The games with the best replay value
Replay value in a game refers to how enjoyable and worthwhile it is to replay the same game multiple times after completing it or after having already experienced it once. Certain genres naturally lend themselves to high replay value, often due to randomized elements or open-ended gameplay. Examples include roguelikes, racing games, business simulations, and puzzle games like Tetris. On the other hand, some genres have inherently lower replay value, particularly those with linear narratives or heavily scripted events. Story-driven adventure games, for example, may lose much of their appeal after the first playthrough unless they offer multiple branching paths or significantly different endings.
Most popular high replay value games
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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 installment in the Age of Empires series and remains one ...
Alpha Centauri
Windows XP/98/95Mac OS1999protected Firaxis Games
Sid Meier took one look at Earth and said, “Let’s leave this dump.” Thus, Alpha Centauri (1999, Windows XP) was born - a 4X strategy game that takes Civilization to space, then adds philosophy, moral dilemmas, an...
Alter Ego: Female Version
DOS1986 Activision
Think of Alter Ego: Female Version as life’s greatest hits - and a few of its flops - played out one decision at a time. From childhood tantrums to awkward teenage crushes and midlife crises, you’ll make choices that d...
Alter Ego: Male Version
DOS1986 Activision
Welcome to Alter Ego: Male Version, where your life begins with a cry and a diaper and only goes downhill - or uphill, depending on your choices. This text-based simulation lets you experience the full ride of being a man: childho...
Angband
Windows XP/98/95DOSLinux1992freeware
If you’ve ever thought The Lord of the Rings needed more ASCII and fewer hobbit feelings, Angband is your jam. Since 1992, this dungeon-crawling roguelike has been throwing players into a 100-level deathtrap where the ultima...
Archon Ultra
DOS1994protected Free Fall Associates
Archon Ultra is what happens when you smash chess into an arcade cabinet and call it a day. This updated version of the original Archon throws in jazzed-up graphics and faster gameplay, but keeps the core idea: when pieces meet, t...
Arkanoid 2: The Revenge of Doh
DOS1989 Taito
Doh is back, and he’s mad - presumably because no one understood what he was in the first place. Arkanoid 2 takes the original formula and dials everything up: more levels, more power-ups, more neon madness. It’s still...
Ascendancy
DOS1995 The Logic Factory
Ascendancy is the friendlier, trippier cousin of Master of Orion. It’s 4X strategy in space, with bizarre alien races, psychedelic menus, and a soundtrack that sounds like it was composed by a stoned dolphin. The early game ...
Atomic Bomberman
Windows XP/98/951997 Interplay Productions
Atomic Bomberman (1997) takes the classic formula of blowing up your friends in adorable mayhem and gives it a 90s makeover — complete with voice quips, flashy graphics, and enough chaos to make a LAN party legendary. It&rsq...
Battle Chess
DOS1988protected Interplay Productions
You’ve never really lived until you’ve watched a rook pick up a pawn and slam dunk it into the floor. Battle Chess (1988) turns the world’s most intellectual board game into a medieval cage match. The pieces don&...
Body Blows
DOS1993 Team 17
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 th...
Bomberman
DOS1992 Hudson soft
It’s Bomberman (1992, DOS), the legendary bomb-dropping game where you play a suspiciously cute guy with an infinite bomb supply and questionable indoor safety habits. You move through grid-like mazes, drop bombs, destroy wa...
Bubble Trouble
Windows XP/98/951998
Here comes another bubble game—but this one packs a punch. Bubble Trouble is a frantic shoot-’em-up where you pop evil bouncing bubbles before they bounce you out of existence. It’s part arcade mayhem, part refle...
Bust-A-Move
DOS1997freeware Taito
Also known as Puzzle Bobble, this bubble-popping classic stars those cute dragons from Bubble Bobble, now in competitive puzzle mode. Match three colors, clear the screen, panic as the ceiling drops—repeat until addicted. Bu...
Bust-A-Move Again
DOSWindows XP/98/95Windows 10/111996 Taito
If you've ever wanted to pop bubbles while being taunted by adorable dinosaurs, Bust-A-Move Again (1996, DOS) is your jam. It’s like Tetris met a bubble tea menu and had a hyperactive child with color coordination issues. Th...
Chessmaster 9000
Windows XP/98/95Mac OS2002 UBI Soft
Chessmaster 9000 is a chess game developed by Ubisoft and released in 2002. It's part of the Chessmaster series, which has been around since the 1980s. Chessmaster 9000 was known for its strong chess engine and comprehensive tutor...
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 builds upon the concept of its predecessor, Civil...
Civilization 3
Windows XP/98/95Windows 10/11Mac OS2001protected Firaxis Games
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 cheesy, they’ve aged into gourmet. You build, har...
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 & Conquer series and is set in an alternate history...
Cossacks: Back to War
Windows XP/98/952002protected GSC Game World
Cossacks: The Art of War
Windows XP/98/952001protected GSC Game World
An expansion to the original, Cossacks: The Art of War refines, expands, and generally cranks up the chaos. New units, new campaigns, and more ways to accidentally bankrupt your nation while trying to outmaneuver your enemies. It&...
Dune II: The building of a dynasty
DOS1992 Westwood Studios
Dune II, released in 1992, is a pioneering real-time strategy game developed by Westwood Studios. Set in the world of Frank Herbert's Dune, players command noble houses in a battle for control over the planet Arrakis. With base-bu...
Elite Plus
DOS1991 Realtime Games
Elite Plus is an enhanced version of the classic space trading and combat simulator Elite, released by MicroPlay in 1991 for MS-DOS. It was designed as an update to the original 1984 game, improving graphics, performance, and over...
Empire Earth
Windows XP/98/952001protected Stainless Steel Studios
Empire Earth is a real-time strategy (RTS) game developed by Stainless Steel Studios and released by Sierra Entertainment in 2001. It's often compared to the "Age of Empires" series due to its similar gameplay mechanics and histor...
Extreme Pinball
DOS1995 Epic MegaGames
Gauntlet
DOS1986 Mindscape
Gauntlet 2
DOS1989 Atari
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 and serves as a spiritual successor to Grand Thef...
Heroes of Might and Magic
DOSWindows XP/98/951995 New World Computing