Cookie Clicker

352 votes

Sometimes you have to give credit to games that started something that no one knew would be so successful and one such game is Cookie Clicker. Games don't get much simpler than this because all you do is click. You are the proprietor of a small cookie bakery and your job is to make cookies for the masses using the modern-day art of clicking a button. The more you click, the more you can expand your operations to make even more cookies and breach the barriers of reality in the name of sweet treat goodness. After all that, the question becomes just how long you can keep going.

About Cookie Clicker

This game has a strange hold on people likely because it's bewildering in its simplicity. There's no challenge or obstacles to overcome and there's no ticking clock or overarching goal pressuring you. It is a task, an activity to keep your hands and mind distracted while you do other things or wait for other things to happen. Anyone can play it and that contributes to its mass appeal. It can also play itself and that is it's own accomplishment which earns a fair amount of respect.

How to Play

Cookie Clicker is a 2D clicking and idle game that is played using only the mouse. You use the left mouse button for clicking and purchasing while the cursor is used to scroll through the upgrades on the right side of the screen. There's a huge glowing cookie that is always on the left side of the screen and what you need to do is click on it to make cookies. The more you click, the more cookies you make which can be used for upgrades like cursors that click for you and grandmas that bake more cookies while you're idle.

The upgrades that you purchase will appear in the middle of the screen in layers. They will get more densely packed the more you buy, however, cursors will appear in a ring formation around the glowing cookie. Watching the cookie screen, there's a chance that a Golden Cookie will appear. If you click on it, it will either give you a huge mass of cookies all at once, temporarily boost your idle cookie production, or increase your clicking power.

Once you've made enough cookies, you'll start earning Prestige which will affect your legacy. The moment that you've got some Prestige, you can choose to spend it on Legacy upgrades which won't take effect until your next run. This means that you'll start from scratch but you'll have the aid of any Legacy upgrades to help you get back on top.

Tips and Tricks

You'll want to start out strong by clicking like a fiend on the giant cookie until you're able to hire your first Grandma. Then, you can keep clicking and spend some cookies here and there on additional cursors. After that's done, take some time to forget about the game and return later.

Game Details

Developer: Orteil
Platforms: Web Browser (PC and mobile), iOS, and Android
Languages: English, French, German, Dutch, Czech, Polish, Italian, Spanish, Portuguese, Chinese, Japanese, Korean, and Russian

Gameplay Footage

FAQs

Does Cookie Clicker ever end?

As an idle activity, this game was designed to have no particular end as you go through multiple cycles. However, there are achievements to unlock while playing and many consider that getting all of them counts as finishing the game.