How can I play a .swf file using Google Chrome?

I had created a file flash.html with this content:

<object>
    <embed src="file.swf" width="100%" height="100%"></embed>
</object>

Then opened the file in Chrome.

Otherwise when I was dragging an swf file to Chrome, it was just downloading the file.

Catttdaddy's answer is basically correct, but with Chrome version 57 and later, plugins are deprecated (for more information, see this) and you may need to enable Flash in another way, via Chrome Settings. Without it enabled, the file will be downloaded instead of opened. To enable Flash in Chrome:

• Enter the URL chrome://settings/
• Search for "Flash"
• Under Privacy, click "Content Settings"
• Under Flash, choose option "Allow sites to run flash"

You may want to change that back to your original setting for security or other reasons after you've opened the SWF file.

Chrome has a built in Flash Player called PepperFlash. Go To chrome://plugins/ and ensure that "Adobe Flash Player" is Enabled. You can also go to chrome://components/ to ensure that it is updated. If you still have problems go to "Your Root"\Users\"Your UserName"\AppData\Local\Google\Chrome\User Data\PepperFlash\"Version Number"\ Then rename the pepflashplayer.dll to pepflashplayerX.dll.

You can play .swf files with Google Chrome. Just drag the file from its current location to your current tab.