In an age where memory costs are going through the roof, I thought it was about time to write up a little list that I’ve been mulling over for some time. You see, I think it’s super interesting how much space some games can take up at the same time as offering nothing interesting to do, while there are others that are utterly compelling and will eat hundreds of hours of your time, yet they could easily fit on an old mobile phone or laptop, along with many more games of a similar size.
The balance between file size vs value proposition has fascinated me ever since I downloaded Desert Golfing to my phone about a decade ago (it’s also out on Steam). I was astonished by just how much golfing in the desert Captain Games had managed to fit into just a couple of megabytes. It speaks to a lost art in which game designers had to squeeze their work onto as few disks as possible.
Having said that, one thing that I’m not going to do is the easy thing and list a load of ancient games here, so the start date for inclusion is when I opened my Steam account, which was in or around 2011.
Of course, if you go back further than that there are some incredible small games, for example, you can squeeze a whole galaxy of Elite adventures onto a single floppy disk. However, the antiquated systems of these early titles make them quite inaccessible to modern audiences.
That also means that there’s no place for .kkrieger, a 2004 game that fits inside a mere 97,280 bytes. This shooter is more an exercise in what is possible, not what is actually fun to play.
Big Games with Small File Sizes
Instead, if oldies and curios, I am going to focus on more contemporaneous experiences, all of them on Windows PC, and all of them small enough to happily fit on a hard drive with minimal spare space on it.
Finally, if you end up on this page because you’re looking for smaller games in general, and you’re here for the first time via a search engine, then you’ll notice there are a couple of roguelikes and Rogue-adjacent games in the list below. If you’re not familiar with the genre, I wholeheartedly suggest you jump in. For that, I suggest either of the following roguelikes, based on your tastes.
Jupiter Hell Classic | ChaosForge | PC (Win) | 142 MB
This sci-fi roguelike is a demake of a remake of an unmake of Doom. Except it’s set on Jupiter (unless you hit the mods, in which case you can head back to Mars). Given our collective familiarity with the source material and the relative simplicity of its systems, Jupiter Hell Classic is a great starter roguelike, and its modest file size means it’ll fit on any computer.
Shattered Pixel Dungeon | Shattered Pixel | Android, PC (Lin, Mac, Win) | 121 MB
If sci-fi isn’t your cup of tea, then why not check out Shattered Pixel Dungeon, a deep and feature-rich fantasy roguelike with oodles of personality and tons of content thanks to the depth of its classes. It’s a tough nut to crack, make no mistake, but there’s a big and engaging fantasy adventure just waiting for you if you want it.
Cogmind | Grid Sage Games | PC (Win) | 50 MB
And while we’re on the subject of proper roguelikes, I want to make a special shoutout for Cogmind, which weighs in at an astonishing 49.8 MB, at the time of writing. Mind you, that number goes up frequently, by at least a few KBs each time, because Grid Sage has been updating this cracking robot-infused roguelike for years.
For more turn-based roguelikes with modest file sizes, hit this link.
(the) Gnorp Apologue | Myco | PC (Win) | 60 MB
If you’re here looking for a clicker to play in the background, but you don’t have much space on the ol’ laptop, please allow me to direct you towards (the) Gnorp Apologue. This colourful little idle gem is all about directing and upgrading your gnorps and also hitting a rock, but I promise it’s much more interesting than I just made it sound.
Seraph’s Last Stand | Sad Socket | PC (Win) | 113 MB
Don’t be put by the janky line art or the spartan setup, Seraph’s Last Stand is an absorbing little game about running around as a wizard and blasting monsters from the sky. It truly benefits from its streamlined structure, and it costs less that a single Britsh pound coin, which also makes it huge value for money!
Balatro | LocalThunk | Android, iOS, PC (Mac, Win), PS, Switch, Xbox | 64 MB
One of my all-time faves and, byte for bite, I think it’s the best value game on this whole page. Not only is Balatro a superb roguelike deckbuilder, but it’s also one of the most addictive solitaire games I’ve ever had the pleasure of getting lost in. Developer LocalThunk even managed to squeeze a cracking tune into its measly 64 MB file size.
