Best 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 | PC-Man | action |
4.16
|
| 02 | Zork I: The Great Underground Empire | adventure |
4.15
|
| 03 | Microsoft Decathlon | sports |
3.92
|
| 04 | Executive Suite | simulation |
3.85
|
| 05 | Paratrooper | shooter |
3.84
|
| 06 | Car Builder | simulation |
3.81
|
| 07 | Deadline | adventure |
3.76
|
| 08 | Wizardry 2: The knight of diamonds | rpg |
3.75
|
| 09 | The Battle of the Bulge: Tigers in the Snow | strategy |
3.73
|
| 10 | Pac-girl | action |
3.64
|
| # | 1983 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Battlezone | shooter |
4.29
|
| 02 | Digger | action |
4.26
|
| 03 | Lode Runner | action |
4.22
|
| 04 | Defender | shooter |
4.18
|
| 05 | Frogger | action |
4.16
|
| 06 | Planetfall | adventure |
4.14
|
| 07 | Donkey Kong | action |
4.14
|
| 08 | Sleuth: A Murder Mystery | simulation |
4.12
|
| 09 | Borland Turbo Pascal 2.0 | application |
4.12
|
| 10 | Zork II: The Wizard of Frobozz | adventure |
4.12
|
| # | 1984 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Alley Cat | action |
4.29
|
| 02 | DBase 3 | application |
4.26
|
| 03 | Crime and Punishment | simulation |
4.25
|
| 04 | Rogue | rpg |
4.22
|
| 05 | King's Quest 1: Quest for the Crown | adventure |
4.21
|
| 06 | Montezuma's Revenge | action |
4.19
|
| 07 | The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy | adventure |
4.15
|
| 08 | Archon: the Light and the Dark | strategy |
4.11
|
| 09 | Soko-Ban | puzzle |
4.09
|
| 10 | DND | rpg |
4.06
|
| # | 1985 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Alice: The Personal Pascal | application |
4.39
|
| 02 | 9 Princes in Amber | adventure |
4.20
|
| 03 | Ultima 4: Quest of the Avatar | rpg |
4.15
|
| 04 | A Mind Forever Voyaging | adventure |
4.13
|
| 05 | Rambo First Blood Part 2 | adventure |
4.13
|
| 06 | Ultima 3: Exodus | rpg |
4.11
|
| 07 | Spacewar | shooter |
4.06
|
| 08 | Star Trek: the Kobayashi alternative | adventure |
4.00
|
| 09 | King's Quest 2: Romancing the Throne | adventure |
3.98
|
| 10 | The Dam busters | vehicle simulation |
3.95
|
| # | 1986 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Space Quest 1: The Sarien Encounter | adventure |
4.24
|
| 02 | Gunship | vehicle simulation |
4.19
|
| 03 | Starflight | rpg |
4.17
|
| 04 | Wordstar 4 | application |
4.16
|
| 05 | Conflict in Vietnam | strategy |
4.13
|
| 06 | Alter Ego: Male Version | simulation |
4.13
|
| 07 | Gauntlet | action |
4.13
|
| 08 | Leather Goddesses of Phobos | adventure |
4.13
|
| 09 | Alter Ego: Female Version | simulation |
4.10
|
| 10 | The Chessmaster 2000 | strategy |
4.10
|
| # | 1987 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Borland Turbo C v1 | application |
4.48
|
| 02 | Leisure Suit Larry 1: In the Land of the Lounge Lizards | adventure |
4.29
|
| 03 | Mah Jongg Solitaire | puzzle |
4.26
|
| 04 | Police Quest 1: In Pursuit of the Death Angel | adventure |
4.22
|
| 05 | Earl Weaver Baseball | sports |
4.22
|
| 06 | Bad Street Brawler | action |
4.19
|
| 07 | Maniac Mansion | adventure |
4.19
|
| 08 | Borland Turbo Basic 1.0 | application |
4.18
|
| 09 | Wheel of fortune | puzzle |
4.14
|
| 10 | Test Drive | racing |
4.13
|
| # | 1988 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Deluxe Paint 2 | application |
4.37
|
| 02 | Skate or Die | sports |
4.25
|
| 03 | GW-BASIC 3 | application |
4.25
|
| 04 | Impossible Mission 2 | action-adventure |
4.24
|
| 05 | World class leaderboard | sports |
4.24
|
| 06 | Battle Chess | strategy |
4.23
|
| 07 | Double Dragon II: The Revenge | action |
4.18
|
| 08 | Ultima 5: Warriors of Destiny | rpg |
4.17
|
