Abandonware DOS retro gaming spotlight
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Amberstar: an old-school RPG
3rd December 2022RPGAmberstar is an old school RPG very similar to Ultima 6 that uses a top-down view for interiors and small locations and a first person pseudo 3D view for everything else. Unfortunately, the sequel (called Ambermoon) was available for Amiga only and no version existed for DOS or Windows. -
Jagged Alliance 2: like X-Com in South America
30th November 2022RPG, strategyI'm a fan of the original X-COM. I think it's one of the best turn-based tactics games ever released for DOS. Unfortunately, games like X-COM are not many. Jagged Alliance 2 has a similar tactical component: you give turn-based orders to a team of mercenaries, mission after mission. There's no management ... -
GOG Black Friday sale
24th November 2022deals and free gamesGood Old Games is hosting a Black Friday sale. It's call Black Friday, but it lasts a whole week! And there's bundles! Strategy bundle, RPG bundle, kinky bundle (...) build your own bundle (Team17, Microids, etc.). I think I'm going to buy one of the old Heroes of Might and Magic ... -
From Sierra Online: Freddy Pharkas Frontier Pharmacist
19th November 2022adventureFreddy Pharkas: Frontier Pharmacist is a comedy point & click adventure game set in the old American West designed by Al Lowe and Josh Mandel, developed and released by Sierra On-Line in 1993 for DOS, Windows and Macintosh. Initially released on floppy, Freddy Pharkas was later re-released on CD-ROM as a ... -
Witchaven: a fantasy first-person slasher
12th November 2022action, shooterWitchaven is an abandoned fantasy first-person shooter (or "slasher", since you'll wield melee weapons) developed by Capstone and released by IntraCorp in 1995 for DOS and Windows. Witchaven includes RPG elements such as experience and leveling your character but it's primarily an action game with swords and spells.More info about ... -
A game to play on Christmas day: Holiday Lemmings
5th November 2022puzzleLemmings was one of the most iconic puzzle games ever made. It was also one of the most inventive. The idea behind those tiny furred punk suicidal rodents is truly a stroke of genius. Not surprisingly, after the huge success of the first game a lot of sequels followed. Holiday ... -
GDC Spotlight Awards - 1998
29th October 2022top games and awardsThe Spotlight Awards was a video game awards event hosted in the 1990s at the GDC (Games Developers Conference) that covered a lot of gaming platforms.The best video games for 1998 according to the Spotlight awards were:Age of Empires Annual Achievement Award for Game Design and DevelopmentBlade Runner Best ... -
Bureaucracy: interactive fiction
22nd October 2022adventureBureaucracy is an abandoned text-adventure game designed by Douglas Adams (yes, the writer of The Hitchhiker Guide of the Galaxy), developed and published by Infocom in 1987. Bureaucracy is a peculiar interactive fiction; the game challenges you to solve frustrating bureaucratic problems in a world populated by strange characters. Game info ... -
Retro RPG spotlight: Bloodwych
15th October 2022RPGBloodwych is an abandoned RPG set in the fantasy world of Trazere. Two players can play at the same time in split screen mode, a feature that was unusual at the time, especially for an RPG. Bloodwych was released in 1989 by Image Works for DOS, Amiga, Amstrad CPC, Atari ... -
Point & click: Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis
8th October 2022adventureIndiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis is a graphical point and click adventure game created by LucasArts and published in 1992, based on the popular movie character. As the famous archaeologist Indiana Jones, you will travel the world searching for the mythical land of Atlantis. Fate of Atlantis is the ... -
Free Enterprise: build your small business from the ground up
30th September 2022simulationDehumanizing offices? Check. Depressing environment? Check. No windows in the whole place? Check. Good, I'm ready to exploit my workers and become great entrepreneur. All of this thanks to Free Enterprise, a simulation for Windows by Tsunami Media, published in 1996.More info:Genres: simulation, business simulationSystem: Windows ... -
Road Rash: violent motorcycle racing
24th September 2022racingRoad Rash is an abandoned motorcycle racing game developed by Papyrus Design Group and released by Electronic Arts in 1996. Road Rash runs on Windows XP/98/95 but was also published for Amiga, Sega Genesis, Sega Master System, 3DO, Game Gear, PlayStation, Saturn, Game Boy. In Road Rash you're a motorcycle racer ... -
Electronic Games Arcade Awards: The best of 1980
17th September 2022top games and awardsElectronic Games was the first magazine dedicated to the video game world, published in the United States. Electronic Games ran from October 15 1981 to 1997 under different titles (Computer Entertainment, Intelligent Gamer, etc).The magazine is notable for holding the first Game of the Year Award ceremony, called (obviously) the ... -
Maniac Mansion Deluxe: a remake
10th September 2022adventure, remakes and sequelsManiac Mansion Deluxe is the unofficial sequel to the acclaimed point & click adventure game released by LucasFilm in 1987. Maniac Mansion Deluxe it's a fan-made adventure developed by LucasFans Games and released in 2004 and it's a complete remake of Maniac Mansion in every aspect, developed using the Adventure Game Studio ... -
Electronic Games Arcade Awards - 1982
3rd September 2022top games and awardsElectronic Games was the first magazine dedicated to the video game world, published in the United States. Electronic Games ran from October 15 1981 to 1997 under different titles (Computer Entertainment, Intelligent Gamer, etc). The magazine is notable for holding the first Game of the Year Award ceremony, called (obviously) the Arcade Awards. ... -
X-COM Apocalypse: a different X-COM
27th August 2022remakes and sequels, simulation, strategyX-COM: Apocalypse is the third installment of the very popular X-COM franchise. After X-COM: Ufo Defence and Terror From the Deep, fans expected another smash hit. Apocalypse is quite different under many aspects, from gameplay to aesthetics. X-COM Apocalypse was designed by Julian Gollop (the same designer that brought the ... -
Retro adventure: Future Wars Adventure in Time
20th August 2022adventure"The look and gameplay of Future Wars owes a lot to the Sierra On-Line style of arcade adventure. But, where the Sierra games are simple and quite accessible, Future Wars is complex and hard to get into. I'd say curiosity is probably the main motivating force when playing this ... -
The first Civilization
13th August 2022strategyI clearly remember the first time I played Civilization. It was, perhaps, the first time I played a 4X game (eXplore, eXpand, eXploit, eXterminate). It took me a fair amount of time to learn the mechanics, understand the pace of the game, the gameplay and to finally beat the computer ... -
Hooligans: one of the most controversial games ever released
6th August 2022strategyApparently, Hooligans is one of the most controversial games ever made. I say apparently simply because I've never played Hooligans back then. A few weeks ago I spent half an hour playing the tutorial mission and I have to admit that I felt uncomfortable walking around thrashing benches and beating ... -
The Aethra Chronicles Volume One: Celystra's Bane
30th July 2022RPGThe Aethra Chronicles is not a well know RPG, but it deserves some praise. It was developed by only one person (Micheal Lawrence) and, as the title implies, was intended to be the first volume of a saga. Unfortunately, volume two and three were never made. For a shareware game, ...