It might be another squad-based shooter, but it fully leans into that label to offer an enjoyably unique experience and remains among the most enjoyable free online games.
5. Supremacy 1914
If action war games aren’t your thing, Bytro Labs’ Supremacy 1914 is a popular free-to-play, multiplayer grand strategy game that puts you in charge of one of dozens of nations during World War One, alongside 499 other players (either human or AI).
It’s not the most comprehensive, detailed, or historically rigorous of WW1 games – but the huge player count and flexible mechanics make for an entertaining, varied alternate history playground every time. Work has gone into making each of the many, many playable countries function a bit differently, too.
It’s no match for Hearts of Iron 4 in terms of depth, breadth, realism, or compelling systems – but, at the low, low price of zero dollars, it’s a splendid, low-stakes grand strategy kickabout that’s well worth a try.
6. Conflict of Nations WW3
A very solid free-to-play entry in our list of the best WW3 games, Conflict of Nations WWIII plays similarly to Bytro Labs’ WW1 strategy game Supremacy 1914 – only instead of re-fighting the 1914-18 Great War, you’ll be leading a modern country into World War Three.
It’s a real-time strategy MMO that puts you in command of one of hundreds of playable nations in a fictional near-future global conflict, with believable tech trees for upgrading your economy, military, and weapons technologies. Recognizable modern warfare units are here – from the Russian MiG-29 fighter jet to the German Leopard 2 main battle tank – and, naturally, you can deploy nuclear weapons and cruise missiles to obliterate opponents (though you’ll pay a strategic price for taking such destructive action).
You can either play via Steam, or directly through your browser, and matches can pit you against up to 140 other players, depending on which map you choose. Be warned, though – Conflict of Nations runs as a persistent online campaign, and games can last up to multiple weeks before one player attains world domination.
Play Conflict of Nations WW3 free.
7. Warface: Clutch
Warface – first launched in 2014 and recently renamed to Warface: Clutch – is an attempt by Crysis developer Crytek to recreate the fast-moving, twitchy, competitive FPS deathmatches of Call of Duty, but in a free-to-play form.
Set in a fictional near-future war, where soldiers fight with 21st-century-looking weapons, futuristic tech, and mechs, you’ll play as one of five distinct classes (Rifleman, Medic, Engineer, Sniper, and Synthetically Engineered Double – SED) in PvP deathmatches, PvE missions, or raids. As you’d expect for a F2P game, there’s a gigantic pile of guns, attachments, upgrades, and cosmetics to unlock, and you’ll do so with a mixture of free and real-money in-game currencies.
Warface has drawn some unfavorable reviews over the years, often surrounding its free-to-play economy and balancing the power of premium weapons – and, like many F2P shooters, it does suffer from some issues with matchmaking and community support.
But there’s still more than enough content to have fun with here, if you’re not looking to shell out for a top quality PvE shooter like Helldivers 2. The core run-and-gun gameplay is smooth and satisfying, the graphics are strong for a free game, and there’s a lot of weapons and tactical options to try out.
Play Warface Clutch free on Steam.
8. KARDS – The WW2 Card Game
If you’re a fan of digital trading card games like MTG Arena, and fancy enjoying the same card-collecting, deck-building, combo-crafting strategy gameplay with a WW2 theme, look no further than KARDS.
First released in 2020 by 1939 Games – a tiny studio formed from former devs at EVE Online dev CCP – KARDS might seem, at first glance, like an unnatural tonal match. The light-hearted, frenetic card-slinging of a Magic: The Gathering or Pokémon TCG match, and the serious historical theme of WW2 wargames are not, after all, the most obvious bedfellows.
But trust us, it works. TCG fans will find the gameplay familiar: each player has a ‘backline’ of supporting cards on the table, and must use cards representing military units to take control of a shared ‘frontline’ between the two players. Infantry and Tanks must take the frontline to launch attacks at your rival’s backline and do damage; Artillery sits in the backline to do ranged damage; and Aircraft cards are used to harry and hem in the enemy via Air Superiority.
Each turn, you’ll have to manage a limited budget of ‘Kredits’ – the equivalent of Mana or Power in other TCGs – because everything has a Kredits cost, from deploying new units from your hand to attacking with your units on the field. The more games you win, the more new cards you’ll unlock, and the more you’re able to specialise your deck towards your chosen strategy.
It’s a compelling mix that’s easy to get the hang of, and well worth investing some time into.
Play KARDS free on Steam.
9. World of Tanks Blitz
World of Tanks is already a pretty accessible, simple to grasp game – compared to War Thunder or more complex strategy war games, at least – but if you want something even more bitesize, simplified, and lightning fast, World of Tanks Blitz is the one for you.
Originally launched in 2014 as WOT’s mobile game equivalent, Blitz quickly became mega-popular in its own right, thanks to its ultra-simple gameplay style and no-nonsense, quick-fire matches. These days both are free to play on PC, so it’s a straight choice between full-fat WOT (for more tanks, more detailed systems, and strategic gameplay) or Blitz (for a quicker, more casual experience).
Games of WOT Blitz focus less on careful positioning, micro-managing of loadouts and ammunition types, strategic interplays of different tanks’ abilities and weaknesses, and so on.
Instead, with smaller maps, shorter match times, fewer players on each team, and – wait for it – no artillery, the game encourages faster, more mobile and action oriented battles. If you want exciting armored assaults and life-or-death maneuvers, and you’re less bothered about historically accurate tinkering and strategizing – Blitz is a cracking free-to-play choice, whether you’re playing on PC or mobile.
Play World of Tanks Blitz free on Steam.
