The best shareware games
Shareware is a type of software distribution model that allows users to try a program before purchasing it. It's a marketing strategy and distribution method that was particularly popular in the early days of personal computing, primarily during the 1980s and 1990s.
Shareware games were released for free with limited functionality (for example: no saving, missing levels, time limit), often via a BBS (Bulletin Board System), a floppy disc or a CD included in a printed magazine or by direct download (when internet was in its infancy). If the user liked the shareware product, they could pay to obtain an upgrade and unlock the full game. When digital distribution started to become popular, shareware games slowly faded into oblivion.
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Shooting Gallery
DOS19903.8/5 Arcanum Computing
Bubble Pop
DOS19973.8/5 Software of Sweden
Bubble Pop by Software of Sweden is a platform game that follows the classic bubble-popping mechanics similar to other popular games in the genre (Bubble Bobble...). Bubble Pop was published in 1997 by Webfoot Technologies for DOS only.
Secret Agent: The Escape
DOS19963.8/5 PhreAk Software
Temple of Kroz
DOS1990freeware3.8/5 Apogee Software
Epic Pinball
DOSMac OS1993protected3.7/5 Digital Extremes
Mario Bros VGA
DOS1990remake3.7/5
Mario Bros VGA is a fan made remake of the original Mario Bros by Nintendo, the game that popularized the character of Mario, the Italian plumber that first appeared in Donkey Kong. Mario Bros VGA is a fixed-screen platform arcade game that truly shines when played in co-op with a friend.
Traffic department 2192
DOS1994freeware3.7/5 P Squared
Tetris (Academysoft)
DOS19963.7/5 AcademySoft
Ant Attack!
DOS1994freeware3.7/5 Dataware
EGA-Roids
DOS1986freewareremake3.7/5 Designer Software
In Search of Dr. Riptide
DOS19943.7/5 MindStorm Software
Inner Worlds
DOSLinux19963.7/5 Sleepless Software
The Final Crusade of Kroz
DOS1990freeware3.7/5 Apogee Software
CHAMP Centipede
DOS1993remake3.7/5 ChamProgramming corp.
Kingdom of Kroz
DOS1988freeware3.7/5 Apogee Software
Moraff's Morejongg
Windows XP/98/9519923.7/5 Moraffware
Paganitzu
DOS1991protected3.7/5 Apogee Software
Paganitzu is a classic puzzle-adventure game released in 1991 by Apogee Software. Set in an ancient pyramid, the game follows the exploits of its protagonist, Alabama Smith, who must navigate through a series of increasingly complex rooms filled with traps, puzzles, and enemies. The game is divided into three episodes, each one unraveling more of t...
Moraff's Revenge
DOS19883.7/5 Moraffware
Catacomb Abyss
DOS1992protected3.6/5 Softdisk Publishing
AlphaMan
DOS19953.6/5
Caverns of Kroz
DOS1989freeware3.6/5 Apogee Software
Dungeons of Kroz
DOS1989freeware3.6/5 Apogee Software
Flightmare
DOS1984freeware3.6/5
Dungeons of Kairn
DOS19893.6/5
Assault Trooper
DOS19973.6/5 Webfoot Technologies
8088 Othello
DOS19853.6/5
Legend of the Red Dragon
DOS19893.5/5 Robinson Technologies
Sango Fighter
Windows XP/98/95DOSLinux1993freeware3.5/5 Panda Entertainment Technology Co.
Bolo Ball
DOS19923.5/5 Soleau Software
Bolo Ball is a DOS game from the mid-1990s. It features a physics-based gameplay where the objective is to knock opponent balls out of an arena. When you start the game, you find yourself in a 2D arena set against a starry, space-like background. You control a colorful ball, which, despite being a 2D sprite, appears somewhat three-dimensional due t...
Clyde's Adventure
DOS1992freeware3.5/5 Moonlite Software