Best abandonware games by year

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Abandonware DOS is home to games from the early days of personal computer gaming—I'm talking about the 1980s, a time when some of you weren’t even born.

The golden age of PC gaming truly blossomed in the 1990s, giving us classics that are still fondly remembered today. But with the arrival of the new millennium, many small developers found it hard to survive in a gaming industry now ruled by corporate giants swallowing up one studio after another. The golden age came to an end—and the era of "abandonware" began.

Here are the top 10 games for each year of that golden age, as voted by our users.

#	1981	genre	rating
01	Ultima 1: The First Age of Darkness	rpg	4.01/5
02	Galaxy	strategy	4.00/5
03	Softporn Adventure	adventure	3.95/5
04	Wizardry: Proving Grounds of the Mad Overlord	rpg	3.92/5
05	Chess	strategy	3.88/5

#	1982	genre	rating
01	Zork I: The Great Underground Empire	adventure	4.14/5
02	PC-Man	action	4.08/5
03	Microsoft Decathlon	sports	4.02/5
04	Executive Suite	simulation	3.91/5
05	Paratrooper	shooter	3.91/5

#	1983	genre	rating
01	Defender	shooter	4.21/5
02	Lode Runner	action	4.21/5
03	Battlezone	shooter	4.17/5
04	Zork II: The Wizard of Frobozz	adventure	4.13/5
05	Digger	action	4.13/5

#	1984	genre	rating
01	Alley Cat	action	4.24/5
02	Montezuma's Revenge	action	4.21/5
03	The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy	adventure	4.18/5
04	Archon: the Light and the Dark	strategy	4.18/5
05	Rogue	rpg	4.17/5

#	1985	genre	rating
01	Ultima 3: Exodus	rpg	4.15/5
02	A Mind Forever Voyaging	adventure	4.14/5
03	Ultima 4: Quest of the Avatar	rpg	4.11/5
04	Alice: The Personal Pascal	application	4.11/5
05	Silent Service	vehicle simulation	4.11/5

#	1986	genre	rating
01	Space Quest 1: The Sarien Encounter	adventure	4.21/5
02	Gunship	vehicle simulation	4.18/5
03	Leather Goddesses of Phobos	adventure	4.18/5
04	Orbiter	vehicle simulation	4.17/5
05	King's Quest 3: To Heir is Human	adventure	4.16/5

#	1987	genre	rating
01	Leisure Suit Larry 1: In the Land of the Lounge Lizards	adventure	4.25/5
02	Driller	action-adventure	4.21/5
03	Police Quest 1: In Pursuit of the Death Angel	adventure	4.20/5
04	Falcon	vehicle simulation	4.18/5
05	Test Drive	racing	4.17/5

#	1988	genre	rating
01	Rampage	action	4.22/5
02	Battlehawks 1942	vehicle simulation	4.22/5
03	Battle Chess	strategy	4.20/5
04	Speedball	sports	4.20/5
05	Rocket Ranger	action	4.19/5

#	1989	genre	rating
01	Turbo Assembler (TASM)	application	4.39/5
02	Pipe Dream	puzzle	4.25/5
03	Hero's Quest: So You Want to Be a Hero	adventure	4.21/5
04	A-10 Tank Killer	vehicle simulation	4.20/5
05	Operation Wolf	shooter	4.20/5

#	1990	genre	rating
01	The Secret of Monkey Island	adventure	4.31/5
02	Prince of Persia	action	4.22/5
03	Ultima 6: The False Prophet	rpg	4.21/5
04	Red Baron	vehicle simulation	4.21/5
05	Das Boot: German U-Boat Simulation	vehicle simulation	4.20/5

#	1991	genre	rating
01	Volfied	action	4.30/5
02	Eye of the Beholder 2: The Legend of Darkmoon	rpg	4.24/5
03	Chuck Yeager's Air Combat	vehicle simulation	4.23/5
04	Chip's Challenge	puzzle	4.22/5
05	QBasic 7.1	application	4.22/5

