Abandonware DOS favorite games from the 2000s
My journey with video games is filled with titles that could easily be considered the best, or at the very least, my personal favorites.
Creating a perfect ranking is impossible, and this one certainly isn’t trying to be definitive. Some of these games are widely recognized as milestones in their respective genres, or even in gaming history as a whole, while others are more obscure titles that left a lasting impression on me for deeply personal reasons. I’ve included every game I can clearly remember playing, deliberately leaving out only those I never truly experienced (and there are quite a few).
The games
The early 2000s were a golden era of experimentation and hybrid design. Deus Ex stands out as a near-perfect blend of RPG depth and first-person shooter mechanics, offering player choice and narrative freedom that still feels ambitious today.
Strategy fans were spoiled as well. Age of Wonders II: The Wizard’s Throne refined the Heroes-style formula with tight gameplay and memorable fantasy factions, while Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds proved to be an underrated real-time strategy gem, cleverly adapting the Age of Empires engine to the Star Wars universe.
On the management side, RollerCoaster Tycoon 2 remains a benchmark for the genre, balancing creativity and challenge with astonishing elegance. SimGolf, on the other hand, deserves praise for its originality - turning golf into a surprisingly deep and quirky management experience.
For RPG lovers, Icewind Dale II was a personal favorite, focusing on tactical combat and party optimization through real-time-with-pause mechanics, while TomeNET represented the enduring appeal of traditional roguelikes, offering depth, danger, and endless replayability for those willing to learn its systems.
Finally, The Sims deserves special mention as one of the most innovative games ever made, less about winning and more about observing, experimenting, and storytelling, it quietly reshaped the audience and language of videogames.
I like to think, or at least hope, that this list will resonate with other old-school gamers who grew up experimenting, modding, and losing entire weekends to pixels and floppy disks.
- 2000s
- Age of Wonders 2: The Wizard's Throne Heroes-like strategy with perfect gameplay
- Deus Ex Perfect hybrid between RPG and first-person shooter
- GTA: Vice City The best GTA ever made
- Icewind Dale 2 Personal favorite real-time with pause RPG
- Roller Coaster Tycoon 2 Best management game
- SimGolf Most innovative sports management idea
- Star Wars: Galactic Battlegrounds Real-time strategy underdog
- The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind Iconic world building
- The Sims Most innovative game
- TomeNET Personal favorite traditional roguelike
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