How to play SWF files without browser

You can do this easily by going to adobe: http://www.adobe.com/support/flashplayer/downloads.html and then look for "Projector" that you can download as an EXE. This exe is essentially that standalone player that you're looking for.

Update: You can use either the Windows Flash Player 13 Projector or the Flash Player 13 ActiveX control content debugger for IE, as suggested by Name and Doktoro Reichard.

Macromedia also used to have a standalone Shockwave/Flash player that they marketed as a gaming platform, but the last time I used it was probably around 2000, long before Adobe acquired Macromedia. I've tried finding it again several times over the past several years, but haven't had any luck. It seems to have been discontinued. Maybe if you spend enough time digging through the WayBackMachine, you'll find some reference to it, and can look it up by the exact product name.

If the above-mentioned solutions are discontinued, here's one more standalone SWF player to add to the list: http://www.standaloneflashplayer.com (direct download link)

IrfanView plays SWF files, if you install the plugins package.