this post was submitted on 23 Sep 2025
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Setting up a DOS/Win98 system for gaming (sh.itjust.works)
submitted 3 weeks ago by bridgeenjoyer@sh.itjust.works to c/retrogaming@lemmy.world
19 comments fedilink hide all child comments
 

I saw a post about someone in my neighborhood looking for a windows 98 machine to play some old games and DOS games.

I messaged them (because I'm always up for helping people enjoy old games) and said I have a spare PC, that can run emulation and will likely be better for them to play their old games on (and a lot cheaper than the scalper prices on old machines now).

I planned to use either Mint/PopOS, and set it up so the computer will start DOSbox-x right away, to make it easy as possible for this person (I think they are not super computer literate but probably know how to navigate DOS and basic point and click instructions)

My question is, should I set it up with dosbox, or a virtual machine running Win98?

Any other tips welcome :)

Also, most of the games they want to play are FPS, like Doom, Duke Nukem, Redneck rampage, blood, and also some games like NFL challenge (DOS)

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[–] pinball_wizard@lemmy.zip 6 points 3 weeks ago

One thing to be aware of when emulating Dos era games: in most emulated environments, a game that crashes often means something is wrong with the emulation environment.

But DOS was... Special.

There are many brilliant techniques that result in strong compatibility with diverse code - that only gained popularity well after the DOS era of gaming.

It was very common back then to buy DOS software and never manage to get it to run on my own hardware, while it ran perfectly on my friend's computer.

It's part of why Shareware was crucial to software sales. If I tried to free version and it actually ran, I could confidently buy the rest of the game.

Anyway, all that to say, DOS emulation is not for the faint of heart. An accurately emulated environment can still be very unstable, depending on the game.

[–] grue@lemmy.world 5 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

IMO there's no point in using real hardware to play old DOS games unless you want something really niche or picky, like using a specific sound card with particular MIDI voices.

[–] bridgeenjoyer@sh.itjust.works 2 points 3 weeks ago

That was kind of my thought. I think they just want a little better experience than playing it out of a web browser. So something that basically boots into dosbox should give them that. Its mostly a nostalgia thing.

I know I rarely play my atari games on an emulator, its boring. I much prefer my real system.

[–] RightHandOfIkaros@lemmy.world 4 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (3 children)

Emulation is generally not very good for newer DOS games, primarily because DOSBox is really bad with anything 3D. Its emulation of 3dfx cards might as well be non-existent.

In this case, it actually would be better for them to play on genuine hardware.

[–] weirdo_from_space@sh.itjust.works 3 points 3 weeks ago (1 children)

There are PCem and 86Box.

[–] xyzzy@lemmy.today 3 points 3 weeks ago

Yeah. You can use Dosbox for most things, and Wine will handle some things, but if you want to play Windows titles and emulate specific configurations and 3D cards, etc., you should look into one of these.

[–] ProdigalFrog@slrpnk.net 3 points 3 weeks ago

DOSBox-X is supposed to have 3DFX support, though I've never tried it myself.

[–] bridgeenjoyer@sh.itjust.works 2 points 3 weeks ago (2 children)

Do you consider quake 3d? Because dosbox runs it perfectly for me..

[–] RightHandOfIkaros@lemmy.world 4 points 3 weeks ago

Quake and Doom are early enough to be okay. But for later games, like Elder Scrolls Adventures Redguard, DOSBox has a lot of problems with those titles.

[–] Redkey@programming.dev 2 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

I think that when RHoI wrote "3D", they meant "hardware accelerated 3D". Many early 3D DOS games either did their 3D entirely in software, or included hardware acceleration support as a kind of optional bonus. Software 3D shouldn't give DOSBox much more trouble than most 2D games. The original release of Quake didn't even have any accelerator support; it was patched in later.

[–] NastyNative@mander.xyz 4 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago)

Just dosbox and show him how to use it or make a .bat he can run. Over the years I have created a VGA folder full of my fav VGA games. One of my fav is “the incredible machine”!

The other big game changer is a 4:3 monitor it does not stretch the picture and the art looks like it should

[–] whotookkarl@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

Another option to consider is batocera if they are going to use it exclusively for retro gaming and you want to keep the UI simple and easy to use. Dos x86 emulation and a bunch of other emulators including scumm, consoles, handhelds, etc.

https://wiki.basestation.space/reference/batocera-supported-emulators/

[–] bridgeenjoyer@sh.itjust.works 3 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

I did think of this i just dont like that you have to also dual boot with mint to do any sort of file browsing or save roms. Batocera only does the front end, nothing else (to my knowledge)

[–] whotookkarl@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 3 weeks ago

Yeah that's true, if you want to expose the file system to them to add/remove ROMs it's probably not the right option without a dual boot or USB stick with another distro on it.

[–] Die4Ever@retrolemmy.com 2 points 3 weeks ago* (last edited 3 weeks ago) (1 children)

Those FPS games you list all have very good source ports like eDuke32, and Chocolate Doom, so they are best played on a modern computer

[–] reseller_pledge609@lemmy.dbzer0.com 2 points 3 weeks ago

Crispy Doom is a fork of Chocolate that just ups the resolution a bit so the game doesn't look horrible on modern displays.

[–] Bitflip@lemmy.ml 2 points 3 weeks ago

Check out exodos

[–] SanguineBrah@lemmy.sdf.org 2 points 2 weeks ago (1 children)

Surprised there is no mention of the eXoDOS collection here. It has thousands of DOS games that run through a launcher with tuned emulation settings for each title.

Personally, I like playing with real hardware but this is probably the best option right now for a jukebox style experience on a modern PC.

[–] bridgeenjoyer@sh.itjust.works 1 points 2 weeks ago

Now thats neat! Thank you