The most popular 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.
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Ghosts 'n Goblins remake
Windows 10/112004freewareremake run and gun, platform
Ghosts 'n Goblins is an iconic arcade game developed by Capcom, first released in 1985. It’s widely remembered for its challenging gameplay and its distinct horror-fantasy aesthetic. This is a faithful remake.In Ghosts 'n Goblins, players assume the role of Sir Arthur, a brave knight on a perilous quest to rescue Princess Prin-Prin, who has b...
Asterix and Obelix
DOS1996 platform
When in Gaul, punch like the Gauls do. In Asterix and Obelix (1996), you control the iconic French duo on a globetrotting beat-‘em-up adventure that mostly involves sending Romans flying like ragdolls. It’s all charmingly cartoonish, with faithful visuals straight out of the comics and gameplay that’s one part arcade brawler, one ...
Avoid the Noid
DOS1989
Domino’s Pizza once had a mascot called the Noid and someone decided he deserved his own video game. Avoid the Noid is about a heroic pizza delivery guy trying to bring food to hungry customers while the Noid, a chaotic gremlin in a red suit, tries to ruin everything. The gameplay consists of navigating a very suspicious office building fille...
Jazz Jackrabbit
DOS1994protected platform
Dilbert's Desktop Games
Windows XP/98/951997
Nicky Boom
DOS1992 platform
Dig Dug
DOS1983 maze
Dig Dug is a classic maze arcade action game that was first released by Namco in 1982 as a coin-op and later for a number of other systems. The gameplay of Dig Dug involves digging tunnels through the earth to reach and defeat the various creatures that inhabit the underground maze. The player has an air pump, which he can use to inflate the monste...
Rise of the Robots
DOS1994 fighting
Home Alone
DOS1991 platform
Duke Nukem
DOS1991 platform, run and gun
Duke Nukem was released in 1991 by Apogee Software for MS-DOS, marking the beginning of the Duke Nukem franchise. The game is a side-scrolling action platformer with a sci-fi theme. In this original installment, players control Duke Nukem, a muscular action hero tasked with saving the world from the evil Dr. Proton. Dr. Proton has taken control of ...
Cool Spot
DOS1994 platform
Miami Vice
DOS1989 platform
The Miami Vice game developed by Capstone Software and released in 1989 for MS-DOS was an action-strategy game based on the popular TV show. Unlike other arcade-style adaptations, this version had a unique blend of driving, strategy, and action gameplay. The game was divided into two main phases: tactical planning and action sequences. Mi...
Body Blows
DOS1993 fighting
Body Blows is a 2D fighting game developed and published by Team17, released in 1993. It was initially launched for the Amiga and later ported to MS-DOS. Body Blows was one of the few fighting games to emerge from Europe during the early 1990s and was heavily inspired by the success of games like Street Fighter II. Body Blows features traditio...
Barbarian: The Ultimate Warrior
DOS1989 platform
Ah, Barbarian: The Ultimate Warrior—the game where loincloths are tiny and sword swings are deadly. This 1989 fighter slashed its way onto DOS with decapitations, grunts, and enough low-res gore to make Conan blush. Forget finesse: this is about button mashing your way to glory while your opponent’s head rolls off like it’s auditi...
Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade: the Action Game
DOS1989 platform
Budokan: the Martial Spirit
DOS1989 fighting
Zool
DOS1992 platform
Zool was to Amiga what Sonic was for Sega consoles: a cool protagonist (a ninja of the Nth dimension!) for a high adrenaline action platformer. Zool was designed by George Allen and published by Gremlin in 1992 and it was an instant success. It was ported for many platforms, DOS included, and followed by Zool 2 in 1993.
Alpha Waves
DOS1990 platform
Alpha Waves is what happens when someone programs a 3D platformer using only triangles and pure imagination. You bounce. That’s it. You bounce through abstract levels that look like a geometry teacher’s daydream, all while calming music lulls you into a weird sense of floating peace. It is part game, part meditation session, and entirel...
Karateka
DOS1986 beat 'em up
Karateka is a martial arts themed action / fighting game released by Broderbund in 1986 for DOS. Karateka is the first game designed by Jordan Mechner, the father of the Prince of Persia franchise. Karateka was also published for Amstrad CPC, Apple II, Atari ST, C64, MSX, NES, ZX Spectrum.
Jetpack
DOS1993freeware platform
Jetpack is a classic 2D platformer video game developed by Adept Software and released for MS-DOS computers in 1993. Created by Adam Pedersen, it became popular for its addictive gameplay, simplicity, and level editor feature, allowing players to design and share their own levels.In Jetpack, players control a character equipped with a jetpack, navi...
Super Street Fighter 2
DOS1996 fighting
Super Street Fighter II is an enhanced version of the iconic arcade fighting game Street Fighter II, developed and published by Capcom. It was released in 1993 as an upgrade to Street Fighter II Turbo: Hyper Fighting and introduced several new features, characters, and gameplay mechanics to the series.Super Street Fighter II expanded the roster wit...
Inner Worlds
DOSLinux1996 platform
Jumpman
DOS1984 platform
Commander Keen 1: Marooned on Mars
DOS1990 platform
Commander Keen 1: Marooned on Mars is a platform video game developed by id Software and published by Apogee Software in 1990 as shareware for MS-DOS. The game follows the adventures of an eight-year-old genius named Billy Blaze, who uses his homemade spaceship to travel to various alien planets to save the Earth from alien invaders known as V...
Dark Ages Volume I - Prince of Destiny
DOS1991freeware platform
DX-Ball 2
Windows XP/98/951998protected block breaker, action puzzle
DX-Ball 2 is a popular brick-breaking game that was first released in 1998 by Longbow Digital Arts. It serves as a sequel to the original DX-Ball, which was inspired by the classic arcade game Breakout and its successor Arkanoid. The core mechanics of DX-Ball 2 involve controlling a paddle at the bottom of the screen to bounce a ball upwards. ...
ZZT
DOS1991freeware maze, action puzzle
ZZT (1991, DOS) looks like it was drawn by an enthusiastic ASCII artist with too much time and not enough colors. And yet, it’s brilliant. Part action game, part puzzle adventure, part game creation tool, ZZT is the reason some people grew up to become game developers instead of astronauts. Built by a teenage Tim Sweeney (yes, the Unreal Engi...
Q*Bert
DOS1984
Q*bert is a classic arcade game that was created by Warren Davis and Jeff Lee and was released by Gottlieb in 1982. The main goal of Qbert is to change the color of every cube in a pyramid by having the character, Qbert, hop on each cube. Once all cubes have changed to the target color, the player advances to the next level. Various ...
X-Men: Madness in Murderworld
DOS1989 beat 'em up
Paperboy
DOS1988
Paperboy was one of (if not THE) arcade hit of 1985. It was developed by Atari for the arcades and later published by Mindscape for DOS in 1988. More conversion were made for quite a few other platforms. Paperboy gameplay is peculiar: you control a boy riding a bicycle and your goal is to deliver as many newspapers as you can to a number of ho...