#	1992	genre	rating
01	Ultima 7 Part 1: The Black Gate	rpg	4.31/5
02	Tetris Classic	puzzle	4.31/5
03	Street Fighter 2	action	4.31/5
04	Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis	adventure	4.25/5
05	Virtual Reality Studio 2.0	application	4.23/5

#	1993	genre	rating
01	Mortal Kombat	action	4.27/5
02	Populous 2: Trials of the Olympian Gods	strategy	4.24/5
03	SimCity 2000	simulation	4.23/5
04	Police Quest: Open Season	adventure	4.22/5
05	Doom	shooter	4.21/5

#	1994	genre	rating
01	X-COM: Ufo Defense	strategy	4.29/5
02	Micro Machines	racing	4.27/5
03	Doom 2: Hell on Earth	shooter	4.26/5
04	The Incredible Machine 2	puzzle	4.22/5
05	Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf	shooter	4.21/5

#	1995	genre	rating
01	The Need for Speed	racing	4.21/5
02	EF 2000	vehicle simulation	4.21/5
03	River Raid remake	shooter	4.20/5
04	Comix Zone	action	4.20/5
05	Albion	rpg	4.20/5

#	1996	genre	rating
01	Final Doom	shooter	4.33/5
02	Master of Orion 2: Battle at Antares	strategy	4.27/5
03	Jagged Alliance: Deadly Games	strategy	4.22/5
04	Quake	shooter	4.22/5
05	Fantasy General	strategy	4.21/5

#	1997	genre	rating
01	Virtua Cop 2	shooter	4.23/5
02	Blood	shooter	4.21/5
03	Interstate '76	racing	4.19/5
04	Pacific General	strategy	4.19/5
05	Carmageddon	racing	4.19/5

#	1998	genre	rating
01	Caesar 3	simulation	4.21/5
02	Norton Commander 5.5	application	4.20/5
03	Dune 2000	strategy	4.20/5
04	People's General	strategy	4.18/5
05	Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines	strategy	4.18/5

#	1999	genre	rating
01	Age of Empires 2: The Age of Kings	strategy	4.24/5
02	Age of Wonders	strategy	4.21/5
03	Outcast	action-adventure	4.21/5
04	Star Trek: Starfleet Command	vehicle simulation	4.20/5
05	Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia	strategy	4.19/5

#	2000	genre	rating
01	Zeus: Master of Olympus	simulation	4.21/5
02	Nox	rpg	4.18/5
03	Patrician 2: Quest for Power	simulation	4.13/5
04	Deus Ex	rpg	4.09/5
05	Vampire: The Masquerade - Redemption	rpg	4.08/5

#	2001	genre	rating
01	Empire Earth	strategy	4.20/5
02	Capitalism 2	simulation	4.16/5
03	Zoo Tycoon	simulation	4.13/5
04	Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel	strategy	4.13/5
05	Arcanum: of Steamworks and Magick Obscura	rpg	4.13/5

#	2002	genre	rating
01	The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind	rpg	4.20/5
02	Hooligans: Storm Over Europe	strategy	4.13/5
03	Roller Coaster Tycoon 2	simulation	4.12/5
04	Crazy Taxi	racing	4.11/5
05	Sid Meier's SimGolf	sports	4.11/5

#	2003	genre	rating
01	Master of Orion 3	strategy	4.18/5
02	The Temple of Elemental Evil	rpg	4.05/5
03	Yu-Gi-Oh! Power of Chaos - Yugi the Destiny	strategy	3.86/5
04	Van Buren (Fallout 3)	rpg	3.86/5
05	1893: A World's Fair Mystery	adventure	3.81/5

#	2004	genre	rating
01	Ghosts 'n Goblins remake	action	4.00/5
02	Maniac Mansion Deluxe	adventure	4.00/5
03	UFO 2000	strategy	3.96/5
04	Dark Horizons Lore: Invasion	vehicle simulation	3.94/5
05	Spider-Man 2: The Game	action-adventure	3.88/5