Can I play a local HTML game on iPhone?

Short answer

Yes. A local HTML game can run on iPhone when you open it in an app with a full web engine, such as HTML Keep. Single-file games open directly, and multi-file games open from a ZIP. Most games that run in a browser without a server will play offline, and progress saved with localStorage is kept for next time.

What kinds of HTML games work

Many browser games are just HTML, CSS, JavaScript and a few image or sound files. Puzzle games, card games, idle clickers, small platformers and games you made with an AI assistant or a game jam tool usually fall into this group.

To play a local HTML game on iPhone, the game needs to be a set of files you can get onto the device, not a page that only exists on a website.

• Works well: single-player games that run entirely in the browser.
• Needs internet: games that load libraries, fonts or levels from online servers.
• Won't work offline: multiplayer games, online leaderboards and anything with server-side code.
• Only playable on the website: games streamed or protected by their publisher, which you can't download as files.

Load the game, step by step

1. Install HTML Keep from the App Store (download page).
2. Get the game onto your iPhone: AirDrop it from a Mac, save it from a chat or email, or download it to the Files app.
3. If the game is a folder with images, sounds or scripts, compress it into a ZIP first (in Files, touch and hold the folder and tap Compress).
4. Share the .html or .zip file to HTML Keep, or tap Open File in the app and pick it.
5. The game opens as its own project. For ZIPs with several pages, the app picks an entry page and you can switch from the viewer's page list.

Set up the viewer for playing

In the viewer's operation preferences, turn on full screen for portrait or landscape so the game fills the display. Turning off swipe-to-exit helps when the game uses swipes, and keeping the screen awake stops the phone from dimming during a slow puzzle.

For a game you play every day, add it to the Home Screen with a widget or shortcut so it opens straight into the game. Rename the project and give it an icon so it's easy to spot among your other pages.

Saved progress, controls and sound

• Progress: games that save with localStorage keep their data per project, so you continue where you stopped. With iCloud sync on the same Apple Account, that progress can continue on your iPad.
• Other storage: data kept in IndexedDB or cookies stays on the device where you played and isn't synced.
• Controls: touch support depends on the game. A game built only for a keyboard or mouse may not be playable by tapping.
• Sound: web pages often wait for a first tap before playing audio, so tap the screen if the game starts silent, and check that your ringer switch or volume isn't muting it.
• Performance: simple 2D games usually run smoothly; very heavy 3D games may be slower on older devices.

If the game doesn't start

• Black or blank screen: assets are probably missing. Open the whole folder as a ZIP instead of the single .html file. See opening a ZIP web project on iPad, which works the same way on iPhone.
• Works only with Wi-Fi: the game loads something from the internet, such as a game engine from a CDN.
• Stuck on loading: some engines expect to be served from a web server, which a local file can't replace. More background is in running local HTML and JavaScript on iPhone.
• Wrong page opens from a ZIP: pick the correct start page from the page list.