With modern operation systems(OS) based on Windows, Linux or MAC OS, you mostly cannot play old games designed for MS-DOS or old Windows distributions like Windows 3.1 or 95. This article shows your the possibilities of how to play those games.
If you have an old game and an OS that cannot play it properly, you have following options:
This option is mostly reasonable for DOS games even when there are some Windows emulators for Linux or MAC. Emulator is a program, that can run a different program in an environment typical for this program. For example MS-DOS emulator for Windows can run MS-DOS programs in Windows environment.
The best DOS emulator you can find is definitely DOSBOX. About 70% games run in default configuration and you can customize settings for almost every old DOS game. There are several PC emulators like BOCHS but they mostly have poor performance and you will probably not be able to play more complex games. PC emulator is a program emulating a complete PC, with a DOS image, you can boot up a whole new virtual computer. Those emulators are quite ineffective in compare with virtualization mentioned later. You can google some more stuff if interested, just look for "DOS emulator" or "PC emulator" for your system.
Something a little else is VDMSound Project. It emulates old sound card and other hardware to allow playing old DOS games directly under Windows. Unfortunately, this emulator is currently not working with Windows Vista and 7. But if you have NT/2000/XP system it's definitely worth a try,
I will focus on DOSBOX DOS emulator because it is a top of all possible emulators. DOSBOX is available for a wide range of OS including Windows, Linux, MAC and even Solaris is supported. There are also a lot of different frontends available to download at dosbox page. Complete documentation is available here. We will focus here only at some specific options.
When you install DOSBOX, you can play your old games pretty easy. In Windows, you can drag&drop game executable file at the desktop icon and the game will start instantly, detailed description is located here, with workaround for other OS. DOSBOX has some shortcuts to enter/leave fullscreen, change graphics, etc. those shortcuts are available here. Take your time to browse the documentation a bit, it cannot hurt you. Those basic information will be enough to play a wide area of games. Some games however require some special settings to work. every DOSBOX installation contains a configuration file. Name and location can differ based on OS but when you find some game not working with default settings, you will have to change it. Please note, that you will need a specific configuration file for every game that don't work with default settings. You can use program parameter -userconf
to load a specific configuration file. Please keep in mind that there can be multiple .EXE files located in your game directory. Refer to the game manual about the meaning of every file if not sure. When you start a DOSBOX without a parameter, you will get a DOS shell. All commands you can use are listed here. You can also use some utilities, take a closer look at MOUNT (for mounting disk devices including CD-ROM), CONFIG (For managing configuration files) and KEYB or IMGMOUNT can be pretty usefull.
In computing, virtualization is the facility that allows multiple operating systems to simultaneously share processor resources in a safe and efficient manner, a facility generically known as hardware virtualization. In the late 1990s x86 virtualization was achieved by complex software techniques which overcame the processor's lack of virtualization support and attained reasonable performance. In the mid 2000s, both Intel and AMD added hardware support to their processors making virtualization software simpler, and later hardware changes provided substantial speed improvements. Source: wikipedia.org
Virtualization is a good option to run both Windows or DOS games. You just have to setup a virtual machine and install an old Windows distribution or a simple DOS. Ideally install Windows 95/98 if you have some and you will get a DOS boot capability for free. If you wish to install a DOS only I recommend FreeDOS. It's free and has a lot of modern useful tools included. You can get a nice full distribution packed to an ISO image.This method is unfortunately much more complex and requires some basic skills with OS installation and with DOS OS. Anyway there is a project called RetroUSB that can be very helpful since you can boot an image directly to you virtual machine without a further configuration.
There are several virtualization tools that you can get. Windows users will probably choose a VirtualPC because it can do the job fine and is available for free. There are several other tools like Xen or Qemu but they require advanced computer skills to get them to work. See more information at their web pages. The most suitable solution for all OS is definitely VMware. It is basically not for free, but they offer a VMware player for free that is sufficient for our purpose.
This option is for old Windows games that cannot be run normally. This can be done under Windows only. Modern Windows OS have a mode called "Compatibility mode". In this mode, you can simulate an environment of older Windows systems like Win95. Some old Windows games for Win95/98 or even earlier will work in this mode. You may be even lucky with some newer DOS games.
You can set a compatibility mode for an old executable you wish to run that was designed for Windows 95 or even older. Some DOS games can run too but don't count on it too much. To initiate this dialog simply select preferences of the executable you wish to run. Selecting all checkboxes is usually a best choice but you can experiment with it.
{docmanlist get_subfolders 1 2}
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A cute, but brief demo, Sam & Max Hit the Road features ... Sam and Max.. the hound and his hare, off to solve the mysteries around them. Click on objects to see the game come alive, while you explore all the oddities of their world. LucasArts Entertainment/Lucasfilm Games chucked in all the humour they could, so you shouldn't be short of entertainment.
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A cute, but brief demo, Sam & Max Hit the Road features ... Sam and Max.. the hound and his hare, off to solve the mysteries around them. Click on objects to see the game come alive, while you explore all the oddities of their world. LucasArts Entertainment/Lucasfilm Games chucked in all the humour they could, so you shouldn't be short of entertainment.
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The home base is under attack, and you are the person in charge of defenses. When there are bombs dropping from the air, you need to blow them up in mid-air.
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Sango Fighter is a fighting game from Panda Entertainment, in which you control 5 different characters and fight other characters in either a one on one combat or a "story mode".
The story is this: towards the end of the Han Dynasty, the world was controlled by the Emperor Ling, who was in turn controlled by 10 of his servants in the royal palace. This created a convenient atmosphere for bandits, and the land was in turmoil. Then the Emperor ordered the 10 dukes to take it on themselves to restore peace in the land, but the dukes instead fought amongst themselves. Finally, the duke Tsao Tsao took the Emperor captive and he now controls the realm. You, however, must use your five fighters to take on duke Tsao Tsao's forces and restore equilibrium to the land.
