Tyrian 2000

Seriously, it's an excellent space shooter fun and with enough variegated features ( rare for its genre) that it is fully enjoyable for today standards (although I'll admit, that near the end of the 5th episode it start to become a little stale). Its gameplay can be adjust to be slow or extremely fast, there are fully customization option for the ship ( from shields to weapons) and a full load of secrets. On top of that, soundtrack was composed by non other than Alexander Brandon. If that wasn't enough, story is quite hilarious and its design is somewhat inspired (although not remotely unique). Plus, it's free. no, seriously. Like, wow. Download it now, you really won't regret it.

One of the best games of its genre that GOG can offer us. Simply fun and functional via DOSBox, and best of all, it has full Mouse support, yes, you can use the Mouse to move your ship! So take this rare gem and play until death! =D

A classic game that works on modern systems. If you like old school arcade shooters like Raiden, this is for you.

You have one ship, which can outfit a variety of ways. Once you launch, you're faced with an amazing array of enemies, scenery, and different tactical patterns for such a small game (17 MBs!). It feels like a vertical version of the Gradius series (one of my favorite shmups of all time). The only downsides are relatively short game play, and a bug affecting the game's menus that occurs if a controller is plugged in when you launch the executable (however, the game is absolutely playable with a mouse). I would have paid for it; it's that good.

Tyrian is FUN! What more could you ask for, good design, art, music, and writing, Tyrian has quality gameplay that holds up TO THIS DAY! Like beloved Youtuber Ross Scott (Freemans Mind, Ross's Game Dungeon) points out, in Tyrian you don't just blow up in one hit. You have Shields, Weapon Upgrades, saves, and no insane bullet hell! Yes it's an old game. But a good one. It all adds up to a great holiday gift from GOG, as this is an accessible title to new players, and a nostalgic gem for the rest of us! Tyrian IS one of the greatest top-down shooters of all time! Have fun, and keep flying~