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Spotlight: 15 lightweight free DOS games
Blog article by MrFlibble
DOS Games Archive offers a lot of exciting games for you to try, but here is a selection of very good quality free DOS games that are incredibly small, being less than 2 megabytes in size when compressed. Back in the 90s, you could fit almost any of them on a single floppy disk, and today you can just enjoy those little elegant games, because they're really good!
1. Kaos - 1.64 MB
A very obscure "Doom clone" from Italy. This game can easily evoke nostalgic feelings, and the hand-drawn art has its own charm. Although incomplete, Kaos is very playable and comes with its own level editor, and the source code is available under the GNU GPL license.
Download Kaos or play it in the browser
2. Billabong Racers - 1.48 MB
A very decent kart racing game similar to Wacky Wheels or Super Mario Kart. It was created with DIV Games Studio and is a bit more demanding in terms of hardware than the rest of the games in this list. It's still very playable. Freeware.
3. Rob Blanc II: The Planet of Pasteurised Pestilence - 1.21 MB
A complete point-and-click adventure game by Ben 'Yahtzee' Croshaw, created with Chris Jones' Adventure Game Studio (AGS). With LucasArts' classics as the inspiration, expect outlandish landscapes, bizarre situations and zany humour. Freeware, with a native Windows version available.
Download Rob Blanc II or play it in the browser
4. Super Pooh - 1.20 MB
An incredibly obscure platform game featuring everyone's favourite bear on a quest to rescue Piglet. The game is well polished and not too easy, with smooth controls and intuitive mechanics. It saw a limited commercial release in 1996, but has been declared freeware by its author. The source code is available under the Apache II license, and a fan-made Windows port exists too.
Download Super Pooh or play it in the browser
5. Giants of Steel - 1.13 MB
Could you expect a full-fledged Mecha simulator like MechWarrior to be this small? In Giants of Steel, you have a singleplayer campaign with over 10 missions, several playable Mecha types, and split-screen multiplayer mode - all fitting onto a single 3.5" floppy disk, with some space left for one or two other lightweight games. Amazing, right? This game was originally sold as shareware, but made freeware in 1997.
Download Giants of Steel or play it in the browser
6. Future Conflict - 575 kB
When you look past the crude graphics, this is a full-fledged and complete clone of Command & Conquer, with a very similar interface and playing mechanics. Build up your base, collect Argolite to fund your operations, muster a fighting force and crush your opponents. There's a singeplayer campaign, skirmish mode against AI opponents and actual multiplayer. And all of that in a package below 1 megabyte! Technically, the game is shareware, but there are no limitations, and author Chris Jones has long since stopped accepting registrations.
Download Future Conflict or play it in the browser
7. Columns by Brian Boese - 510 kB
A rather straightforward, but excellent Columns variant that is very enjoyable. It might not have flashy graphics, but the design is elegant in its simplicity, and this game really has no flaws. Freeware now, originally shareware.
Download Columns or play it in the browser
8. Bubble Puzzle - 369 kB
A tile-matching puzzle inspired by Puzzle Bobble. Shoot bubbles so that they connect in groups of three or more of the same colour and disappear from the screen. Freeware, made by a German demo group.
Download Bubble Puzzle or play it in the browser
9. The Little Pixy 2 - 340 kB
A charming little Christmas-themed puzzle platformer. Help the little pixy (which is basically the same as Santa's elf) collect presents in the workshop before the time runs out. This game was written in QuickBasic, and has commercial quality art and animations. Free with source code available.
Download The Little Pixy 2 or play it in the browser
10. Ballgame 2 - 232 kB
In this game, you control a ball that bounces around mazelike levels, with the objective to reach the exit safely. Be careful not to fall of the ledges, and avoid other hazards. "Rolling ball" games were rather popular in the early 90s, and this one was created by a demo group, which shows in the craftsmanship of both the coding and the art.
Download Ballgame 2 or play it in the browser
11. Vitetris - 173 kB
A very close recreation of the original Tetris game with a few new features. Freeware with the source code available under the BSD-2-Clause license.
Download Vitetris or play it in the browser
12. The Puzzle Pits - 161 kB
A game of Soko-Ban with a story mode and a few twists! This puzzle game will test you problem-solving skills, but beware! The puzzles get pretty hard rather quickly, but are quite interesting to solve. Get ready for a lot of trial and error. Originally sold commercially, this game is now freeware with the source code available too.
Download The Puzzle Pits or play it in the browser
13. Alien Assault II - 159 kB
If you played Alien Breed from Team17, this should feel familiar. You're a lone commando on a station infested with alien creatures that are totally not knockoffs of the famous sci-fi horror franchise. Blast through the hordes, collect keycards and use computer terminals to upgrade your gear. This is a completely free game by Johan Peitz, better known for his titles released under the Free Lunch Design label. Source code in C++ also available.
Download Alien Assault II or play it in the browser
14. Klondike Gold - 131 kB
This is a very nicely made variant of the popular Klondike solitaire, with a bit of gambling thrown in.
Download Klondike Gold or play it in the browser
15. Short Cut - 88 kB
This game has the smallest size in this list, but it's a full-fledged action/adventure that replicates the mechanics from a Commodore 64 game called Paradroid. Here, you need to safeguard a spaceship from robots that have gone amok by fighting or reprogramming them. The game starts with the player only in control of an "influence device" that is very weak in combat, but can reprogram and then "possess" other robots on board. This must be used to your advantage as you explore the ship and gradually put the renegade 'bots out of service.