The best shareware games
Shareware is a type of software distribution model that allows users to try a program before purchasing it. It's a marketing strategy and distribution method that was particularly popular in the early days of personal computing, primarily during the 1980s and 1990s.
Shareware games were released for free with limited functionality (for example: no saving, missing levels, time limit), often via a BBS (Bulletin Board System), a floppy disc or a CD included in a printed magazine or by direct download (when internet was in its infancy). If the user liked the shareware product, they could pay to obtain an upgrade and unlock the full game. When digital distribution started to become popular, shareware games slowly faded into oblivion.
Most popular shareware games
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Joust VGA
DOS1990remake4.4/5
Quake
DOSWindows XP/98/951996protecteddemo4.3/5 id software
Quake is a first-person shooter (FPS) video game developed by id Software and released in 1996. It is the successor to id Software's immensely popular "Doom" series and is known for its groundbreaking 3D graphics, fast-paced gameplay, and multiplayer capabilities. The game was created by a team led by John Carmack and John Romero, two of the co-fou...
Heretic
DOS1994protecteddemo4.2/5 Raven Software
Digger
DOS19834.2/5 Windmill Software
Digger is an abandoned action game developed and released by Windmill Software back in 1983 for PC only. Gameplay is a mix of two classics: Dig Dug and Mr. Do!: dig down, get gems, avoid death, reach the next level and so on.
ZZT
DOS1991freeware4.2/5 Epic MegaGames
Electranoid
DOS19954.2/5 Pixel Painters Corporation
Doom
DOS1993protecteddemo4.2/5 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 shooter (FPS) genre.Set in the future on the moons of Mars, the game follows the player-controlled character, known as the "Doom Marine", as they battle through a research fa...
Hocus Pocus
DOS1994protected4.2/5 Apogee Software
Blood
DOS1997protected4.2/5 Monolith Productions
3D Cyber Blaster
DOS1992remake4.2/5 HomeBrew Software
Air Traffic Controller
DOS19854.2/5 Cascoly Software
Seek and Destroy
DOS19964.2/5 Safari Software
Seek and Destroy was a shoot'em up published by the well known Epic Megagames in 1996 that tried to change the usual shoot'em up gameplay for the better. Instead of wave after wave of enemies to shoot down, you are given short missions to accomplish with your helicopter or your tank (yes, you can choose). At first, missions could seem a bit repetit...
Castle of the Winds
Windows 3.x1993freeware4.2/5 SaadaSoft
Castle of the Winds is a fantasy roguelike role-playing game developed by SaadaSoft in the early 1990s. It was designed for Windows 3.x and is notable for being one of the earliest graphical RPGs for that platform. The game features a top-down perspective and incorporates elements of dungeon crawling, exploration, and character development.The game...
Duke Nukem 3D
DOS1996protecteddemo4.2/5 3d Realms
Duke Nukem 3D is a classic first-person shooter that was developed by 3D Realms (formerly known as Apogee Software) and published by GT Interactive. It was released in 1996 for MS-DOS and later for various other platforms, including Windows, Mac OS, and gaming consoles.
Ack-Ack Attack!
DOS1995remake4.2/5 PLBM Games
Commander Keen 1: Marooned on Mars
DOS19904.2/5 id software
Commander Keen 1: Marooned on Mars is a platform video game developed by id Software and published by Apogee Software in 1990 as shareware for MS-DOS. The game follows the adventures of an eight-year-old genius named Billy Blaze, who uses his homemade spaceship to travel to various alien planets to save the Earth from alien invaders known as V...
Jill of the Jungle
DOS19924.2/5 Epic MegaGames
Bio Menace Episode 3: Master Cain
DOS1993freeware4.2/5 Apogee Software
Commander Keen 3: Keen Must Die!
DOS1990protected4.2/5 id software
Slicks 'n' Slide
DOS19934.2/5
Tyrian 2000
DOS1999freeware4.1/5 Eclipse Software
Tyrian 2000 is an old DOS science fiction classic shoot'em up, developed by Eclipse Software and designed by Alexander Brandon, Jason Emery, Daniel Cook. Tyrian 2000 is one of the most popular shoot'em ups ever published for DOS and it's still remembered by retro gaming fans to this day.
Commander Keen 6: Aliens Ate my Baby Sitter!
DOS19914.1/5 id software
Joyous Rebel
DOS1996freeware4.1/5
Snood
DOSWindows XP/98/95Mac OS1996freeware4.1/5
Sherlock: The Game of Logic
DOS1991protected4.1/5 Everett Kaser Software
Bio Menace Episode 2: The Hidden Lab
DOS1993freeware4.1/5 Apogee Software
Othello
DOS19864.1/5
Radix: Beyond the Void
DOS19954.1/5
One Must Fall 2097
DOS1994freeware4.1/5 Diversions Entertainment
One Must Fall: 2097 is a fighting game released in 1994 by Epic MegaGames. Set in a futuristic world, the game features giant humanoid robots known as HARs (Human-Assisted Robots) controlled by human pilots. The storyline revolves around a tournament organized by the multinational corporation WAR (World Aeronautics and Robotics), where pilots compe...
Armchair Quarterback
DOS19854.1/5