| 09 | Classic Concentration | puzzle |
4.15
|
| 10 | MicroProse Soccer | sports |
4.14
|
| # | 1989 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Operation Wolf | shooter |
4.30
|
| 02 | The Duel: Test Drive 2 | racing |
4.30
|
| 03 | Pipe Dream | puzzle |
4.28
|
| 04 | Lakers vs. Celtics and the NBA Playoffs | sports |
4.23
|
| 05 | Rick Dangerous | action |
4.23
|
| 06 | Hero's Quest: So you want to be a hero | adventure |
4.21
|
| 07 | Bubble Bobble | action |
4.21
|
| 08 | Heavy Metal | vehicle simulation |
4.21
|
| 09 | Stunt Car Racer | racing |
4.19
|
| 10 | Oil Imperium | simulation |
4.19
|
| # | 1990 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | The Secret of Monkey Island | adventure |
4.31
|
| 02 | Tetris 2.0 | puzzle |
4.29
|
| 03 | Norton Editor 2 | application |
4.27
|
| 04 | Arj | application |
4.27
|
| 05 | Tank Wars | strategy |
4.26
|
| 06 | Loom | adventure |
4.25
|
| 07 | Night Shift | puzzle |
4.25
|
| 08 | LadyLove | action |
4.24
|
| 09 | Prince of Persia | action |
4.24
|
| 10 | Ultima 6: The False Prophet | rpg |
4.23
|
| # | 1991 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | QBASIC | application |
4.48
|
| 02 | Chip's Challenge | puzzle |
4.30
|
| 03 | Duke Nukem | action |
4.30
|
| 04 | Commander Keen 6: Aliens Ate my Baby Sitter! | action |
4.29
|
| 05 | Monkey Island 2: LeChuck's Revenge | adventure |
4.29
|
| 06 | DOS Navigator v 1.5 | application |
4.28
|
| 07 | Eye of the Beholder 2: The Legend of Darkmoon | rpg |
4.26
|
| 08 | Golden Axe | action |
4.25
|
| 09 | Eye of the Beholder | rpg |
4.25
|
| 10 | Bundesliga Manager Professional | sports |
4.24
|
| # | 1992 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Virtual Reality Studio 2.0 | application |
4.41
|
| 02 | Tetris Classic | puzzle |
4.39
|
| 03 | Street Fighter 2 | action |
4.33
|
| 04 | The Oregon Trail Deluxe | simulation |
4.32
|
| 05 | Ultima 7 Part 1: The Black Gate | rpg |
4.31
|
| 06 | Wizardry 7: Crusaders of the Dark Savant | rpg |
4.29
|
| 07 | Locomotion | puzzle |
4.26
|
| 08 | Crazy Cars 3 | racing |
4.24
|
| 09 | Indiana Jones and the Fate of Atlantis | adventure |
4.23
|
| 10 | Star Control 2 | strategy |
4.23
|
| # | 1993 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | NeoPaint 3.2 | application |
4.50
|
| 02 | Mortal Kombat | action |
4.27
|
| 03 | Carnage | racing |
4.25
|
| 04 | Police Quest: Open Season | adventure |
4.25
|
| 05 | Flashback: The Quest for Identity | action |
4.24
|
| 06 | Lemmings 2: The Tribes | puzzle |
4.24
|
| 07 | SimCity 2000 | simulation |
4.23
|
| 08 | Populous 2: Trials of the Olympian Gods | strategy |
4.23
|
| 09 | 3D Studio 3 | application |
4.23
|
| 10 | Dungeon Hack | rpg |
4.22
|
| # | 1994 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Doom 2: Hell on Earth | shooter |
4.30
|
| 02 | 5th Fleet | strategy |
4.30
|
| 03 | Colonization | strategy |
4.30
|
| 04 | Pinball Fantasies | action |
4.29
|
| 05 | Disney's Aladdin | action |
4.29
|
| 06 | Heretic | shooter |
4.29
|
| 07 | X-COM: Ufo Defense | strategy |
4.28
|
| 08 | Desert Strike: Return to the Gulf | shooter |
4.27
|
| 09 | Diggers | puzzle |
4.25
|
| 10 | Super Mariio Bros | action |
4.25
|
| # | 1995 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Destruction Derby | racing |
4.46
|
| 02 | Impulse Tracker | application |
4.25
|
| 03 | Star Wars: Dark Forces | shooter |
4.24
|
| 04 | Uncharted Waters 2: New Horizons | simulation |
4.24
|
| 05 | Jungle Strike | shooter |
4.24
|
| 06 | Transport Tycoon Deluxe | simulation |
4.24
|
| 07 | Screamer | racing |
4.23
|
| 08 | Grand Prix 2 | racing |
4.23
|
| 09 | Whiplash | racing |
4.23
|
