Abandonware DOS title

The most popular best selling games

Compiling a list of the best-selling PC games of all time is no simple task. The reason? The video game market has evolved significantly over the past few decades. A game that sold 100,000 copies 30 years ago might have been considered a best-seller at the time, but the same sales figure today wouldn’t carry the same weight. Here’s an (unordered) list of the best-selling games, based on Wikipedia.
return-to-zork-1

Return to Zork

DOS1993 Activision
“Want some rye? ‘Course you do!” If that line triggers PTSD, congrats: you’ve played Return to Zork. This not-quite-sequel turns the beloved text adventure ...
civilization2-4

Civilization 2

Windows XP/98/951996 MicroProse Software
Civilization II is a turn-based strategy game developed by MicroProse and released in 1996. It's the second installment in the "Civilization" series, created by Sid Meier. The game...
railroad-tycoon-2-03

Railroad Tycoon 2

Windows XP/98/95LinuxMac OS1998 Pop Software
Railroad Tycoon 2 is what happens when a beloved strategy game puts on a suit, hires a consultant, and decides to “scale operations.” Slicker graphics, deeper economic ...
zoo-tycoon-07

Zoo Tycoon

Windows XP/98/952001 Blue Fang Games
Ever dreamed of running your own zoo without needing a shovel for elephant poop? Zoo Tycoon lets you do exactly that. Build the ultimate animal empire - until the lions escape, the...
grand-prix-2-07

Grand Prix 2

DOS1995 MicroProse Software
Grand Prix 2 is an abandoned Formula 1 racing game designed by Geoff Crammond and published by MicroProse Software in 1995 for DOS. Grand Prix 2 is the sequel to Formula One Grand ...
red-alert-6

Command & Conquer: Red Alert

DOS1996freeware Westwood Studios
Command & Conquer: Red Alert is a real-time strategy (RTS) video game developed by Westwood Studios and published by Virgin Interactive in 1996. It is part of the Command &...
pacman-atari-02

Pac-Man

DOS1983 Namco
Pac-Man is a classic arcade game created by Namco and first released in Japan on May 22, 1980. It was later released in North America by Midway Games. The game was designed by Toru...
harry-potter-1-01

Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone

Windows XP/98/952001 KnowWonder
gta-vice-city-02

Grand Theft Auto: Vice City

Windows XP/98/95Mac OS2002protected Rockstar Games
Grand Theft Auto: Vice City is an open-world action-adventure game developed by Rockstar North and published by Rockstar Games in 2002. It's the fourth main entry in the GTA series...
age-of-empires-2-04

Age of Empires 2: The Age of Kings

Windows XP/98/951999protecteddemo Ensemble Studios
Age of Empires II: The Age of Kings is a landmark real-time strategy (RTS) game developed by Ensemble Studios and published by Microsoft. Released in 1999, it is the second install...
age_of_empires-7

Age of Empires

Windows XP/98/951997protecteddemo Ensemble Studios
Released in 1997, Age of Empires is what happens when ancient history gets drunk and decides to party. You start in the Stone Age, bashing wild boars and clubbing trees, and before...
robocop-2

Robocop

DOS1989 Data East
Robocop is an abandoned beat 'em up / run and gun shooter game developed and released by Data East in 1989 for a number of platforms, including DOS. Robocop is a conversion fr...
the-sims-02

The Sims

Windows XP/98/952000 Maxis
The Sims, released in 2000, marked the beginning of the iconic life simulation series. Developed by Maxis and designed by Will Wright, the game quickly became a cultural phenomenon...
populous-5

Populous

DOS1989 Bullfrog
Populous is an abandoned strategy game designed by the video game celebrity Peter Molyneux, developed by Bullfrog. Populous was released by Electronic Arts in 1989 for DOS and for ...
dukenukem3d-4

Duke Nukem 3D

DOS1996protecteddemo 3d Realms
Here’s where Duke goes full legend. Duke Nukem 3D isn’t just a shooter; it’s a cultural moment. The game exploded onto DOS with outrageous humor, interactive envi...
diablo1-06

Diablo

Windows XP/98/951996protecteddemo Blizzard Entertainment
In 1996, Diablo descended onto PCs and basically defined the “click until everything dies” genre. The gothic town of Tristram sits atop a dungeon stuffed with demons, l...
caesar2-3

Caesar 2

DOS1995 Impressions Games
Bigger, bolder, and with more statues of yourself than ever, Caesar 2 builds on its predecessor like Rome after a good tax season. Now you get to manage both cities and provinces, ...
command-and-conquer-06

Command & Conquer

DOS1995freeware Westwood Studios
The original Command & Conquer (1995, DOS) is the game that launched a thousand LAN parties. It’s gritty, fast-paced RTS warfare with full-motion video cutscenes so chees...
warcraft2tides-4

Warcraft 2: Tides of Darkness

DOS1995protected Blizzard Entertainment
phantasmagoria-04

Phantasmagoria

Windows XP/98/95DOSMac OS1995protecteddemo Sierra On-Line
Phantasmagoria is a point-and-click horror adventure game developed and published by Sierra On-Line, released in 1995. Directed by Roberta Williams, Phantasmagoria departed from Si...
full-throttle-02

Full Throttle

DOS1995protecteddemo LucasArts
doom-3

Doom

DOS1993protecteddemo id Software
Doom was released by id Software in 1993. It is widely regarded as one of the most influential and groundbreaking video games of all time, particularly within the first-person shoo...
doom2-5

Doom 2: Hell on Earth

DOSWindows XP/98/951994protected id Software
If Doom was the apocalypse, Doom II: Hell on Earth was the encore nobody asked for but everyone wanted. Released in 1994, it doubled down on everything: bigger maps, nastier monste...
commandos-behind-enemy-lines-09

Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines

Windows XP/98/951998protected Pyro Studios
Forget Rambo. Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines is what happens when you drop six experts behind Nazi lines and tell them to behave tactically… or else. Every mission is a deadl...
starcraft-03

StarCraft

Windows XP/98/95Mac OS1998protecteddemo Blizzard Entertainment
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 ...
roller-coaster-tycoon-1-07

Roller Coaster Tycoon

Windows XP/98/951999protected Chris Sawyer Productions
caesar-3-09

Caesar 3

Windows XP/98/95Mac OS1998protected Impressions Games
Polished to a shine worthy of a senator’s sandals, Caesar 3 finally gets it right. Gorgeous 2D visuals, elegant gameplay, and voiceovers that say “No more workers!&rdqu...
blade-runner-10

Blade Runner

Windows XP/98/95LinuxMac OS1997protected Westwood Studios
One of the best licensed games of the '90s, Blade Runner (1997) puts you in the rain-soaked shoes of Ray McCoy, a detective tracking down replicants in a world where it's always ni...
mdk-03

MDK

DOSMac OSWindows XP/98/951997protected Shiny Entertainment
MDK (1997) is one of those games that feels like it came from another dimension — a dimension where sniper rifles, parachutes, and absurd humor coexist peacefully. You play a...