Turn-based games sorted by release date

Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord is a role-playing video game that was first released in 1981. It's one of the pioneering titles in the dungeon-crawling genre and one of the first computer role-playing games (CRPGs).Developed by Andrew C. Greenberg and Robert Woodhead, and published by Sir-Tech, Wizardry was initially released for the ...

Released in 1983, Battle for Normandy plays less like a game and more like a history book that came alive, donned a helmet, and asked for a coffee. This is wargaming at its purest: grid maps, unit stats, and more abbreviations than a tax form. It’s not flashy, but it’s serious, cerebral, and kind of hypnotic if you’re into micro-m...

Beneath Apple Manor is a pioneering game in the roguelike genre, originally developed and released in 1978 by Don Worth for the Apple II and later re-released for DOS as a "Special Edition". It's one of the earliest known role-playing video games (RPGs) with procedurally generated dungeons.In Beneath Apple Manor, players take on the role of an adve...

Black Friday (1983) isn’t about shopping mayhem—though you might wish it were after trying to figure out what’s going on. This early DOS title is part stock market simulator, part existential crisis. You play as a trader trying to make a fortune before the market crashes and takes your soul with it. There’s no real action, u...

Wizardry III: Legacy of Llylgamyn is a classic role-playing video game developed by Sir-Tech and released in 1983. It is the third installment in the Wizardry series. Originally released for the Apple II, it was later ported to other platforms, including the Commodore 64, IBM PC, and various Japanese computers. The game is set in the fant...

Before Battle Chess, there was Archon. Imagine a board game where pawns and knights settle disputes not with rules, but with full-on gladiatorial combat. Archon gives you light versus dark, spellcasters versus golems, and battles that feel like Pong with grudges. It's chess, but spicy. Despite the primitive graphics, it’s shockingly addictive...

There’s something oddly poetic about 8088 Othello, a 1985 take on the classic board game that feels like it was programmed by someone who had a personal vendetta against flashy graphics. The visuals are almost nonexistent, the sound is silent protest, and yet - somehow - it works. This is Othello in its purest form: black versus white, brain ...