Abandonware DOS title

Shareware: a business model sorted by release date

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

Duke Nukem 3D
shooterDOS
Quake
shooterDOS, Windows XP/98/95
Duke Nukem
actionDOS
softporn-4

Softporn Adventure

DOS1981freewareNSFW4/5 Sierra On-Line
amazingmaze-2

Amazing Maze

DOS19833.1/5
crazy-digger-1

Digger

DOS19834.3/5 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.
robotron-2084-3

Robotron 2084

DOS19833.9/5 Williams Entertainment
space-miner-03

Space Miner

DOS19833.5/5
dnd_text-02

DND

DOS19844.1/5
flightmare-04

Flightmare

DOS1984freeware3.6/5
8088othello-4

8088 Othello

DOS19853.5/5
air-traffic-controller-02

Air Traffic Controller

DOS19854.2/5 Cascoly Software
armchair-quarterback-01

Armchair Quarterback

DOS19854.1/5
monopoly-04

Monopoly

DOS19853.9/5
spacewar-splash

Spacewar

DOS19854.1/5
Spacewar is one of the earliest digital computer games and is often considered the first interactive video game. It was created in 1962 by Steve Russell, Martin Graetz, and Wayne Wiitanen at the MIT. The game was developed on the PDP-1 minicomputer; this is a DOS port, released in 1985.Spacewar! features two spaceships, controlled by players, that ...
batalia-4

Batalia

DOS19862.8/5 The Right Brothers
beyond-titanic-01

Beyond the Titanic

DOS19863.8/5 Apogee Software
egaroids-2

EGA-Roids

DOS1986freewareremake3.7/5 Designer Software
othello-03

Othello

DOS19864.1/5
round-42-03

Round 42

DOS19862.7/5
aldosadventure-1

Aldo's Adventure

DOS1987remake3.8/5
mission-mainframe-04

Mission: Mainframe

DOS19873.9/5
captain-comic-02

Captain Comic, The Adventures of

DOS1988freeware3.8/5
egatrek-03

EGA Trek

DOS1988remake3/5
kingdomkroz-1

Kingdom of Kroz

DOS1988freeware3.7/5 Apogee Software
moraffrevenge-2

Moraff's Revenge

DOS19883.7/5 Moraffware
super-battleship-03

Super Battleship

DOS19883.3/5
aldo2-03

Aldo Again

DOS1989remake3.8/5
alice-wonderland-if-01

Alice in Wonderland

DOS19893.3/5
caverns-of-kroz-2

Caverns of Kroz

DOS1989freeware3.6/5 Apogee Software
dungeons-of-kairn-02

Dungeons of Kairn

DOS19893.6/5
dungeonkroz-1

Dungeons of Kroz

DOS1989freeware3.6/5 Apogee Software
grand-prix-hole-03

Grand Prix

DOS19894/5 Wizard Games