Stuff chocolate, here's an advent calendar of web games instead!

“Give me more digital gifts!” I always exclaim at Christmas. “Pack my stocking full of new and inventive coding experiments with a festive twist!” This year Ronai David, Damien Mortini and Aurelien Gantier heard my cry and put together Christmas Experiments, a digital advent calendar that reveals a new web-based treat every day throughout December. Each one is the product of a different developer and offers a unique take on Yuletide cheer. In one you’re invited to navigate a wayward orphan through a dormitory, avoiding the flash of fairy lights as you go. In another you’re Santa, tasked with navigating a gang of feckless elves through a complex floating maze where danger lurks around each corner.

My favourite so far though is Finding Home by Michael Anthony, that lets you navigate a ball of light through what looks like millions of years of geological evolution, watching mountains rise from the ocean and the arrival of a meteor storm before leaping into the cosmos and going supernova! Who knows what that has to do with Christmas; who cares, it’s a treat for the eyes, and the perfect way to kill any free time you’ve got today. Thanks Christmas Experiments!