The old computer games are the best. Kat Orphanides shows you where to find and play the classic games Microsoft dumped
Bring back Solitaire in Windows 8/8.1
Microsoft has promised to bring back Solitaire in Windows 10 after ditching it in Windows 8/8.1, which is fine for those who plan to upgrade. But what about the rest of us? Fortunately, you can download it as a free Windows 8/8.1 app from the Microsoft Store: see www.snipca.com/16595 for instructions (you’ll find Minesweeper here, too). The game has many more variations than the XP version, and you can even join an international Solitaire tournament to celebrate its 25th anniversary.
The Microsoft Store also has free Windows 8/8.1 versions of Mahjong (www.snipca.com/16597), Jigsaw (www.snipca.com/16598) and Sudoku (www.snipca.com/16599). If you’re a competitive type and love Scrabble and the TV show Countdown, try the global wordsearch hit Wordament (www.snipca.com/16600).
Play MS-DOS and Atari games online
The Internet Archive recently unveiled a collection of more than 2,000 games from the 1980s MS-DOS era that you can play online (www.snipca.com/16602). Some of our favourites include strategic board game Hexxagon (www.snipca.com/16603); pipe-placing puzzle Pipe Mania (www.snipca.com/16604) and artillery fire game Scorched Earth (www.snipca.com/16605). You can’t download the MS-DOS games, but even if you could, the files wouldn’t play in modern versions of Windows unless you install a complicated emulator such as DOSBox (www.snipca.com/16601), which The Internet Archive uses. The Archive also has thousands of more recent Windows games to download for free, from collections such as Classic PC Games (www.snipca.com/16607).
If it’s consoles you’re pining for, play Atari and Sega games free online in The Internet Archive’s Console Living Room (www.snipca.com/16612). Also check the Internet Arcade collection (www.snipca.com/16610) for arcade classics including Tetris (www.snipca.com/16611). Sound is muted by default, so you’ll have to unmute and reload to enable it.
Beyond The Internet Archive, there are some great free point-and-click adventure games to play online at (http://sarien.net), and a 30th-anniversary text adventure version of The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy on the BBC’s website (www.snipca.com/16606).
Download free games to keep
GOG (Good Old Games, www.snipca.com/16613) has forged relationships with publishers to help release classic games. There are hundreds to download free in categories ranging from simulaters to role play. Most run on Windows 7 and 8/8.1; many also work on XP and older. You have to register, but it’s free and the games are fast and smooth.
We also found some great games that have been released for free by their authors. For example, the strategy game Railroad Tycoon (www.snipca.com/16614), platform shooter Abuse (www.snipca.com/16615) and puzzle game The Lost Vikings (www.snipca.com/16616).
PLAY IT SAFE – AND LEGAL
Pirate versions of old games have been available online for years and dubbed “abandonware”. Some of the games and the sites distributing them contain malware, and they’re not worth the risk.
We recommend sticking with free web-based games and non-profit collections such as The Internet Archive, which posts content that’s no longer under copyright and therefore completely legal to download. Also check Wikipedia’s list of commercial games that are now available to download and play for free (www.snipca.com/16608).
Be aware that you’ll need the DOSBox emulator to play many games that are now out of copyright. DOSBox is complicated to set up – so much so that there are dedicated programs whose sole purpose is to simplify the process, such as the free D-Fend (www.snipca.com/16609).