Games That Defined PC Gaming of the 20th Century

[dsheinem]

It's like trying to sort through the most influential console games from the Atari through to early Dreamcast stuff.

yes! This articulates exactly what I was thinking about such an endeavor.

I get what you're saying, but I don't know if that's a completely fair comparison. Maybe I'm just biased, but I feel like the console world had so much more selection and variety than the PC market did. Am I wrong?

Yes. I'd bet there was more stuff on PC in the 80s/90s than in the console space.

[MrPopo]

In terms of platforms you are correct; once the IBM compatible took off in the home it all narrowed down to the DOS and then Windows architecture with Macs and Linux being the niche choices for the hipsters. But in terms of how games evolved it isn't really good to look at it that way; PCs have an unbroken lineage of being able to run the same game across 20 years of hardware iterations thanks to all being on the same OS framework and backwards compatibility being a major thing (thanks to the competitive advantage it gave both Intel and Microsoft).

So you're left either doing something like a decade by decade breakdown or you make the games that defined 4x the size of any of the other platforms we cover on the site. It's the only way to properly capture the spirit of that sort of article.

[noiseredux]

Yes. I'd bet there was more stuff on PC in the 80s/90s than in the console space.

I bet that there was more stuff just in the freeware/shareware sector of PC gaming in the 80s/90s than in the console space!

[prfsnl_gmr]

Solitaire? Minesweeper? Spider Solitaire?

This managed to make me laugh out loud, I have to admit.

I'm serious! Those games' importance cannot be understated:

https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.polygo ... 17-winners

http://www.slate.com/articles/life/proc ... ement.html

[MrPopo]

I gotta back Edgeworth here. They are the Wii Sports of PC, and we'd put Wii Sports in a defining games article for the Wii.

[CRTGAMER]

WOLFENSTEIN 3D
Agree with others, this game a must for the defining list. Back when there were monthly computer trade shows during the DOS and early Windows days, this game blasted (along with Future Crew Unreal Demo) on every PC demo screen when it came out. Yes Doom that came out later was better, but Wolfenstein 3D was the ground breaker for not only a big step up on FPS, but really defining the explosion of shareware concept.

Due to Wolfenstein 3D being released as shareware, had a huge following to try the "new 3d" game out. Throw in the huge amount of add on levels made by fans increasing the popularity of the game. I think this game more then any of the day brought out the PC as a solid competitor against game consoles.

Defined PC Sound Card Addition
This game one of the leads encouraging many PC owners to invest in a sound card. How many remember the Disney Sound Source, I own one with the Roger Rabbit game.

[Gunstar Green]

Don't worry I don't think Doom is in any danger of being left out.

It's like trying to sort through the most influential console games from the Atari through to early Dreamcast stuff.

yes! This articulates exactly what I was thinking about such an endeavor.

I get what you're saying, but I don't know if that's a completely fair comparison. Maybe I'm just biased, but I feel like the console world had so much more selection and variety than the PC market did. Am I wrong?

I personally think so.

I think the biggest problem is a list that covers that many years on the PC is going to leave us with a really narrow perspective with only the biggest and most influential titles over the course of several video game generations, and while that may be the point I don't know if I think it would be the most interesting list or really that representative of PC gaming on the whole. That's just my two cents on the matter.

I agree with Popo.

[Sano]

Lots of good points in this thread. I thought I saw someone mention EverQuest, but I am going to mention it again. I was addicted like a heroin addict to EQ.

[BogusMeatFactory]

Lots of good points in this thread. I thought I saw someone mention EverQuest, but I am going to mention it again. I was addicted like a heroin addict to EQ.

I mentioned it....and you can still be addicted. Project 1999 keeps everquest in its purest form with just the first two expansions.

[SpaceBooger]

Leisure Suit Larry!

The 80's were known for T-n-A in all media. Nothing sums up the 89's-90's like some soft porn comedy (see Cinemax, aka Skinemax, after 1am during that time - Ski School was always my favorite).

Also the Maniac Mansion series - both the original and Day of the Tentacle.