The most popular 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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Scorched Earth

DOS1991protected4/5

God of Thunder

DOSWindows XP/98/951993freeware4/5 Adept Software

God of Thunder is a classic computer game developed by Adept Software and released in 1993. It's a puzzle platformer with a fantasy theme. In the game, you control Thor, the Norse god of thunder, on a quest to save Midgard (Earth) from the evil god Loki and his minions.The gameplay involves navigating through various levels filled with obstacles, e...

Legend of the Silver Talisman

DOS1996freeware3.9/5 Inter-Active Arts

Super ZZT

DOS19923.3/5 Epic MegaGames

Jill of the Jungle 2: Jill Goes Underground

DOS19924.1/5 Epic MegaGames

Astro Fire

DOS1994freewareremake3.8/5 ORT Software

UnReal World v. 3.20

Windows XP/98/95Mac OS1992freeware4.1/5

Flying Tigers 2

DOS19943.3/5

Abuse

DOSLinuxMac OS1995freeware3.9/5 Crack dot Com

Bass Tour

DOS19924/5

Jazz Jackrabbit Holiday Hare

DOS1994protected3.9/5 Epic MegaGames

Bio Menace Episode 3: Master Cain

DOS1993freeware4.3/5 Apogee Software

8088 Othello

DOS19853.5/5

Catacomb Abyss

DOS1992protected3.7/5 Softdisk Publishing

Sherlock: The Game of Logic

DOS1991protected4.1/5 Everett Kaser Software

In the Dead of Night

DOS19953.8/5 Trecision

One Must Fall 2097

DOS1994freeware4.1/5 Diversions Entertainment

The Aethra Chronicles

DOS19943.9/5

The Aethra Chronicles is not a well know fantasy RPG, but it deserves some praise. It was developed by only one person (Micheal Lawrence) and, as the title implies, was intended to be the first volume of a saga. Unfortunately, volume two and three were never made. For a shareware game, Aethra was pretty solid and is still loved by the ones who play...