List of text-based computer games
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The following list of text-based games is not to be considered an authoritative, comprehensive listing of all such games; rather, it is intended to represent a wide range of game styles and genres presented using the text mode display and their evolution across a long period.
On mainframe computers[edit]
Years listed are those in which early mainframe games and others are believed to have originally appeared. Often these games were continually modified and played as a succession of versions for years after their initial posting. (For purposes of this list, minicomputers are considered mainframes, in contrast to microcomputers, which are not.)
On personal computers[edit]
Commercial text adventure games[edit]
These are commercial interactive fiction games played offline.
Miscellaneous games[edit]
| Title | Year Created | Creator | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wizard's Castle | 1978 | Joseph R. Power | |
| Aliens | 1982 | Yahoo Software | Space Invaders clone for Kaypro. |
| CatChum | 1982 | Yahoo Software | Pac-Man clone for Kaypro. |
| Ladder | 1982 | Yahoo Software | Donkey Kong clone for Kaypro. |
| Text Train | 1982 | Bert Kersey, Beagle Bros Software | |
| Snipes | 1983 | SuperSet | |
| Sleuth | 1983 | Eric N. Miller | |
| Beast | 1984 | Dan Baker, Alan Brown, Mark Hamilton and Derrick Shadel | |
| Kingdom of Kroz | 1987 | Scott Miller of Apogee Software | |
| Mtrek | 1987 | Chuck Peterson of UCSC | |
| ZZT | 1991 | Tim Sweeney of Epic MegaGames | |
| Curses! | 1993 | Graham Nelson | |
| MegaZeux | 1994 | Alexis Janson of Software Visions | Supports editing the character set to allow for more advanced graphical capabilities than most text mode games. |
| Jigsaw | 1995 | Graham Nelson | |
| Chibot Ultra Battle | 1999 | ||
| PAEE | 1999 | Enrique D. Bosch | |
| For a Change | 1999 | Dan Schmidt | |
| Shade | 2000 | Andrew Plotkin | |
| Shrapnel | 2000 | Adam Cadre |
Online games[edit]
Play-by-email games[edit]
These are play-by-email games played online.
| Title | Year Created | Creator |
|---|---|---|
| Lords of the Earth | 1983 | |
| Quantum Space | 1989 | |
| Atlantis PbeM | 1993 | |
| Eressea PbeM | 1996 |
BBS door games[edit]
These are BBS door games played online.
| Title | Year Created | Creator |
|---|---|---|
| TradeWars 2002 | 1987 | Gary Martin for Martech Software |
| Legend of the Red Dragon | 1989 | Seth Able Robinson |
MUDs[edit]
Text-Based Browser Multiplayer Games[edit]
These games are played in a web browser and involve multiplayer components: based mainly around text but may have limited graphical user interfaces.
| Title | Year Created | Creator |
|---|---|---|
| Torn City | 2003 | Joe Chedburn (Torn LTD) |
| Mafia Wars | 2008 | Zynga |
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ Kemeny, John G.; Kurtz, Thomas E. (11 October 1968). "Dartmouth Time-Sharing". Science. 162 (3850): 223–228. Bibcode:1968Sci...162..223K. doi:10.1126/science.162.3850.223. PMID 5675464. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016.
- ^ Michael R. Wilk (1 January 1987). "Enchanted Castle" – via Internet Archive.
- ^ Lives, Avalon, The Legend. "Online RPG Game - Avalon - Text Based Games". Archived from the original on 2015-12-05.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Richard A. Bartle: Reviews - UK". Archived from the original on 2015-12-28.
- ^ "Designing Virtual Worlds". Archived from the original on 2015-11-18.
- ^ "The Yawhg". Archived from the original on 2014-06-01.