The best abandonware action games
Action video games are a genre of video games that emphasize physical challenges, hand-eye coordination, and reaction time. These games typically involve fast-paced gameplay, where players control a character who must navigate through a dynamic environment filled with obstacles, enemies, and other challenges. The primary focus is on the player's ability to react quickly and make split-second decisions.
Sort by:
Surf Ninjas
DOS1994 beat 'em up
The Bugs Bunny Hare-Brained Adventure
DOS1990 maze
Vixen
DOS1988 beat 'em up
Zorro
DOS1995 platform
From the dusty archives of 1995 DOS gaming comes Zorro, a side-scrolling platformer that asks the question: what if the legendary masked hero had the reflexes of a hungover sloth? With clunky controls and combat that’s more ...
Aaargh
DOS1988 fighting
Aaargh (1988) is exactly what you’ll scream as your giant monster stomps through cities with all the grace of a drunk kaiju. On DOS, this arcade-ish game lets you smash stuff, roast villagers, and battle other monsters in du...
Caverns of Kroz 2
DOS1989 maze
Lost Adventures of Kroz
DOS1990freeware maze
Popeye 2
DOS1992 platform
Yabog
DOS1995freeware block breaker
Imagine a game where a gelatinous green creature (that may or may not be sentient chewing gum) bounces its way through logic puzzles and physics that occasionally remember gravity exists. Yabog is a DOS-era oddity that doesn't exp...
Bionic Commando
DOS1988 platform, run and gun
In Bionic Commando, you're a soldier with no jumping ability—because who needs knees when you have a grappling arm? Swing through 1988 DOS architecture like a pixelated Tarzan, blasting bad guys and trying not to fall to you...
David's Kong
DOS1984remake
Super Bomber Blast Beta
DOS1997remake maze
Superman: The Man of Steel
DOS1989 shoot 'em up, platform
Tom and the Ghost
DOS1990 platform
Pinball Dreams 2
DOS1994protected pinball
Rise of the Robots
DOS1994 fighting
Kingdom of Kroz 2
DOS1990 maze
Pocahontas
DOS1995 platform
Snack Attack 2
DOS1982 maze
Williams Arcade Classics
DOS1995 platform, shoot 'em up
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...
Artura
DOS1989 platform
Artura is a hack-and-slash side-scroller that looks like someone tried to draw Gauntlet from memory after a power outage. You’re some kind of Celtic warrior on a mystical mission, but really you’re just trying not to d...
Amazing Maze
DOS1983 maze
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 maze
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
Moonwalker
DOS1989 platform
Gateworld
DOS1993 platform
Tongue of the Fatman
DOS1989 fighting