Abandonware DOS title

Games based on a novel sorted by year, newest first

A lot of old games were based on a book, being it a novel or even a short story. Some novels that inspired developers to create video games are The Lords of the Rings (by J. R. R. Tolkien, Rendez Vous with Rama (by Arthur Clarke), The Mist (by Stephen King).

Most popular based on a novel games

Dune 2000
strategyWindows XP/98/95
Dune
strategyDOS
dune-generations-06

Dune Generations

Windows XP/98/952002canceled3.8/5 Cryo Interactive Entertainment
Dune Generations was a canceled 3D MMO strategy game set in the Dune universe that was never published. Dune Generations was in development by Cryo Interactive Entertainment, but it was canceled in 2002 when the company filed for bankruptcy. As of 2002 the game was still in the alpha stage; what's left are some screenshots ...
arrakis-05

Arrakis

DOS20003.9/5
dune2000-splash

Dune 2000

Windows XP/98/9519984.2/5 Westwood Studios
Dune 2000 is an abandoned science fiction classic real-time strategy game based on the popular Dune franchise. The Dune "universe" took form in the books of science fiction writer Frank Herbert and went on to include movies, TV series, comics, and of course video games. Dune 2000 is one of the finest RTS of its era; it was developed by We...
callahan-crosstime-03

Callahan's Crosstime Saloon

DOS19974/5 Legend Entertainment
riders-of-rohan-09

J.R.R. Tolkien's Riders of Rohan

DOS19974.1/5 Papyrus Design Group
discworld2-08

Discworld 2: Mortality Bytes!

DOS19964.1/5 Perfect Entertainment
discworld-splash

Discworld

DOS19954.2/5 Perfect Entertainment
ihnom-4

I have no Mouth and I Must Scream

DOS1995protected4.1/5 The Dreamers Guild
prisonerofice-1

Prisoner of Ice

DOS1995protected4.1/5 Chaosium Inc.
shannara-09

Shannara

DOS1995protected4/5 Legend Entertainment
touche-02

Touché: The Adventures of the Fifth Musketeer

DOS19954.1/5 Clipper Software
tekwar-09

William Shatner's TekWar

DOS19954/5 Capstone
zorro-3

Zorro

DOS19953.3/5 Capstone
death-gate-01

Death Gate

DOS1994protected3.9/5 Legend Entertainment
frankenstein-02

Frankenstein

DOS19944.1/5 Junkyard
return-to-ringworld-02

Return to Ringworld

DOS19943.8/5 Tsunami Media
betrayalkrondor-7

Betrayal at Krondor

DOS1993protected4/5 Dynamix
xanth-1

Companions of Xanth

DOS1993protected3.8/5 Legend Entertainment
gateway2_home_000

Gateway 2: Homeworld

DOS1993protected3.9/5 Legend Entertainment
return-of-the-phantom-06

Return of the Phantom

DOS1993protecteddemo3.7/5 MicroProse Software
Return of the Phantom is adventure game set in France, designed by Raymond Benson, developed by MicroProse Software and released in 1993 for DOS only. Return of the Phantom is a third-person adventure game based on the book Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux.
transarctica-06

Transarctica

DOS19933.9/5 Silmarils
castleelsinore-1

Castle Elsinore

DOS19923.5/5 Temple Software
dune-4

Dune

DOS19924.1/5 Cryo Interactive Entertainment
Dune, released in 1992, is a game developed by Cryo Interactive and published by Virgin Games. It's based on the iconic science fiction novel of the same name by Frank Herbert. In Dune, players assume the role of Paul Atreides, the young scion of House Atreides, as he arrives on the desert planet Arrakis with his family to take control of spice pro...
dune2-7

Dune II: The building of a dynasty

DOS19924.2/5 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-building, resource management, and tactical combat, the game introduced key elements of the genre and influenced future RT...
gateway1-3

Frederik Pohl's Gateway

DOS19924.1/5 Legend Entertainment
Frederik Pohl's Gateway is one of the best abandoned adventures games from Legend Entertainment. Gateway is an interactive fiction with graphics and an improved interface (unusual for IFs), based on the Frederik Pohl's novel Gateway. Tt was designed by Michael Verdu and Glen R. Dahlgren and published by Legend Entertainment in 1992.
hook-04

Hook

DOS19924.2/5 Shadow Software
lotr2b-02

J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Vol. II: The Two Towers

DOS19923.9/5 Interplay Productions
J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings, Vol. II: The Two Towers is an abandoned fantasy top-down DOS RPG game set in the The Lord of the Rings universe. The Lord of the Rings II was developed and released by Interplay Productions in 1992. The Lord of the Rings, Vol. II: The Two Towers is based on the popular The Lord Of The Rings book by J.R.R. Tol...
pacificislands-1

Pacific Islands

DOS19924.3/5 Oxford Digital Enterprises
ringworld-revenge-04

Ringworld: Revenge of the Patriarch

DOS19923.8/5 Tsunami Media