The games company Super Fighter Team has acquired the full legal rights of Sango Fighter and has, as of June 18, 2009, released both versions of the game (English and Chinese) as freeware. You can download the full version of this game for free from the official Sango Fighter website: www.sangofighter.com. This website includes all information and the company offers support as well.
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Jumping your way through the levels, sneaking past the guards, picking up bonuses - Secret Agent picked up the spirit of a platform game and turned the title into a classic. The 16-colour graphics were amazing for the time, and the levels were intricately designed. Alongside Commander Keen and Duke Nukem, this Apogee game stood head and shoulders above the rest.
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Jumping your way through the levels, sneaking past the guards, picking up bonuses - Secret Agent picked up the spirit of a platform game and turned the title into a classic. The 16-colour graphics were amazing for the time, and the levels were intricately designed. Alongside Commander Keen and Duke Nukem, this Apogee game stood head and shoulders above the rest.
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SimCity sets you as the mayor of a new municipality, with the responsibility of building and maintaining a place where citizens can move to and work and be happy. The first task is to place essentials such as housing, transport links, schools, factories and shops. There are 50 types of these, allowing for homes of all standards and different types of businesses. Make sure to consider which sites are effective for which tasks. Some power sources pollute, others don't but are more expensive. Taxes must be raised to ensure an income, and then portions allocated to public services such as policing and roads. Earthquakes, floods and fires are all emergency situations that must be dealt to contain any damage.
Successful mayoring will cause the small village to grow into a town, then a city and finally a metropolis. As the city's size grows so do it's needs. Commercial buildings may suddenly find that they need an airport to expand trade, or housing may find itself changing rapidly as vast amounts of people come and leave.
The game also includes 8 pre-defined time-limited scenarios, with specific challenges and targets. The environment varies in each game (especially if you have the Terrain Editor add on), and this should affect your choices.
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SimCity sets you as the mayor of a new municipality, with the responsibility of building and maintaining a place where citizens can move to and work and be happy. The first task is to place essentials such as housing, transport links, schools, factories and shops. There are 50 types of these, allowing for homes of all standards and different types of businesses. Make sure to consider which sites are effective for which tasks. Some power sources pollute, others don't but are more expensive. Taxes must be raised to ensure an income, and then portions allocated to public services such as policing and roads. Earthquakes, floods and fires are all emergency situations that must be dealt to contain any damage.
Successful mayoring will cause the small village to grow into a town, then a city and finally a metropolis. As the city's size grows so do it's needs. Commercial buildings may suddenly find that they need an airport to expand trade, or housing may find itself changing rapidly as vast amounts of people come and leave.
The game also includes 8 pre-defined time-limited scenarios, with specific challenges and targets. The environment varies in each game (especially if you have the Terrain Editor add on), and this should affect your choices.
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Simon is just an ordinary boy in an extra-ordinary world. A world in which he must rescue Calypso the Wizard by embarking on a long challenging quest.
The game is a point-and-click adventure, using a typical interface with words such as 'Use', 'Open', 'Walk To' (unlike Lucasarts' SCUMM games a simple click on that area of the screen won't do) and 'Pick Up' (again, a double-click on the item doesn't suffice – these two features extend game time significantly).
The game's plot has a number of references and spoofs to fantasy and fairy tales, with the Three Billy Goats Gruff involved in a particularly significant scene. The humor is very British in places, with lots of dry sarcasm, and lots of Simpsons-esque self-references to the fact that this is a computer game. The levels are non-linear in layout, with puzzles spread across the lands.
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You could play this game just for the amazing sound tracks, but the gameplay is also very catchy. Simply, you need to steer your space vehicle along the course, jumping and dodging blocks that will wipe you out when you're flying along at light-speed. Balancing acceleration and fuel usage becomes tricky when you've got a time limit to beat with hardly any fuel in the tank. Your reflexes and timing will be the difference between getting home safely and floating aimlessly through space.
Formerly shareware, the game has been released as freeware by its developer BlueMoon Software, along with the rare X-mas edition.
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You play single player or against the computer, flying a sopwith biplane, and trying to shoot down the enemy planes and destroy all the enemy buildings.
A classic game that has developed a small cult following.
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You play single player or against the computer, flying a sopwith biplane, and trying to shoot down the enemy planes and destroy all the enemy buildings.
Sopwith II is an update to Sopwith that adds gravity, smoother graphics, birds and cows, recording and playback of games, multiple levels, and runs at the right speed on modern machines.
A classic game that has developed a small cult following.
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You play single player or against the computer, flying a sopwith biplane, and trying to shoot down the enemy planes and destroy all the enemy buildings.
A classic game that has developed a small cult following.
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Narrowly escaping the events of Space Quest II: Vohaul's Revenge, Roger Wilco's escape pod floats through space. As just another metallic item of junk, it's soon picked up by an interstellar garbage hauler. Waking up in a pile of trash, quite familiar for this janitor-turned-hero, Roger Wilco must somehow escape. Once given access to the rest of the galaxy, he'll soon find himself having to avoid a collections cyborg for payments overdue, dealing with the corporate prison of software company Scummsoft, and having to digest the greasy food from the galaxy's finest hamburger joint. All this and he might be expected to get the high score playing Astro Chicken (tm) also!
Space Quest 3 is a graphical adventure. The mouse is functional for movement and inventory access, however the game primarily relies on a text parser for specific commands and manipulation of objects on screen. In addition to the regular game, there is also a simple non-scrolling Astro Chicken game that's playable, as well as a radar screen representation for ship-to-ship space combat.
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