Abandonware DOS title

Text-based games: ASCII, etc. sorted by title, from Z to A

In the past, lots of games used ASCII characters (text) to represent the game world. These text-only video games may seem primitive and outdated and, in fact, the genre almost died with the fast evolving graphics of modern games.
A few genres traditionally linked to the beautiful world of ascii characters still survives: roguelikes (nethack, angband, etc.) and interactive fiction, for example.

Most popular text-based games

Norton Commander 5.5
applicationDOS
DOSBox
applicationWindows XP/98/95, Linux, Mac
zzt-2

ZZT

DOS1991freeware4.2/5 Epic MegaGames
zyll-1

Zyll

DOS19843.9/5 IBM
zork3-1

Zork III: The Dungeon Master

DOS19844/5 Infocom
zork2-2

Zork II: The Wizard of Frobozz

DOS19834.3/5 Infocom
zork1-2

Zork I: The Great Underground Empire

DOS19824.2/5 Infocom
Zork is one of the most popular text-adventures and one of the first interactive fiction games ever created. The first Zork was developed in the seventies and ported on various platform by Infocom in the early 80s. Infocom was one of the most prolific developers of text-adventures for home computers and created memorable interactive fiction ga...
ZAngband-02

ZAngband

WindowsMacDOSLinux1999freeware4/5
Zangband is a variant of the popular roguelike game Angband. Zangband, short for Zelazny Angband, was developed by Chris Weisiger and first released in 1994. The game features a fantasy world with diverse races, classes, and monsters. Players explore dungeons, caves, and other environments in a quest to reach the bottom level of the dungeon, d...
xtrek91-02

Xtrek

DOS1991freewareNSFW4/5
wordstar4-01

Wordstar 4

DOS19864.2/5 MicroPro International
WordStar 4 was a popular word processing software program during the early days of personal computing. WordStar 4 included features typical of word processors in that era, allowing users to create, edit, and format documents. It used a command-driven interface, where users would enter specific commands to perform various tasks. The software wa...
word-perfect-5-02

Word Perfect 5

DOS19893.9/5 Corel
witchhavenRL-01

WitchavenRL

WindowsLinux20133.8/5
wishbringer-1

Wishbringer

DOS19853.7/5 Infocom
warp-rogue-01

Warp Rogue

WindowsLinux2004freeware3.9/5
wall-street-raider-01

Wall Street Raider

DOS19864.3/5
voodoisland-1

Voodoo island

DOS19853.8/5 Angelsoft
volkswriter3-02

Volkswriter 3

DOS19823.8/5 Lifetree Software
ibm-visicalc-1-01

VisiCalc 1.0

DOS1979freeware4.3/5 Software Arts
VisiCalc was the first spreadsheet software for personal computers, and it played a pivotal role in the early history of personal computing. It was developed by Dan Bricklin and Bob Frankston and first released in 1979 for the Apple II computer. VisiCalc is often considered the first electronic spreadsheet, and its success had a significant impact ...
video-trek-88-02

Video Trek 88

DOS19823.9/5 Windmill Software
uplink-v1.3-5

Uplink: Hacker Elite

Windows XP/98/95LinuxMac2001protected4/5 Introversion Software Limited
Uplink is a computer hacking simulation game released in 2001 by Introversion Software. The game allows players to take on the role of a hacker for hire and engage in various hacking activities.In Uplink, players perform tasks such as hacking into systems, stealing data, and covering their tracks. The game features a realistic representation of hac...
prolog_001

Turbo Prolog 2.0

DOS1986protected4.1/5 Borland Software Corporation
turbo-pascal-7-01

Turbo Pascal 7

DOSWindows 3.xMac19924/5 Borland Software Corporation
Turbo Pascal 7 (TP7) is a programming language and integrated development environment (IDE) that was popular in the late 1980s and early 1990s. It was developed by Borland as an evolution of their earlier Turbo Pascal versions. Turbo Pascal 7 was released around 1992.Turbo Pascal 7 gained popularity in educational settings and among hobbyist progra...
tasm-02

Turbo Assembler (TASM)

DOSWindows 3.xWindows XP/98/9519894/5 Borland Software Corporation
Turbo Assembler, often referred to as TASM, is an x86 assembler for MS-DOS and Microsoft Windows. It was part of the Turbo Assembler/Turbo Debugger (TASM/TD) package that Borland released as part of their Turbo Assembler product line. Borland was a software company known for its development tools during the 1980s and 1990s.
trinity-01

Trinity

DOS19864.1/5 Infocom
treasure-island-01

Treasure Island

DOS19853.5/5 Byron Preiss Video Productions
tomenet-04

TomeNET

Windows XP/98/95Linux2003freeware4.3/5
time-and-magik-03

Time and Magik: The Trilogy

DOS19884.1/5 Level 9 Computing
the-draw-02

TheDraw 4

DOS19863.3/5
the-witness-01

The Witness

DOS19834/5 Infocom
usurper-1

The Usurper

DOS19893.8/5 Sir-tech Software
shadowsmordor-3

The Shadows of Mordor

DOS19883.7/5 Beam Software