I just checked popcap - they seem to be downloadable games, not run in the browser?
The only browser games I've ever heard of have been written, without exception, in DHTML (pure browser code - Lemmings et al), Flash (AX Plugin), Shockwave (Director) (AXPlugin), Java (VM), .NET control (VM), Wild Tangent (AX Plugin) or igLoader (AX Plugin) or Custom AX Control.
The question then becomes "which vendor would the end user most likely willingly install from?". IMHO the last 3 would be last in the list. Very last!
However, if you are not bothered by the user being bothered (if you see what I mean) then I would have thought that writng your own AX component (in VB6 for instance) would be very do-able. The hardest part would be convincing the user to install it! Assuming that it is not a problem for you (which it sounds like it isn't) then said AX control could be embedded in a page and when activated could do something like:
1) Download your exe from your site to the clients HDD.
2) Execute a run command on it.
Bingo! If the user has installed your plug in with admin privileges (how else do you install anything these days) then other than the expected Firewall notification when your code tries to access the Internet, then the user will be none the wiser - your game will download and run whenever they access said page on your site.
That's the theory anyway and I guess is basically what IG Loader does (but renders the exe to the browser window as already suggested?). At least this way would be relatively easy and free. Like I said, the biggest stumblig block would appear to be getting the user to insall said "trojan" in the first place: It may need to be signed (default Intenet security under SP2 says that downloading unsigned AX Controls is DISABLED), but at least SIGNED controls are still "prompted".
Perhaps you could ask users to add your site to their trusted list (if they wish to have the convienience of playing your game without downloading it, at least without KNOWING that they've downloaded it).
In other words. Why bother? Why not just make a cut down version and offer it for download,then they can do with it what they will
As you said yourself, web games tend to be small, simple, usually 2D games so why do you need DBPro for that? If you want to write games for the web, learn Java I think.
Not to mention that ANY Win32 exe wrapper would not get your game running on a Mac or Linux etc, where as Java, Flash & Director all do.
