Top abandonware games by year
Abandonware DOS hosts games from the early age of Personal Computer videogaming. I'm referring to a time when some of you weren't even born: the 80s.
The golden age of PC games came in the 90s, with classic games still remembered today. In the new millennium, many small developers struggled to stay afloat in the gaming sea now dominated by leviathan companies that ate one software house after another. The golden age ended and "abandonware" started to be a thing.
Here are the top 10 games for every year of that golden age, according to user's votes.
| # | 1982 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Zork I: The Great Underground Empire | adventure |
3.97
|
| 02 | Paratrooper | shooter |
3.87
|
| 03 | Microsoft Decathlon | sports |
3.73
|
| 04 | PC-Man | action |
3.70
|
| 05 | Executive Suite | simulation |
3.70
|
| 06 | Deadline | adventure |
3.68
|
| # | 1983 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Frogger | action |
4.11
|
| 02 | Lode Runner | action |
4.03
|
| 03 | Digger | action |
4.00
|
| 04 | Rogue | rpg |
3.97
|
| 05 | The Hobbit | adventure |
3.91
|
| 06 | Galaxian | shooter |
3.90
|
| 07 | Defender | shooter |
3.90
|
| 08 | Battlezone | shooter |
3.87
|
| 09 | Donkey Kong | action |
3.85
|
| 10 | Planetfall | adventure |
3.74
|
| # | 1984 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Alley Cat | action |
4.08
|
| 02 | The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy | adventure |
3.99
|
| 03 | Soko-Ban | puzzle |
3.96
|
| 04 | DND | rpg |
3.88
|
| 05 | Pong v.2.1 clone | action |
3.79
|
| 06 | King's Quest 1: Quest for the Crown | adventure |
3.77
|
| 07 | Jumpman | action |
3.77
|
| 08 | Hack | rpg |
3.74
|
| 09 | Styx | action |
3.74
|
| 10 | Below The Root | action-adventure |
3.60
|
| # | 1985 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | A mind forever voyaging | adventure |
4.09
|
| 02 | Rambo First Blood Part 2 | adventure |
4.04
|
| 03 | James Bond 007: A View to a Kill | adventure |
4.00
|
| 04 | King's Quest 2: Romancing the Throne | adventure |
3.97
|
| 05 | Hacker | simulation |
3.93
|
| 06 | Ultima 4: Quest of the Avatar | rpg |
3.92
|
| 07 | Spacewar | shooter |
3.84
|
| 08 | Strip Poker: A Sizzling Game of Chance | strategy |
3.70
|
| 09 | Ultima 3: Exodus | rpg |
3.53
|
| # | 1986 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Norton Commander 5.5 | application |
4.13
|
| 02 | Turbo Prolog 2.0 | application |
4.12
|
| 03 | Alter Ego: Female Version | simulation |
4.08
|
| 04 | Gunship | vehicle simulation |
4.03
|
| 05 | James Bond 007: Goldfinger | adventure |
4.03
|
| 06 | Space Quest 1: The Sarien Encounter | adventure |
4.00
|
| 07 | Alter Ego: Male Version | simulation |
4.00
|
| 08 | Wordstar 4 | application |
3.97
|
| 09 | Starflight | rpg |
3.96
|
| 10 | Karateka | action |
3.88
|
| # | 1987 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Leisure Suit Larry 1: In the Land of the Lounge Lizards | adventure |
4.14
|
| 02 | Elite | vehicle simulation |
4.11
|
| 03 | Maniac Mansion | adventure |
4.10
|
| 04 | Tetris | puzzle |
4.07
|
| 05 | Test Drive | racing |
4.05
|
| 06 | Sid Meier's Pirates! | strategy |
4.04
|
| 07 | The Great Giana Sisters | action |
4.00
|
| 08 | Police Quest 1: In Pursuit of the Death Angel | adventure |
4.00
|
| 09 | The Bard's Tale | rpg |
3.95
|
| 10 | Project: Space Station | simulation |
3.95
|
| # | 1988 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Arkanoid | action |
4.13
|
| 02 | Bad Dudes VS Dragon Ninja | action |
4.11
|
