Darts Games

Darts games test your aim: you throw at the board and try to score as high as you can. There are around 20, all free and with nothing to download, with classic darts matches and other similar aiming games.

How a dartboard is scored

The board is divided into 20 numbered sections. The thin rings multiply the score: the outer one counts double and the inner one counts triple. In the middle is the bullseye, worth 50 (the green ring around it is worth 25). A turn is three darts, and the maximum is 180, with three triple 20s.

The 301 and 501 modes are the most common: you start with that many points and subtract what you score until you hit exactly zero. Usually, the last dart has to land on a double. Pro 501 Darts and Flash Darts 301 follow that format.

What's on the list

The classic darts games are Darts Club, Darts, Arcade Darts, Pro 501 Darts, Flash Darts 301, Crazy Darts, Supreme Darts and Dart King. Dart Tournament Multiplayer and Darts Pro Multiplayer have multiplayer modes, as their names say.

If you like aiming but not necessarily with darts, there are variations: Archery and Archery Master are archery games, so is Tiny Archer, and Knife Shooter, Knife Dart and Knife Skill are based on throwing knives at a target. Dart Wheel and PinSpin! are more original, and there are other aiming games like Blopper.

To sharpen your aim

• Take your time. Work out the trajectory and release when the crosshair is lined up.
• If the crosshair moves, wait for the point where it steadies instead of trying to follow it.
• In 301 and 501, don't obsess over the bullseye. Triple 20s are what score the most.
• To finish, plan the last dart ahead of time: you have to land on zero exactly.

To start, Darts Club or Pro 501 Darts teach you the classic format. If you want something looser, Crazy Darts and Arcade Darts don't require you to know the rules. In the archery and knife games, what counts is when you let go, so watch the crosshair move for a couple of seconds before you shoot. And don't change how you aim after one bad turn: improvement usually comes from practice, not from switching things up.