Slice & Dice | Tann | Android, PC (Lin, Mac, Win) | 154 MB
This dice-infused tactics RPG puts you in command of a small team of fantasy adventurers and then pushes you through a gauntlet of 20 tough battles, which are decided by your dice rolls (and a little bit of luck). Slice & Dice is the second largest game on this page, and even then, it’s only a smidge over 150 MBs.
Gunlocked | FromLefcourt | PC (Win), Switch | 30 MB
This sci-fi shooter offers up a novel auto-targeting twist on the standard twin-stick shooter formula. Yet for all its clever ideas, the most impressive thing about it is how much game FromLefcourt manages to get out of around 30 MB of hard drive space.
Papers, Please | Lucus Pope | PC (Lin, Mac, Win) | 87 MB
Return of the Obra Dinn might be Lucas Pope’s masterpiece, but Papers, Please is the game that put him on the road to greatness. It’s bleak and mentally exhausting, but it’s also a compelling and unforgettable puzzle experience about working at a border checkpoint in a dystopian country. Glory to Arstotzka!
Animal Well | Billy Basso | PC (Win), PS, Switch, Xbox
Most games on this page use proc-gen, which helps them keep the file size down. One game that doesn’t and is still only around 30 MB is Animal Well, the beautiful pixelated metroidvania from Billy Basso. Of all the games I’ve included herein, this is the one that looks the most artful (I wrote “looks” because it’s the only game that’s not in my collection, which is also why there’s also no confirmed file size).
Undertale | Toby Fox | PC (Lin, Mac, Win), PS, Switch, Xbox | 156 MB
Not my personal cup of tea, but I have a teenage son who is utterly obsessed with the world that Toby Fox has crafted in Undertale. This heartfelt RPG is stuffed-full of minigames and expectation-defying moments, and it can be played through multiple times if you want to see all the endings.
Super Hexagon | Terry Cavanagh | Android, iOS, PC (Lin, Mac, Win) | 22 MB
One of the purest modern arcade puzzle games, and a frantic, eye-melting experience that demands total concentration from the player. I’ve lost many hours to Super Hexagon, and I’m still only able to stay in the game for a couple of minutes. It’s also worth noting that this is the work of Terry Cavanagh, who also made Dicey Dungeons, and Chipzel, who wrote the banger soundtrack.
Teleglitch | Test3 Projects | PC (Lin, Mac, Win) | 103 MB
It’s another action-roguelike, and it’s another older game, but Teleglitch still holds up today thanks to its intense high-stakes survival gameplay. The setup is chillingly simple: you awake alone and surrounded by space zombies after an experiment has gone wrong. Unfortunately for you, you’re stuck in deep space and nobody is coming to help.
Bit.Trip Runner | Gaijin Games, Choice Provisions | PC (Mac, Win), Switch | 61 MB
Choice Provisions could have had two games on this list, as their one-screen platformer Woah Dave! is also really good and really small. I’m going with Bit.Trip Runner, though, because this platform game is a retro treat for speed demons. I absolutely love the later Runners, but if you’re limited for hard drive space, you could do much worse.
Voids Vigil | caiys | PC (Win) | 111 MB
Another indie developer who is exceptional at making good games with small footprints is caiys, who consistently puts out vibrant and exciting little games, including the one I’ve picked out here: Voids Vigil. This one is a tightly focused auto-shooter inspired by Brotato, and I really enjoyed it when it launched back in 2025.
Luftrausers | Vlambeer | Android, PC (Lin, Mac, Win), PS3/Vita | 81 MB
Nuclear Throne might be Vlambeer’s masterpiece, but as it’s over 200 megs, the studio’s mutated action-roguelike is way too bloated for this feature. Instead, I’m going to recommend you check out Luftrausers, a momentum-based side-scrolling shooter that weighs in at a satisfying 80.08 MBs. It’s tough but addictive, and I have fond memories of playing this one on the old PS Vita – good times!
Downwell | Moppin | Android, iOS, PC (Lin, Mac, Win), PS, Switch | 41 MB
I’m ending this feature with a phenomenal vertical platformer called Downwell. If you’re not already in the loop, then strap on your gun-boots and jump into a well full of monsters who would love to kill you. There isn’t an ounce of fat on this one, and it remains the only game that has consistently remained installed on every smartphone I’ve ever owned. Outstanding stuff.
