A new year calls for resolutions. I resolve that Friday shall be known as Flash Friday, and that every Friday — no, seriously, every Friday — shall merit a new edition of Friday Flash.

Every Friday (well, almost every Friday) I present three or more games, all of which require the Adobe Flash Player. I test each game on Windows and Mac OS X, and make an effort to let you know when a game makes noise. You know, for the kids!

I haven't been as faithful as I ought, and I can't explain why. Because it's mysterious, a secret duty of the utmost importance, with lives hanging in the balance! No, not really. I just got busy. I'll make it up to you though, promise. Today: six games plus a "toy."

Sometimes a really old game can become new again. That's exactly what happens with Snake Classic. You control a snake which gets one unit longer every time it eats something. I thought snakes got bigger around, not longer? No matter, that's how the game works. The challenge is in the fact that the snake never stops moving, so you have to steer around to make sure you don't hit the walls — or yourself.

Yes, in real life snakes can wind around on themselves, and my wife even believes that a snake can eat its own tail and eventually completely disappear, but in this game an encounter with yourself is deadly.

There are too many options on the menu, so ignore them all and just hit Play. Unless you're worried about sound, that is, because there is both sound and music in this game. The sound starts right at the menu, but you can turn off the sound completely before the music starts.

What makes the game new and interesting is the control method. No cursor keys or arrows — the snake always follows your mouse. Which means that you have to keep that mouse moving! The most common reason for death in this game is forgetting to move the mouse and having your snake curl up on itself once it reaches the cursor, I'm pretty sure.

Another game that relies slightly more on dexterity than careful planning is Totem, a Japanese game that doesn't even require any clicking to start the game, let alone play it!

There is music and sound, right from the beginning. In fact, you're given only a second or two before a voice informs you (in Japanese) that the game is about to begin. 30 seconds, 100 totems, 3 levels, I think the countdown says. And then — the campfire.