From the deck to the temple: 9 pirate games about chests, gold and relics
Looking for pirate games? This list has nine, and each one plays out a piece of the same old story: a chest on a ship, a fight on deck, gold in a booby-trapped room, cursed gems, a relic snatched from a temple and nuggets buried deep underground. The genres could hardly be more varied, with a platformer, a shooter, a puzzle, tower defence, a card game and two runners side by side. Eight of the nine work on a phone, all are single player and none need installing.
Why this list is built around a theme
Our adventure games guide explains the genre itself: exploring, platforming, how levels are put together. This page works the other way round and keeps the theme fixed instead. The rule was simple: pirates, treasure or a lost ancient relic have to sit at the heart of the game. That way someone who likes to jump, someone who likes to think and someone who likes to lay out cards can each find a treasure hunt of their own. Under every game you will find its controls, whether it runs on a phone and who it suits.
On deck: pirate ship games
These two take place right on board a pirate ship. One has you leaping between planks, the other puts you behind the cannon.
Pirate Jack
Rival pirates have taken over Jack's ship and stashed his chest at the far end of the deck. You walk with A and D or the arrow keys, jump with W or up, and press again in mid-air for a double jump; it is the only way to reach the far planks. Touch a patrolling pirate or a sharp trap and the level restarts. On a phone you use on-screen buttons. It is the cleanest way into platformers on this list, and if your timing needs work, read our tips on jumping in platform games.
Top Shootout: The Pirate Ship
A ship loaded with gold is sailing the Caribbean, and pirates keep popping up from different corners of the deck. Click to fire, and when you run dry, click again to reload. You have to avoid hitting the hostages, and every pirate you fail to take down fires back and chips at your health. On a phone you tap to shoot. It is all about score, so speed and accuracy matter equally. If you want more of this side of things, our shooting games guide lists plenty more.
Guarding or rescuing the treasure: games that make you think
Three games for anyone who prefers not to rush. The treasure is still the goal, but you get there through the right order, the right placement or the right run of cards rather than quick reflexes.
Pull Him Out Online
A treasure hunter is stuck in a booby-trapped room. Every pin holds back one compartment: click it and whatever is behind it, a boulder, water or a trap, is released. The right order opens the path to the gold; the wrong one drops the trap on the hunter. No clock hurries you, so you can think each step through. On a phone you simply tap the pin. If pin puzzles are new to you, our pin pulling tips will help.
Cursed Treasure 1.5
This time the treasure is yours and someone wants it. To protect your last three gems you build towers along the road, upgrade them with the money you earn and cast spells when a big wave rolls in. If an enemy grabs a gem and escapes off the map, it is gone; lose all three and the level is over. It plays with the mouse, or by tapping on a phone. For a first step into the genre, see how to play tower defence.
Solitaire Treasures
Classic Klondike with a chest-opening theme. You build down the seven columns in alternating colours and try to complete all four foundations from ace to king. Every deal is set up to be solvable, so when you get stuck, the problem is your order of moves, not the cards. The rewards you collect unlock new deck and background designs. You drag or double-click, and it works on a phone as well. For other kinds of patience, have a look at our solitaire games page.
Ancient temples and ruins: grab the relic and run
The other side of treasure hunting: the relic is in your hands and a temple is crumbling behind you. Two runners handle the same idea with different rewards.
Temple Quest
You have swiped the relic and now you are fleeing through the ruins. The run starts on its own; you turn, jump and duck with the arrow keys, or swipe on a phone. Finishing missions raises your score multiplier, and golden idols unlock new outfits. Hit a wall or a trap and the run is over. If you like chasing high scores, our guide to beating your endless runner record has more tactics.
Relic Runway
You switch lanes through the corridors of a ruined temple: jump over the drops, slide under low arches with the down arrow. The twist is collecting; relic pieces are scattered along the way, and completing sets unlocks new artefacts and characters, while gold upgrades your bonuses. On a phone you swipe. Where Temple Quest is about missions and multipliers, this one is about building a collection.
Gold under the ground and under the sea
In the last two the treasure is buried or sunken: one you dig up with a hook, the other you gather underwater.
Gold Miner Jack 2
A hook swings back and forth at the top of the screen; drop it at the right moment and it hauls up whatever nugget or diamond it hits. Big nuggets come up slowly, while small diamonds are quick and worth more. Each round has a money target, and if you miss it before time runs out, you replay the level. Between rounds you buy boosts in the shop and head down into a deeper mine. With a single click to learn, players of any age pick it up at once, and it runs on phones too.
Super Shark World
You steer a shark underwater, dodging obstacles and collecting gold along the way. WASD or the arrow keys move you, K fires and L gives you a short dash forward. There are fifteen levels and an endless mode, with three different bosses waiting at the ends of levels. The gold you gather buys new characters. It is the only game on this list that does not work on a phone; you need a keyboard.
Which one to start with
For a proper pirate story, start with Pirate Jack, then take the cannon in Top Shootout: The Pirate Ship. If you like to think, go for Pull Him Out Online; for long-haul strategy, Cursed Treasure 1.5; for a quiet card game, Solitaire Treasures. Chasing reflexes and records? The two temple runners. Something anyone can play with one click? Gold Miner Jack 2. There is more in the adventure and strategy categories.
Frequently asked questions
Can I play these pirate games on a phone?
Eight of the nine, yes. Super Shark World needs a keyboard, so play it on a computer; the rest all work on a touchscreen.
Which ones suit children?
The pin puzzle, the gold miner and the solitaire game involve no fighting and let you play at your own pace. Pirate Jack is a simple platformer as well. The ship shooter, with all its gunfire, is better left to older players.
Is there a two-player pirate game?
Every game on this list is single player. If you want to play together on one screen, our two-player games guide is the better place to look.