10. World of Warplanes
Airborne sister game to the worlds of tanks and warships, Wargaming’s World of Warplanes was released in 2013, and – despite never winning the acclaim or player base of its larger siblings – it’s still going strong, offering 12-vs-12 aerial battles using a range of planes from the USSR, Germany, UK, USA, France, China, and Japan.
WoWp has taken a lot of flak (pun intended) over the years for being a less polished experience than World of Tanks or World of Warships, but we think that’s unfair. Its aircraft, maps, and visual effects are gorgeous; it’s pretty well optimized for a wide range of systems, and its flight gameplay is deliberately simpler and more arcade-y than competing titles, making it (in general) very accessible for newcomers.
It’s always struggled with a lower player population than the others – especially due to competition with War Thunder – but updates have improved that, with significantly better AI pilots to fill out matches – not to mention progressive upgrades to the game’s graphics. It may not be one of the best combat flight simulators ever made, but World of Warplanes is an extremely playable experience that’s refreshingly easy to pick up. If you find War Thunder’s learning curve not to your liking, try WoWp – you might find it’s just the thing for you.
Play World of Warplanes free on Steam.
11. Totally Accurate Battlegrounds
Not all free war games have to be about crunchy strategy, thrilling battlefield tactics, or historically accurate simulations. Sometimes you just want to fight in the stupidest war possible – and that’s exactly what the hilarious Totally Accurate Battlegrounds (TABG) offers.
The predecessor of sensational ‘smash two silly armies together and see what happens’ game Totally Accurate Battle Simulator, this bizarre, physics based battle royale is basically like Fortnite or PUBG, if your character were made from wibbly wobbly jell-o. All the ingredients for battle royale are there: you’ll drop into a gigantic map (solo, or in duo or trio modes); pick up random weapons from a vast, silly selection; and hunt down the other players, while massive walls close in from the edges of the map until there’s only one jiggly wiggly warrior left alive.
Other than the light-hearted, low-fi blocky graphics, the only thing TABG has over the giants of the BR genre is that, instead of a heavily customized specops fighter or oversized banana-suited superhero, you control a silly little guy who’s very difficult to keep on two feet. And honestly, that’s a serious selling point for us – especially because mastering the controls is weirdly satisfying once you start getting the hang of it.
Play Totally Accurate Battlegrounds free on Steam.
12. MechWarrior Online
MechWarrior is a respected old master in the PC gaming world – the original game is nearly as old as our editor, coming out in 1993. Veteran fans might have worried that the series’ 2013 free-to-play multiplayer iteration MechWarrior Online (MWO) wouldn’t stand the test of time as well – but they needn’t have been. In fact, it’s significantly improved in the decade since release.
Set in the BattleTech universe, MWO (technically now called MWO Legends) is a competitive shooter that pits teams of battle mechs against one another across various different maps and modes. To begin with, you get access to 16 different mechs (though there are over 35 in the game these days) – each with a different weight class and default loadout to learn and master.
That’s just the beginning, though – each mech is fully customizable with different weapons, armor, and equipment upgrades, leading to a huge variety of custom builds to perform different battlefield roles, from speedy scouts to heavily armed and armored assault mechs, built to tank punishment and face down the enemy team’s toughest attackers.
After over a decade of life, MWO still has a strong player base and active community, and its combination of rock-solid core shooting gameplay and satisfying customization make it among the most popular free-to-play war games there is.
Play MechWarrior Online free on Steam.
13. Iron Order 1919
If true-to-life historical WW1 wargaming doesn’t float your boat, never fear – gamers seem to have an endless appetite for grimy, dieselpunk alternate-history reimaginings of the Great War, and Iron Order 1919 is absolutely our favorite free war game in that oeuvre.
The gameplay isn’t a million miles from Bytro Labs’ historical WW1 game Supremacy 1914, but the theme (and units) are wildly different, as this game plays out in an alternate 1919 where the first world war never ended, but powered a massive surge in technological advancement that resulted in hulking mechanical war machines taking over the frontlines of Europe.
Drawing inspiration from the dieselpunk, teslapunk, and steampunk aesthetics, Iron Order gives you alt-history tech trees that start from recognizable early twentieth century military concepts, but diverge into science-fantasy war machines, ranging from advanced versions of real world WW1 tanks, all the way to towering walkers reminiscent of Warhammer 40k titans.
Games play out in real time over days to weeks, in a persistent online game-state, and you’re competing against up to 100 other players at a time, each of you out to take over the whole map through a combination of canny alliances, tactical wit, and military domination. If you’re tempted by RTS games like Iron Harvest 1920, but can’t spare the cash – try this instead.
14. Call of War WW2
Lots of World War Two games put you in command of a nation’s economy, technology, and military and task you with re-fighting the world’s most destructive war to your own advantage – but the mighty Call of War WW2 lets you do it online, in real time, against up to 100 human opponents – for free.
You’ll need to balance resources between building up your economic wealth, developing new WW2-era weapons (up to and including the atomic bomb) and marshaling land, sea, and air forces to assault your enemies in real time. Coupled with the long-play format (each game round plays out over weeks of real time) it adds up to a surprisingly immersive experience, especially for a free game you can play in your browser, via steam, or on mobile.
Since your units move across the map in real time – and so do your opponents’ – racking up the victory points to win genuinely relies on predicting other players’ moves and outplaying them, as well as striking up alliances where necessary. Those partnerships will be critical, as – just like in the real war – no power can win alone, and often the final victor will be a coalition of allied players.
If you want a free-to-play second-world-war experience that does well to emulate the scale of heavyweight grand strategy games like Hearts of Iron 4, you can’t do better than Call of War.
Read our guide on the best RTS games for other recommendations that’ll scratch your wargaming itch. Meanwhile, you might also like the list of the best tank games over on our sibling site, PCGamesN.
Source: Wargamer
