Many platforms and tools are working to preserve the computer heritage and history of the web. Among them, we can mention the unmissable Internet Archive, a site that would largely deserve public utility status for its ambition to preserve old content that has become obsolete. But there are also sites that specialize in saving software and games that have been forgotten by time.
One of the most remarkable sites in this area is called My Abandonware, a platform that brings together more than 30 jeux, created between 1965 and 2012. A true video game museum, it allows you to discover or rediscover titles that have been abandoned by their developers and that have marked their era or not. They are accessible to all and playable on our current computers.
My Abandonware is more than 30 retro games to download
Little hidden treasures of the web, My Abandonware do some video game preservation the heart of its mission.
At the time of writing, My Abandonware offers approximately 32 jeux, ranging from icons of years 80, 90 and 2000 to more confidential nuggets. If you are a fan of retro-gaming or simply want to relive a part of your childhood, this site is a gold mine to explore an incredible number of titles.
You will find classics like Pac-Man, Tetris, Sim City ou Prince of Persia, but also games like Railroad tycoon by Sid Meier, Lemmings, Test Drive, Arkanoid, and many others. To explore this huge catalog, plan to spend several days there, it is so vast!
The site is very functional and offers a search well thought out: you can find the games by name, année, platform, gender, thematic, editor ou developer. And if you can't remember the name of a game you loved when you were younger, advanced filters will help you find it among the thousands of titles available.
Each game has a detailed sheet, with description, screenshots, information about release year, creators, available languages, file size, and much more. Plus, instructions are provided to help you play it and you will have access to several download links to recover different versions of the game on different platforms (DOS, Windows, Mac, Amstrad…), including extensions or other additional content.
But the coolest thing is that some games can even be played directly from your browser thus requiring no download and installation.
One of the great advantages of My Abandonware is that you don't have no need to register to access the games. However, if you create an account, you will be able to save your favorite games in a favorites list. You can also support the video game preservation making a donation to help the site continue its work.
Users can also leave reviews and comments on the games present in the catalog. It is thus possible to rate the games, which allows you to consult the list of most popular games by the community, and thus discover other nuggets to try.
The games available on this site have completed their economic life cycle, which means that the financial losses are now negligible and their commercial career is well behind them. There is therefore no real impact on the developers, even if, technically, the download may be illegal, if the game is still for sale in your country of residence. We therefore always advise you to first check if the game is available for sale on platforms like GOG, Steam, Amazon or others. If not, get a copy through an abandonware site like My Abandonware may be an option to consider.
