• Halloween Pumpkinhalloween image by St??phane Magnin from Fotolia.com
  
  Holiday-themed online games are always popular, and Halloween seems to spark more of a gaming frenzy than most other festive events. Dozens (if not hundreds) of games featuring ghosts, ghouls, mummies and bats, some of them horrifically addictive, litter the Internet, and the games listed below are among the most highest-rated Halloween offerings at online gaming sites such as BubbleBox, GameMew and Squigley's Playhouse.
  
  

Ghostscape

• Creepy atmosphere is the highlight of this Flash game from Psionic. Players take on the role of a paranormal investigator as they work their way through a haunted house filled with scary sights and sounds, looking for clues and solving puzzles. The puzzles aren't terribly challenging, but the moody graphics and ominous soundtrack are of the highest quality.
  
  

Ghost Train Ride

• A Halloween version of Digital Chocolate's popular roller-coaster games, "Ghost Train Ride" encourages players to send a train filled with cute little ghouls hurtling down a looping, twisting track. Make the train go as fast as you can without sending it flying off the track--and sending its passengers back to the land of the nonliving--and you'll win.
  
  

Fishdom Spooky Splash

• Sometimes Halloween can be more adorable than frightening, and that's the case with "Fishdom Spooky Splash," in which players earn cash in order to populate and decorate a virtual aquarium. "Spooky Splash" is a sequel to the original "Fishdom," a wildly popular game in the "Match 3" genre. The Halloween-themed graphics in "Spooky Splash" are cute and colorful, and the game is ideal for little ones and those who like their Halloween fun on the lighter side.
  
  

Slingoween

• The gooey hero of the popular game "Sling" has donned his pumpkin suit and is ready for Halloween fun. Players swing and fling the springy jack o'lantern around the playing area, gathering candy and avoiding hostile monsters. "Slingoween" is the best kind of online game: a deceptively simple concept that can lure an unsuspecting gamer into spending far too long playing.