There were times in my life that I played PC games almost exclusively. I would say from 1992-2007 I was primarily a PC gamer. That began to change when I got a job where I sat in front of a PC all day (2007). I don't particularly enjoy wanting to sit in front of a PC for hours at night, when I already did that for hours in the day. I also appreciate the immediacy of console/handheld gaming. When I was younger, I didn't mind installing a PC game, updating it with patches, spending 15-minutes optimizing its settings, all that mess. Nowadays I just want to pop a game in and take off running, which consoles/handhelds allow me to do. Lastly I prefer Japanese game design in general, and Japanese games tend to be on consoles/handhelds rather than PC.
Don't get me wrong though, I still respect and enjoy PC gaming when I bother to do it. Especially pre-Xbox PC games, when PC games were still being made with PC gamers in mind, rather than console gamers first and foremost. Nowadays console/PC games are basically the same thing, thanks to ubiquitous development engines. It's a long subject and reeks of elitism (rightfully) but there was a period of time where PC games were made for intelligent, patient, and hardcore players versus what we see today. The '90s were the epitome in that regard.
I will
bold the stuff I recommend most.
>Arcanum
I put quite a bit of time into this back in 2005. I didn't finish it. The world design and writing are all above average. The dungeon designs are bland shit. It's very nonlinear and I think the non-linearity is what caused me to fall off it. At the time I didn't appreciate nonlinear game design (I can now).
>
Arx FatalisAwesome first person dungeon crawler, one of the best. This is spiritually
Ultima Underworld 3. That said, the most bottom level of the dungeon houses a creature that will kill you instantly if it finds you. I never figured out how to mitigate that problem, so I never beat the game. I'd consider replaying it, as I finished about 85% of it and enjoyed most of my time playing it.
>Baldur's Gate 1-2
I put about 30 hours into the first BG before burning out and quitting it. I regret not finishing the game, and eventually I'll go back and do so. The gameplay is good, exploration is great, and the plot is boring and uninvolving. Never played BG2.
>Beneath a Steel Sky
I put a little time into this like 20 years ago, graphically/atmospherically nice... but the plot/puzzles didn't hook me.
>Caesar 3
Never played.
>Crusader No Regret
>Crusader No Remorse
I've sampled both of these and I found them to be boring and a chore to play. And that was in the '90s when they first released.
>Descent
>Descent 3 + Mercenary
I've only played the first
Descent. It didn't do anything for me whatsoever.
>Divine Divinity
>Dragonsphere
>Dreamfall
>Dungeons & Dragons Dragonshard
>Enclave
I've not played any of these.
Divine Divinity would be my first pick-to-play from that bunch though.
>Eye of the Beholder 1-3
I played the first EotB via the DOS version a few years ago. I liked everything about it except for its combat system. The combat system is clunky and ridiculous. Just a stupid-assed way to do combat, made me quit the game.
>
Fallout TacticsThe best 2D SRPG ever made.
>Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone
I beat this one in 2018 and gave it a 7/10. If you're a fan of games like
Golden Axe or Capcom's D&D arcade beat 'em ups, you might enjoy
Forgotten Realms: Demon Stone. With better difficulty balancing and a little more polish,
Demon Stone could have been a true classic of the genre.
>Gabriel Knight 1-3
I played the first GK back in high school in the '90s. I think I was 15 when I played it, and the game did not capture my attention at all. I may have been too young for it, as it was clearly created with adults in mind. I'd probably enjoy this series more now.
>Gorky 17
I played this one many many years ago. I remember thinking its horror-strategy design was intriguing, but the game was merciless and destroyed me over and over. Or perhaps I didn't know what I was doing (didn't read the manual). You'd likely appreciate the horror aesthetic, but the game design is questionable.
>Gothic 2 Gold
>Heroes of Might and Magic 3
Never played these.
>Hitman 1-2
I've beaten both of these. The first
Hitman is tedious trial and error crap, not recommended. The second
Hitman is more action-oriented and open, it was a big improvement. I don't think
Hitman really got good until
Blood Money (2006) though.
>Icewind Dale 1-2
I put a lot of time into the first IWD, about 20 hours or so. The thing to know about IWD is that it hews much closer to
Diablo than it does
Baldur's Gate. IWD is all about the dungeon crawling. And that's fine except I burnt out on it after a while, because it's not particularly interesting dungeon crawling. I wouldn't call this a bad game but it was not what I was expecting. Never played IWD2.
>Legacy of Kain: Defiance
>Might and Magic 1-6
Never played.
>Myst
One of the most overrated games ever made.
>Neverwinter Nights Diamond
>Nox
Never played.
>Omikron
I played this forever ago because
David Bowie is in it.
Omikron was very ambitious, but it didn't realize those ambitions due to a lack of polish and rough game design. I respect this game's intentions but it's not fun to play.
>Pharaoh + Cleopatra
Never played.
>
Postal 1-
2Never played the first
Postal, but I played
Postal 2 a helluva lot back in 2006. I found P2 to be cathartic and hilarious to play. It was my GTA. I did finish the game too.
>Rayman 1-3
Played the first game briefly, did nothing for me. I think Rayman's character design is trash and something about it just irritates me constantly, hence I don't play his games.
>Rise of the Triad: Dark War
Played this one a lot back the '90s. I remember being impressed by its gib effects. Level design was trash and I never finished the game, but rocket blasting bad guys into intestine confetti was impressive back then.
>Septerra Core
Never played, but this is a western designed "JRPG" so caution.
>Side Meier's Alpha Centauri
>SimCity 2000
>Syndicate Plus
>The Elder Scrolls 1-2
Never played.
>The Longest Journey
I put a few hours into this long ago, due to its endless accolades. I believe this eventually turns into a good game, but the first few hours were excruciatingly boring and uninvolving. IIRC this is like a 30 hour long adventure game, so the pacing isn't exactly brisk.
>The Temple of Elemental Evil
Never played but I'll bet it's good (playing the final patched version).
>Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six
I beat this one forever ago. I loved R6 and
Rogue Spear (also beat). But these days I don't think I'd have the patience for them. Very slow, methodical, and highly strategic FPS. You spend just as much time in your squad movement planning screen as you do actually shooting tangos, if not more. But if you can get into the design, it's very rewarding when your plans come together. Also this game is balls hard.
>Torin's Passage
>Two Worlds Epic Edition
Never played.
>Tyrian 2000
Not bad for a western designed shmup, but I never finished it.
>
Ultima Underworld 2Absolutely amazing for its time, incredible engine design. I never finished this one though, because solving where to go, and what to do, can be incredibly byzantine. You really have to take notes and annotate the shit out of your maps. For someone who was willing to go all-in and focus hardcore on UU2 for a long time, it would be an incredible journey. But finishing UU2 (especially without artificial aid) is quite the commitment.
>Ultima 4
Never played.
>Unreal 2
I beat this via split-screen co-op on Xbox. It was like a 6/10. Better than the first game I guess, but still not top tier FPS-ing whatsoever.
>Wizardry 6-7
>Zeus + Poseidon (Acropolis)
Never played.