Billy the Kid Returns!

Billy the Kid Returns! (1993), is a charmingly quirky side-scrolling platformer. It’s a classic representative of the 90s shareware boom, where indie developers used historical or Wild West themes to build simple, action-oriented PC games. Despite the historical name, the game doesn't strictly adhere to Wild West realism. You play as a young cowboy (presumably a fictionalized or reincarnated Billy the Kid) navigating dangerous underground caves, forts, and wilderness locations. Your goal is to fight your way through various levels filled with outlaws, wild animals, and unexpected supernatural traps to prove yourself as the ultimate gunslinger.️
The gameplay focuses heavily on precise platforming, climbing ladders, and exploring multi-tiered rooms to find exits and keys.
Billy is armed with a trusty pistol. You have to shoot incoming enemies—ranging from standard bandits to giant spiders, bats, and snakes—while strictly managing your limited Ammo counter displayed on the right side of the screen's stone-textured HUD.
You have a traditional Health bar that depletes when you touch hazards or enemies. To survive, you explore the levels to collect food items (like apples) for health points, extra ammunition, and treasure items to boost your overall score.
The "Alive Software" AestheticIf you played other games distributed by Alive Software (such as VGA Sharks or PC-Man), you'll recognize their signature production style.
The game features vibrant 256-color VGA graphics. The levels are often composed of simple, repetitive tile blocks, but the main character sprite has a cute, bobble-headed cartoonish look that gives the game a lighthearted feel.
It included support for Sound Blaster cards, pumping out upbeat, synthesized MIDI tunes and digitized "bang" sound effects for gunfire, which felt incredibly satisfying back in 1993.

What is abandonware ?