The best fixed screen 2D games
In a fixed-screen 2D game, the gameplay is confined to a single screen with no vertical or horizontal scrolling. The screen remains static, and the overall gameplay occurs within the boundaries of this fixed screen.
Fixed-screen games were common in the early days of video gaming, especially in arcade games. This design was largely due to technical limitations of early hardware, which made scrolling more difficult to implement. As a result, many early arcade classics, such as Pac-Man or Space Invaders, relied on fixed-screen mechanics.
Fixed-screen games were common in the early days of video gaming, especially in arcade games. This design was largely due to technical limitations of early hardware, which made scrolling more difficult to implement. As a result, many early arcade classics, such as Pac-Man or Space Invaders, relied on fixed-screen mechanics.
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Novatron
DOS1982 Verisoft
Armada 2525
DOS1991
Armada 2525 is what happens when a spreadsheet decides it wants to conquer the galaxy. This is classic 4X strategy with all the bells, whistles, and menus your early '90s heart could desire. You’ll build colonies, research t...
Color Balls
DOS1996
David's Kong
DOS1984remake
EGA Trek
DOS1988remake
Faces Tris 3
DOS1990 Sphere
IBM 9-Hole Miniature Golf
DOS1983 SoftSide Magazine
Redhook's Revenge
DOS1993 ImagiSoft
Super Bomber Blast Beta
DOS1997remake
Tracon 2
DOS1990 Wesson International
Autobots
DOS1989
Before Michael Bay got his hands on the franchise, Autobots (1989, DOS) offered a more... subtle approach to transforming robot mayhem. Well, not subtle exactly — more like confusing. You drive around a blocky city, fight va...
Knight Exchange
DOS1988 Softdisk Publishing
4 Queens Computer Casino
DOS1992 Applications Plus
This 1992 casino sim for DOS drops you into the neon-soaked carpet jungle of the Four Queens Hotel in Vegas. There’s no plot, no hero’s journey - just you, a digital bankroll, and the cold, soulless eyes of the slot ma...
Snack Attack 2
DOS1982 Funtastic
The Astronomy Quiz
DOS1988 Softdisk Publishing
Williams Arcade Classics
DOS1995 Digital Eclipse Software
Westphaser
DOS1989 Loriciels
Burger Blaster
DOS1983
Before BurgerTime stole the fast-food spotlight, there was Burger Blaster—a game where you build burgers by shooting them. With a gun. Because why not? This early arcade-style game is a gloriously weird relic of the ‘8...
EducAtlas 1993
DOS1993
Future Classics Collection
DOS1990
Win, Lose or Draw
DOS1988 Softie
Amazing Maze
DOS1983
Don’t be fooled by the name—Amazing Maze is more of a slightly-better-than-average maze. But hey, in 1983, navigating a screen full of walls and hoping you guessed right was enough to set hearts racing. It’s just...
Pac Gal
DOS1982
Boxer Rebellion
DOS1982
Before realistic fighting games, there was Boxer Rebellion—a 1982 title so primitive, it makes Pong look flashy. It’s boxing with fewer rules and more pixels per punch. The controls are stiffer than a week-old baguette...
O-Pong
DOS1996
X-Fighter
DOS1987 Wordworks Software
Aldo's Assault
DOS1991
Think of Aldo's Assault as what happens when Mario forgets his plumber license and joins a bootleg army. This 1991 DOS gem throws you into a side-scrolling frenzy of ladders, barrels, and the kind of platforming logic that predate...
Backgammon
DOS1986
Bomb Run
DOS1991 PC Solutions
Bomb Run (1991, DOS) sounds like an action-packed thriller—and then you play it and realize you’re just trying to drop bombs in the right spots while flying what feels like a pixelated paper airplane. The game has that...
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show
DOS1989 Tynesoft Computer Software
Saddle up for an awkward mix of minigames that vaguely resemble rodeo events. Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show tries to recreate the excitement of a 19th-century traveling circus but ends up feeling more like a 1980s office party whe...