I don't own an uncomfortably expensive gaming machine just so I can thoughtlessly crank almost every graphics setting in new games to ultra and then bask in the glow of their raytraced glory. I mean, I do do that, but I also can clog up my SSD with decades worth of incredible classics too, and then switch between crushing this year's hottest RPG and casually clicking my way around something very, very, old, with a few taps of a mouse button.
I've got pretty much all of gaming history at my fingertips, and the best part is I'm completely free to spend as much or as little time as I want with all of them. There's no FOMO with games I already MO'd on a decade or more ago, nobody is eagerly awaiting my hot take on some plot twist 30 hours into an RPG that lit up the charts in 2001, and most of them are so cheap the prices are almost offensive—I've paid more for snacks than I have some undisputed all-time legends when they're on sale. Even at 2023's idea of full price these old games don't cost much more than pocket change.
Retro PC gaming is a non-stop party, and it only gets bigger every year. Below are some of the very best of the '80s, '90s and '00s I played this year, all available to download on Steam or GOG with no fussy setup.
