Abandonware DOS title

The most popular abandonware strategy games

Games based on strategy allow for reasoning and planning of one’s moves and actions. The gameplay may be based on player’s turns (Turn-based Strategy) or it may be in real time (Real-Time Strategy, RTS). These games focus on strategy and tactics rather than action, sometimes with the addition of financial or logistic features.
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Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds

Windows XP/98/95Mac OS2001protected real-time strategy
Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds is a science fiction real-time strategy game set in the Star Wars universe, focused both on the first and the second Star Wars trilogy. Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds was developed by LucasArts...
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101: The Airborne Invasion of Normandy

Windows XP/98/951998 turn-based tactics
So you think you're ready to storm Normandy? Think again. 101: The Airborne Invasion of Normandy drops you into the chaos of World War II with all the grace of a paratrooper landing in a barn. This is a tactical strategy game that...
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Cossacks: Back to War

Windows XP/98/952002protected real-time strategy, real-time tactics
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Powermonger

DOS1992 god game, real-time strategy
Powermonger takes the god-game formula of Populous and gives it teeth. Instead of playing benevolent deity, you’re more like a slightly cranky warlord, sending little soldiers to raid villages and expand your empire. The joy...
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The Grandest Fleet

DOS1994 wargame
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NetStorm: Islands at War

Windows XP/98/951997 real-time strategy
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Master of Magic

DOSWindows XP/98/951994protected kingdom simulation, 4x
Master of Magic is a turn based 4x strategy game developed by SimTex and published by the well know Microprose, very similar to Civilization, with a fantasy twist. You play as a wizard and your objective is to evolve your race fro...
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StarCraft

Windows XP/98/95Mac OS1998protecteddemo real-time strategy
StarCraft is a classic RTS (Real-Time Strategy) game developed by Blizzard Entertainment and released in 1998 for Windows and Macintosh. StarCraft takes the Warcraft experience to a sci-fi setting with an interesting story, three ...
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Kasparov's Gambit

DOS1993 chess
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Rampart

DOS1992 artillery
Rampart is an abandoned mix of strategy and shooter game designed by Dave Ralston and John Salwitz, developed by Atari and released by Electronic Arts in 1992 for DOS. Rampart was converted from the original arcade version to a nu...
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Scorched Earth

DOS1991protected artillery
Scorched Earth (1991) was the “mother of all games” long before Doom took the title. Two or more tanks face off on a randomly generated terrain, and your only mission is to blow everyone else sky-high. Simple? Yes. Add...
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Deadlock: Planetary Conquest

Windows XP/98/95Windows 3.x1996protected 4x
If you’ve ever wanted to play interstellar Monopoly while arguing with alien neighbors, Deadlock: Planetary Conquest is your ticket. Released in 1996, this strategy gem tosses you into the messy business of colonizing planet...
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War in Middle Earth

DOS1989 real-time tactics, real-time strategy
War in Middle-earth is a real-time strategy game developed by Synergistic Software and published by Melbourne House. It was released in 1988 for various platforms including the Commodore 64, ZX Spectrum, and Amstrad CPC.The game i...
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Bandit Kings of Ancient China

DOS1989 kingdom simulation
Based on a classic Chinese novel, Bandit Kings of Ancient China combines strategy, RPG elements, and about 800 names you’ll never remember. You play one of 108 outlaws trying to overthrow a corrupt regime — think Roman...
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Ogre

DOS1986 wargame, board game
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Mario's Game Gallery

DOSMac OS1995 cards, board game
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Syndicate Wars

DOSWindows XP/98/95Mac OS1996protected real-time tactics
Syndicate Wars is the sequel to the much acclaimed Syndicate developed by Bullfrog in its golden years. Like its predecessor, Syndicate Wars is a real-time tactics strategy game set in a cyberpunk dystopian world involving excessi...
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Warlords 2 Deluxe

DOS1995 4x
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Roadwar Europa

DOS1987protected turn-based tactics
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Playhouse Strip Poker

DOS1988NSFW cards
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The Battle of the Bulge: Tigers in the Snow

DOS1982protected wargame, turn-based tactics
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Alien Legacy

DOS1994 4x
Alien Legacy (1994) is like SimCity crashed into Star Trek and nobody called the insurance company. It’s a real-time strategy/simulation game that has you managing a colony in deep space while solving the mystery of what hap...
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Empire Deluxe

DOSWindows 3.x1993 turn-based tactics, wargame
Empire Deluxe is a classic turn-based strategy game that was originally released in the early 1990s. Developed by Mark Baldwin and Bob Rakowsky of White Wolf Productions and published by New World Computing, it is a successor...
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Command & Conquer: Sole Survivor

Windows XP/98/951997 real-time strategy
Command & Conquer: Sole Survivor (1997, Windows XP) took the RTS formula and flipped it into a weird deathmatch where you control a single unit and try not to die... horribly. It’s like a survival game set inside the Red...
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Master of Orion

DOS1993protected 4x
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Battle Isle 2200

DOS1994protected turn-based tactics
With Battle Isle 2200 (1994), the series goes full 3D cinematic—with cutscenes so dramatic you’d think they were auditioning for a soap opera in space. The gameplay is classic hex strategy, but now with upgraded visual...
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Heroes of Might and Magic II

DOSWindows XP/98/951996protected turn-based tactics
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Chess88

DOS1984 chess
With Chess88, you’re entering the elite club of DOS chess nerds who appreciate ASCII art and precision time controls. Compared to its 1981 predecessor, it’s a leap forward—kind of like going from a stone tablet t...
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Battle Bugs

DOS1994 real-time tactics
What if ants could use bazookas and beetles had battle plans? Battle Bugs answers this crucial question by turning your screen into a war zone where tiny insects wage strategic warfare over leftovers. The stakes are high and the t...
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Colonization

DOSWindows 3.xLinuxMac OS1994protected 4x
Sid Meier's Colonization is Civilization’s scrappy, historically charged cousin. You start with a tiny ship and a dream: exploit the New World before the other European powers do. Grow crops, trade with natives, rebel agains...