The best top down games

Top down games were very popular in the 80s and the 90s, when graphic cards were not capable of supporting 3D, and even when 3D started to become popular, 2D games continued to be easier to develop, at least in the infancy of 3D gaming. 2D game offered the player a viewpoint that helped keeping things easily under control (think about top down party-based RPGs or hex-based strategy games).

Sort by:

Fast Food Dizzy

DOS19894/5 Codemasters

Star Control

DOS1990protected4/5 Toys for Bob

Mordor: The Depths of Dejenol

Windows 3.x1995protected4/5

Mordor: The Depths of Dejenol is fantasy RPG game released in 1995 for Windows 3.x, but it runs flawlessy even Windows XP (see this faq if you want to play Mordor in a virtual machine). Mordor: The Depths of Dejenol is a mix of first-person and top-down perspective dungeon crawler; the game shows the dungeon in by both perspectives at onc...

Battle Isle 93: The Moon of Chromos

DOS19934/5 Blue Byte Software

Omega

DOS19894/5 Origin Systems

Omega is an abandoned science fiction themed strategy game developed and released by Origin Systems in 1989 for DOS, Amiga, Apple II, Atari ST, C64. Omega is a rare example of a programming game about robots.

Ultima 2: Revenge of the Enchantress

DOS19834/5 Origin Systems

The second chapter of the Ultima saga is much similar to the first one (same top down visual, same dungeon 3d visual, same gameplay), although there are many small improvements. The series begins to take the shape of the detailed, deep, rpg saga that gamers will always remember.

Darklands

DOSLinuxWindows XP/98/95Mac1992protected4/5 MicroProse Software

Darklands was a unique historical isometric RPG that mixed real historical data from medieval Germany during the 15th century with a touch of folklore and fantasy. Unfortunately it was also the only Microprose RPG of that kind and beauty. The original game box contained a huge manual with info on european folklore (including the live...

Bloodstone: an Epic Dwarven Tale

DOS19934/5 Mindcraft Software

International Soccer

DOS19944/5 Zeppelin Games

Major Stryker

DOSWindows XP/98/951993freeware4/5 Apogee Software

Rings of Medusa

DOS19904/5 Starbyte Software

Rings of Medusa is a strategy / RPG developed by the German studio Starbyte Software. It was released in 1989 for various platforms including the Commodore 64, Amiga, and MS-DOS. In Rings of Medusa, players assume the role of a hero tasked with defeating the evil sorceress Medusa who has taken control of the city of Olympus. The game world is ...

Moria

DOS1992freeware3.9/5

Acquire

DOS19893.9/5 IBM

CHAMP Ms. Pac-man

DOS1994remake3.9/5 ChamProgramming corp.

J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Vol. II: The Two Towers

DOS19923.9/5 Interplay Productions

J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Vol. II: The Two Towers is an abandoned fantasy top-down DOS RPG game set in the The Lord of the Rings universe. The Lord of the Rings II was developed and released by Interplay Productions in 1992. The Lord of the Rings, Vol. II: The Two Towers is based on the popular The Lord Of The Rings book by J.R.R. Tol...

Exile: Escape from the Pit

Windows XP/98/95MacWindows 3.x1995freeware3.9/5 Spiderweb Software

Entomorph: Plague Of The Darkfall

Windows XP/98/95Windows 3.xMac1995protected3.9/5 SSI Strategic Simulations Inc.

Psion Chess

DOSMac19853.9/5 Psion Software

Roadwar Europa

DOS1987protected3.9/5 SSI Strategic Simulations Inc.

Wayne Gretzky Hockey

DOS19893.9/5 Bethesda Softworks

Austerlitz 1805

DOS19893.9/5 Cornerstone Software

The Ancient Art of War

DOS19843.9/5 Evryware

The Ancient Art of War is a classic video game that was released in the late 1980s. Developed by Evryware and published by Broderbund, it was available on various platforms, including Apple II, Atari ST, Amiga, and MS-DOS. The Ancient Art of War is a strategy game that takes place in various historical settings, such as ancient China, Greece, and t...