There are free games you can play online. Perhaps puzzle games:
http://www.addictinggames.com/puzzle-games/index.jsp
If you want a popular story driven puzzle game, then there is the Myst series which was originally released back in 1993. There is a 10th Anniversary Edition which contains the 1st three games: Myst (Masterpiece Edition - I believe the graphics have been updated), Riven and Myst: Exile. I have not played the games, but the puzzles can become quite difficult to solve and you cannot progress the storyline until the puzzle is solved.
If you want a virtual family you can purchase the Sims 3, however, it is somewhat of a demanding game so your computer needs to be powerful enough to play it.
It is hard to recommend a game if you don't specify what exactly interests you.