The best dystopia games
A dystopia is the lesser-known counterpart to utopia, representing an undesirable or nightmarish society. Dystopian societies often suffer from various negative aspects such as environmental degradation, oppressive governments, rampant despotism, extreme inequality, or social decay.
Cyberpunk and post-apocalyptic games serve as prime examples of dystopian themes. Cyberpunk worlds often depict high-tech, low-life futures where corporate control, surveillance, and societal breakdown are rampant. Post-apocalyptic games, on the other hand, explore the aftermath of catastrophic events, where humanity is struggling to survive in a ruined, lawless world. Both genres reflect dystopian fears about the future, technology, and society.
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Mean Streets
DOS1989protected Access Software
Tex Murphy: The Pandora Directive
Windows XP/98/95DOSLinuxMac OS1996protected Access Software
Tex Murphy: The Pandora Directive is the sequel to Under a Killing Moon and the 4th game in the Tex Murphy series. The Pandora Directive is a first-person 3D adventure game set in a dark sci-fi version of the U.S.A., more specifically in a futuristic San Francisco. The Pandora Directive was developed by Access Software and released in 1996 for...
Archimedean Dynasty
DOS1996protected Massive Development
In Archimedean Dynasty, humanity did the logical thing after wrecking the surface world: moved underwater and started shooting each other in submarines. It's part tactical sim, part gritty sci-fi novella, and entirely German in its dedication to menus and moodiness. Imagine playing Wing Commander, but everyone is wet, brooding, and inexplicably ang...
Roadwar 2000
DOS1987protected SSI Strategic Simulations Inc.
BloodNet
DOS1993protected MicroProse Software
BloodNet combines vampires, cyberspace, and noir in a cocktail so strange it probably shouldn’t work but somehow does. You are a hacker who just got bitten by a vampire and now you must juggle your thirst for blood with your desire to not completely lose your mind. The game world is dense, filled with dark alleys, gothic hackers, and more dia...
Scavengers of the Mutant World
DOS1988 Interstel Corporation
Deathtrack
DOS1989 Dynamix
Deathtrack is an abandoned racing vehicular combat game set in a post-apocalyptic North America. Deathtrack is a mix of high-speed racing and combat and was developed by Dynamix and released by Activision in 1989 for DOS.
Wasteland
DOS1988protected Interplay Productions
Crusader: No Remorse
DOS1995protecteddemo Origin Systems
Crusader is an action-oriented computer game. The player controls a super soldier that defects from the current world government and joins the Resistance. The world is shown in an isometric view.
Superhero League of Hoboken
DOSWindows XP/98/95LinuxMac OS1994protected Legend Entertainment
Superhero League of Hoboken is a humorous role-playing game (RPG) released in 1994, developed by Legend Entertainment. It's a quirky mix of a traditional RPG and an adventure game, set in a post-apocalyptic world where New Jersey (specifically Hoboken) becomes the epicenter for a team of second-rate superheroes. Your job is to complete various...
Warp Rogue
Windows 10/11Linux2004freeware
Autoduel
DOS1985 Origin Systems
What do you get when you mix Mad Max, Car Wars, and a fondness for vehicular homicide? You get Autoduel (1985, DOS), a top-down driving RPG where your car is your castle and your guns are your diplomatic policy. Part racing game, part combat sim, and part postal delivery service (seriously), it's the kind of game that punishes mistakes with explosi...
Transarctica
DOS1993 Silmarils
CyClones
DOS1994protected Raven Software
Cybercon III
DOS1992 The Assembly Line
Ranx: The Video Game
DOS1990 UBI Soft
Ranx is a 1990 action-adventure video game based on the Italian cyberpunk comic RanXerox, created by artist Tanino Liberatore. The game was developed by Ubisoft and released for the Amiga, Atari ST, and MS-DOS platforms. The game follows RanXerox, a violent and artificially enhanced cyborg in dystopian cyberpunk world. The gameplay is a mix of...
Chamber of the Sci-Mutant Priestess
DOS1989protected ERE Informatique
Manhunter: New York
DOS1988 Evryware
Quarantine 2: Road Warrior
DOS1995 GameTek
Zyclunt
DOS1995 Phantagram
Zyclunt is a side-scrolling action game developed and published by Phantagram in 1995. The game is set in a dystopian future where incurable diseases and a rise in criminal activities have brought society to the brink of collapse. In this setting, advanced genetic engineering has led to the creation of cybernetic organisms, or cyborgs, which have b...
Narco Police
DOS1990 Iron Byte
Narco Police is a tactical action game developed by Dinamic Software and released in 1990. It was available on various platforms, including MS-DOS, Amiga, Atari ST, and ZX Spectrum. The game is set in a dystopian near-future world where drug cartels have become powerful enough to control entire regions. The player assumes the role of a leader of an...
Farenheit 451
DOS1984 Telarium
Chaos Overlords
Windows XP/98/95Mac OS1996protected Stick Man Games
Chaos Overlords is a cyberpunk-themed strategy game developed by Stick Man Games and published by New World Computing in 1996. Set in a dystopian future, the game focuses on controlling the underworld of a city dominated by corrupt corporations and oppressive government forces. The player assumes the role of a crime lord, leading a gang with the go...
2112
DOS1994
Welcome to 2112, a game that predicted a grim techno-future back when floppy disks still ruled. This DOS-era oddity throws you into a world that’s part cyberpunk, part fever dream, and entirely confusing. It’s got clunky controls, yes, but also that charming old-school ambition where every corridor hides either doom or disappointment. T...
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