| 10 | The Need for Speed | racing |
4.22
|
| # | 1996 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Alien Trilogy | shooter |
4.31
|
| 02 | Battle Arena Toshinden | action |
4.30
|
| 03 | Master of Orion 2: Battle at Antares | strategy |
4.30
|
| 04 | Civilization 2 | strategy |
4.29
|
| 05 | Road Rash | racing |
4.28
|
| 06 | Pray for Death | action |
4.28
|
| 07 | Gloriana | simulation |
4.28
|
| 08 | Super Street Fighter 2 | action |
4.28
|
| 09 | The Elder Scrolls 2: Daggerfall | rpg |
4.27
|
| 10 | Dogs of War | strategy |
4.24
|
| # | 1997 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Warlords 3: Reign of Heroes | strategy |
4.32
|
| 02 | Carmageddon | racing |
4.26
|
| 03 | Age of Empires | strategy |
4.25
|
| 04 | Warheads | strategy |
4.25
|
| 05 | Command & Conquer: Sole Survivor | strategy |
4.25
|
| 06 | Virtua Cop 2 | shooter |
4.24
|
| 07 | Season of the Sakura | adventure |
4.22
|
| 08 | Lucky Luke | action |
4.21
|
| 09 | Entrepreneur | simulation |
4.21
|
| 10 | Magic: The Gathering | strategy |
4.21
|
| # | 1998 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Caesar 3 | simulation |
4.29
|
| 02 | People's General | strategy |
4.24
|
| 03 | Commandos: Behind Enemy Lines | strategy |
4.24
|
| 04 | Mega Man X3 | shooter |
4.23
|
| 05 | Army Men | strategy |
4.23
|
| 06 | Dune 2000 | strategy |
4.23
|
| 07 | Norton Commander 5.5 | application |
4.20
|
| 08 | Railroad Tycoon 2 | simulation |
4.16
|
| 09 | House of the Dead | shooter |
4.15
|
| 10 | Axis and Allies | strategy |
4.15
|
| # | 1999 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Outcast | action-adventure |
4.30
|
| 02 | Midtown Madness | racing |
4.30
|
| 03 | Jagged Alliance 2 | strategy |
4.28
|
| 04 | Age of Empires 2: The Age of Kings | strategy |
4.27
|
| 05 | Axis and Allies: Iron Blitz | strategy |
4.27
|
| 06 | Grand Theft Auto 2 | action-adventure |
4.25
|
| 07 | Might and Magic 7: For Blood and Honor | rpg |
4.24
|
| 08 | Mick's Strip Poker | strategy |
4.22
|
| 09 | System Shock 2 | action-adventure |
4.20
|
| 10 | Total Annihilation Kingdoms | strategy |
4.20
|
| # | 2000 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Ground Control | strategy |
4.22
|
| 02 | Nox | rpg |
4.21
|
| 03 | Deus Ex | rpg |
4.19
|
| 04 | Zeus: Master of Olympus | simulation |
4.15
|
| 05 | Patrician 2: Quest for Power | simulation |
4.14
|
| 06 | 3D Ultra Lionel Traintown | puzzle |
4.05
|
| 07 | The Operative: No One Lives Forever | shooter |
4.05
|
| 08 | Gal Pani X | action |
4.05
|
| 09 | Cultures | strategy |
4.00
|
| 10 | Baldur's Gate 2: Shadows of Amn | rpg |
3.96
|
| # | 2001 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Empire Earth | strategy |
4.26
|
| 02 | Capitalism 2 | simulation |
4.20
|
| 03 | ScummVM | application |
4.17
|
| 04 | Arcanum: of Steamworks and Magick Obscura | rpg |
4.17
|
| 05 | Creatures Village | action-adventure |
4.16
|
| 06 | Zoo Tycoon | simulation |
4.11
|
| 07 | Fallout Tactics: Brotherhood of Steel | strategy |
4.10
|
| 08 | Mario and Luigi | action |
4.09
|
| 09 | Anachronox | rpg |
4.09
|
| 10 | Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds | strategy |
4.05
|
| # | 2002 | genre | rating |
|---|---|---|---|
| 01 | Crazy Taxi | racing |
4.20
|
| 02 | Chessmaster 9000 | strategy |
4.19
|
| 03 | Hooligans: Storm Over Europe | strategy |
4.15
|
| 04 | DOSBox | application |
4.14
|
| 05 | Roller Coaster Tycoon 2 | simulation |
4.14
|
| 06 | Sid Meier's SimGolf | sports |
4.08
|
| 07 | Syberia | adventure |
4.08
|
| 08 | Industry Giant 2 | simulation |
3.98
|
| 09 | Icewind Dale 2 | rpg |
3.87
|
| 10 | X-COM: Alliance | shooter |
3.78
|