| 03 | Ultima 5: Warriors of Destiny | rpg |
4.08
|
| 04 | 2400 A.D. | rpg |
4.07
|
| 05 | F-19 Stealth fighter | vehicle simulation |
4.05
|
| 06 | Leisure Suit Larry 2: Goes Looking for Love (in Several Wrong Places) | adventure |
4.00
|
| 07 | Star Command | strategy |
4.00
|
| 08 | Life & Death | simulation |
4.00
|
| 09 | Gold Rush! | adventure |
4.00
|
| 10 | Zak McKracken and the Alien Mindbenders | adventure |
3.99
|
| # | 1989 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Dungeon Master | rpg |
4.14
|
| 02 | Ferrari Formula 1 | racing |
4.12
|
| 03 | F-15 Strike Eagle II | vehicle simulation |
4.11
|
| 04 | Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade | adventure |
4.11
|
| 05 | A-10 Tank Killer | vehicle simulation |
4.10
|
| 06 | Indianapolis 500 | racing |
4.10
|
| 07 | Lakers vs. Celtics and the NBA Playoffs | sports |
4.09
|
| 08 | Starflight 2: Trade routes of the Cloud Nebula | rpg |
4.09
|
| 09 | The Sentinel | puzzle |
4.08
|
| 10 | 007: License to Kill | shooter |
4.07
|
| # | 1990 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | The Secret of Monkey Island | adventure |
4.21
|
| 02 | Prince of Persia | action |
4.13
|
| 03 | Kick off 2 | sports |
4.10
|
| 04 | The Bard's Tale 3: Thief of Fate | rpg |
4.10
|
| 05 | Spellcasting 101: Sorcerers get all the girls | adventure |
4.09
|
| 06 | Centurion: Defender of Rome | strategy |
4.09
|
| 07 | F29 Retaliator | vehicle simulation |
4.08
|
| 08 | Champions of Krynn | rpg |
4.07
|
| 09 | Operation Stealth | adventure |
4.07
|
| 10 | Ultima 6: The False Prophet | rpg |
4.06
|
| # | 1991 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Eye of the Beholder 2: The Legend of Darkmoon | rpg |
4.21
|
| 02 | Civilization | strategy |
4.17
|
| 03 | Golden Axe | action |
4.12
|
| 04 | Eye of the Beholder | rpg |
4.11
|
| 05 | SimAnt: The Electronic Ant Colony | simulation |
4.11
|
| 06 | Another World | action-adventure |
4.10
|
| 07 | Magnetic Scrolls Collection | adventure |
4.10
|
| 08 | Night Hawk: F-117A Stealth Fighter | vehicle simulation |
4.07
|
| 09 | Megafortress | vehicle simulation |
4.07
|
| 10 | Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge | adventure |
4.07
|
| # | 1992 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Ultima 7 Part 1: The Black Gate | rpg |
4.18
|
| 02 | Wolfenstein 3D | shooter |
4.13
|
| 03 | Dune | strategy |
4.12
|
| 04 | Street Fighter 2 | action |
4.10
|
| 05 | Alone in the Dark | action-adventure |
4.10
|
| 06 | B-17 Flying fortress | vehicle simulation |
4.10
|
| 07 | Titus the Fox | action |
4.10
|
| 08 | Aces of the Pacific | vehicle simulation |
4.10
|
| 09 | Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis | adventure |
4.09
|
| 10 | Star Control 2 | strategy |
4.09
|
| # | 1993 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Doom | shooter |
4.18
|
| 02 | Championship Manager Italia | sports |
4.17
|
| 03 | The Lost Vikings | action |
4.16
|
| 04 | Castle of the Winds | rpg |
4.14
|
| 05 | The Incredible Machine | puzzle |
4.12
|
| 06 | The Settlers | strategy |
4.11
|
| 07 | Mortal Kombat | action |
4.11
|
| 08 | Legend of Kyrandia 2: Hand of fate | adventure |
4.11
|
| 09 | Ultima 7 Part 2: Serpent Isle | rpg |
4.10
|
| 10 | Syndicate | strategy |
4.09
|
| # | 1994 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | X-COM: Ufo Defense | strategy |
4.23
|
| 02 | Panzer General | strategy |
4.13
|
| 03 | Master of Magic | strategy |
4.12
|
| 04 | Warcraft: Orcs and Humans | strategy |
4.11
|
| 05 | Disney's Aladdin | action |
4.11
|
