In the video game industry, a franchise never truly dies. Whether it lives on via indirect sequels, shared characters or merely through its inspiration on later games, a great title never truly disappears.

There are some games, however, which enjoy sequel after sequel, ensuring that the latest generation of gamers get to enjoy everything that their parents did back in the day. We’re talking about that generation of early-90s PC games that defined what a first-person shooter could be, how a tactical game could play and how an RTS game could function.

So influential, fun and downright brilliant was this wave of MS-DOS games that we’re still playing them today, making them some of the longest-running franchises ever. But what are those games? Let’s take a look.

Wolfenstein 3D

Wolfenstein 3D, developed by id Software, originally hit the scene on May 5, 1992, and almost immediately changed the way people thought about PC gaming. Its rudimentary 3D graphics were revolutionary in an era of predominantly 2D games and its level design, crafted in part by the legendary John Romero, set new standards.

It told the story of William ‘B.J’ Blazkowicz, an American spy of Polish descent, attempting to escape from within the Nazi regime, a story which is still being told today, with the forthcoming release of id Software’s latest take on the franchise – Wolfenstein: Youngblood.

Civilization

For turn-based strategy fans the world over, Civilization was a watershed moment. Released in 1991 by Microprose and designed by Sid Meier and Bruce Shelley, Civilization tasked players to “build an empire to stand the test of time”. Most of those civilisations fell at the hands of a hyper-aggressive Gandhi, however.

"Sid Meier’s Civilization: The board game" (CC BY 2.0) by yoppy

Games in the series have been plentiful, with Civilization IV released in 2016 by 2K Games and numerous expansion packs releasing in more recent years. It remains to this day one of the finest turn-based strategy games and gave birth to countless other time sinks games in the genre.

Arcade Fruit Machine

Alright, so we aren’t playing Arcade Fruit Machine 13 on our Xbox One X’s, but in terms of sheer influence, Arcade Fruit Machine may have spawned more games than any other on this list.

Released in 1990 by Zeppelin Games Limited, Arcade Fruit Machine marked the first time any company had translated physical slot games into the digital realm. The result? A fun simulation of the slot machine experience, one which would lay a template that literally thousands of online slot games on websites like Buzz Bingo now utilise. It may not boast the advanced 3D graphics of modern slot games, but Arcade Fruit Machine has influenced countless digital slot games.

Doom

Doom, released by id Software (yes, that lot again), is arguably the first major first-person shooter of all time. Released in 1993, it was so incredibly well designed, thought through and built that it’s still being ported to anything and everything today – even calculators!

Indeed, for years, first-person shooters weren’t even a thing. They were called Doom-clones instead. Yeah, it was that influential. Today, gamers are looking forward to Doom: Eternal, the latest edition of the title, hitting every major console on November 22, 2019.

What's your favourite MS-DOS era franchise that's still going strong? Let us know on social media!