The Integrated

Every gamer has a few games they grew up with, games that got them hooked. Many people would name titles like Super Mario Bros., Sonic, Asteroids, or any number of other early console games. I never got a new home console; I eventually got a used NES (after the SNES was already out), and I had a GameGear for road trips, but the locus of my gaming experience as a kid was the PC. I got my first computer at a young age—I can’t recall exactly—and aside from learning DOS commands, tweaking Windows 3.1, breaking the thing, and fixing it again through experience and trial & error, naturally I dove right into the world of DOS shareware games. I kept a modest library on floppy disks. Here’s the six games that, to this day, are the most memorable:

6. Indianapolis 500

Those 3D graphics you’re looking at above? Mind-blowing. So mind-blowing, in fact, that I was willing to drive for hours in this game despite the plain gray oval of Indy being the only track. It had damage modeling (making it superior to the latest Gran Turismo on Playstation 3—natch), with crude polygonal bits flying everywhere. So of course, I logged more laps backwards on the track crashing head-on into other vehicles than actually racing.

5. Duke Nukem Trilogy

No, I am not talking about the crass, juvenile FPS that made Duke Nukem famous. Never played it. I mean the original trilogy of 2D platformers. These games followed much the same pattern as the first three Commander Keen games, where your goal in each level is to collect a series of items allowing you to access the exit and progress. However, it lacked an analogue for Keen’s innovative pogo-stick mechanic. Still, the graphics were impressive—better than Keen 1-3—and the gameplay tight and challenging.

4. 688 Attack Sub

If you’ve ever played a simulation with a manual inches thick and enjoyed the hell out of it, you’re a PC gamer at heart. This one put you in charge of an American or Soviet submarine. You could control the engines, targeting, torpedoes, sonar, periscope, and so on. Keeping your noise level down to avoid being detected by enemy warships’ sonar was of utmost importance. 688 was the first game I owned that featured online play—via direct modem-to-modem call. Too bad I never knew anyone else with 688 and a modem.

3. The Secret Of Monkey Island

The point-and-click progeny of text adventures, Monkey Island had some of the best-designed puzzles I’ve ever seen. Add in top-notch artwork, music, and rapier wit (literally, in one of the game’s most memorable sequences), and you’ve got a true classic on your hands. This is also the first game I ever played co-op, as my sister and I worked together to crack many of the hardest puzzles.

2. Commander Keen 1-4

Following the adventures of technological genius Billy Blaze, alter ego Commander Keen, these platformers were cutting-edge for their time with detailed graphics, great use of the PC speaker for memorable sound effects, and an actual story! Yes, that’s right, they actually came up with a character (as opposed to a simple avatar) and a storyline. They may not have been very deep or insightful, but there’s still more to be spoken for here than can be said for Super Mario Bros., in which the designers apparently drew all their inspiration from a crazy acid trip. To top it off, Keen carries a pogo stick with him that can be toggled at any time and used for super high jumps and other maneuvers.

1. Civilization

Civilization requires no introduction. At a minimum, it’s the best strategy game of all time. It’s arguably the best game of all time. Between the original, Civilization III, and Civilization IV, I’ve sunk innumerable hours into this series. Whenever they come out with Civilization V, I’m there. Even if all they do is dress up the graphics.