Top-down perspective

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).

Most popular top down games

Dune 2000

strategyWindows XP/98/95

PC-Man

actionDOS

Ultima 7 Part 1: The Black Gate

rpgDOS

Top down games

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Blades of Exile

Windows 3.xMacWindows XP/98/951997freeware3.9/5 Spiderweb Software
Blasteroids

DOS19893.8/5 Atari
Blitz Draughts

DOS19923.6/5 PC Solutions
Blitzkrieg: Battle at the Ardennes

DOS19903.5/5 Command Simulations
Block O Mania

DOS19894/5 Crystal Shard
Blood & Magic

DOS19964/5 Tachyon Studios
Bloodstone: an Epic Dwarven Tale

DOS19934/5 Mindcraft Software
Blue Angel 69

DOS19893.6/5
Blues Brothers RPG

Windows XP/98/952004freeware4/5
Bobby Fisher teaches chess

DOS19943.9/5 Mission Studios
Bomberman

DOS19924.1/5 Hudson soft
Bombuzal

DOS19893.6/5 Image Works
Boston Bomb Club

DOS19914/5 Silmarils
Boxer Rebellion

DOS19823.1/5
Bravo Romeo Delta

DOS19934.2/5
Bridge 7.0

DOS19923.3/5 Artworx Software
Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday

DOS1990protected4.1/5 SSI Strategic Simulations Inc.
Buck Rogers: Matrix Cubed

DOS1992protected4/5 SSI Strategic Simulations Inc.

Buck Rogers: Matrix Cubed is a CRPG developed by SSI Strategic Simulations Inc. and released in 1992 for DOS only. Buck Rogers: Matrix Cubed is the sequel to Buck Rogers: Countdown to Doomsday and it's based on a campaign setting created by TSR in the late 80s. The game uses the Gold Box engine, common to much of the RPGs developed by SSI.
Buffalo Bill's Wild West Show

DOS19893/5 Tynesoft Computer Software
Burntime

DOS19934/5 Max Design
Bush Buck: Global Treasure Hunter

DOS19914.1/5 Pc globe
Caesars Palace

DOS19894/5 Virgin Interactive
Cannon Fodder

DOS1994protected4.3/5 Sensible Software
Cap Man

Windows XP/98/9519993.3/5
Carnage

DOS19934.3/5 Warped Minds
Carrier Strike: South Pacific 1942-44

DOS1992protected4/5 SSI Strategic Simulations Inc.
Carser

DOS2023freeware3.6/5 Rodisoft

Carser is a top-down view single player retro racing game. The goal is to go through all checkpoints and get the fastest time possible rewarded by silver, gold and diamond badges. Nitro boosts, jump ramps, ferry boats, rail level crossings, road blocks, cows, oil spills, gates and traffic will make this challenging.
Castle Adventure

DOS1984freeware4.2/5
Castle of the Winds

Windows 3.x1993freeware4.2/5 SaadaSoft

Castle of the Winds (1993, by Saadasoft) is a perfect example of an atypical roguelike (no ASCII, runs in Windows) turned into a liberated game. Surprisingly Castle of the Winds is still very playable to this day, if you can make it run under a recent version of Windows.
Castle Wolfenstein

DOS19844.2/5 Muse Software