| 06 | The Incredible Machine 2 | puzzle |
4.10
|
| 07 | The Elder Scrolls: Arena | rpg |
4.09
|
| 08 | Strip Poker Professional | strategy |
4.09
|
| 09 | Quarantine | racing |
4.08
|
| 10 | Colonization | strategy |
4.08
|
| # | 1995 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Grand Prix 2 | racing |
4.13
|
| 02 | Warcraft 2: Tides of Darkness | strategy |
4.13
|
| 03 | Frontier: First Encounters | vehicle simulation |
4.12
|
| 04 | FIFA Soccer 96 | sports |
4.11
|
| 05 | Steel Panthers | strategy |
4.10
|
| 06 | Star Wars: Dark Forces | shooter |
4.09
|
| 07 | Descent | shooter |
4.09
|
| 08 | Heroes of Might and Magic | strategy |
4.09
|
| 09 | Screamer | racing |
4.08
|
| 10 | True love | adventure |
4.08
|
| # | 1996 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Master of Orion 2: Battle at Antares | strategy |
4.24
|
| 02 | Civilization 2 | strategy |
4.19
|
| 03 | Duke Nukem 3D | shooter |
4.14
|
| 04 | Quake | shooter |
4.11
|
| 05 | Command & Conquer: Red Alert | strategy |
4.10
|
| 06 | Crusader: No Regret | shooter |
4.10
|
| 07 | Albion | rpg |
4.09
|
| 08 | Death Rally | racing |
4.07
|
| 09 | Conquest of the New World (Deluxe Edition) | strategy |
4.07
|
| 10 | Discworld 2: Mortality Bytes! | adventure |
4.05
|
| # | 1997 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Age of Empires | strategy |
4.10
|
| 02 | Theme Hospital | simulation |
4.09
|
| 03 | Fallout | rpg |
4.09
|
| 04 | Virtua Cop 2 | strategy |
4.08
|
| 05 | Virtua Cop | shooter |
4.07
|
| 06 | Panzer General 2 | strategy |
4.07
|
| 07 | Season of the Sakura | adventure |
4.06
|
| 08 | Championship Manager: Season 97/98 | sports |
4.06
|
| 09 | Blade Runner | adventure |
4.05
|
| 10 | Dungeon Keeper | strategy |
4.05
|
| # | 1998 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Dune 2000 | strategy |
4.11
|
| 02 | House of the Dead | shooter |
4.10
|
| 03 | 101: The Airborne Invasion of Normandy | strategy |
4.10
|
| 04 | Dope Wars | simulation |
4.06
|
| 05 | Axis and Allies | strategy |
4.06
|
| 06 | Railroad Tycoon 2 | simulation |
4.05
|
| 07 | Sanitarium | adventure |
4.05
|
| 08 | Mega Man X3 | shooter |
4.00
|
| 09 | Avalon | rpg |
3.98
|
| 10 | Fatal Relations | adventure |
3.93
|
| # | 1999 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Tyrian 2000 | shooter |
4.14
|
| 02 | System Shock 2 | action-adventure |
4.09
|
| 03 | Three Sisters' Story | adventure |
4.06
|
| 04 | Heroes of Might and Magic III: The Restoration of Erathia | strategy |
4.04
|
| 05 | Age of Empires 2: The Age of Kings | strategy |
4.04
|
| 06 | Age of Wonders | strategy |
4.01
|
| 07 | Star Trek: Starfleet Command | vehicle simulation |
3.98
|
| 08 | Pharaoh | simulation |
3.89
|
| 09 | Yoot Tower | simulation |
3.89
|
| 10 | SimCity 3000 | simulation |
3.84
|
| # | 2000 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Patrician 2: Quest for Power | simulation |
4.00
|
| 02 | Zeus: Master of Olympus | simulation |
3.98
|
| 03 | Arrakis | strategy |
3.91
|
| 04 | 3D Ultra Lionel Traintown | puzzle |
3.70
|
| # | 2001 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds | strategy |
4.03
|
| 02 | Arcanum: of Steamworks and Magick Obscura | rpg |
3.94
|
| 03 | Mario and Luigi | action |
3.91
|
| 04 | Empire Earth | strategy |
3.82
|
| # | 2002 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Syberia | adventure |
4.00
|
| 02 | Sid Meier's SimGolf | sports |
4.00
|
| 03 | Roller Coaster Tycoon 2 | simulation |
3.95
|
| 04 | Industry Giant 2 | simulation |
3.84
|
| 05 | Icewind Dale 2 | rpg |
3.78
|
