Play Civil War Online

Game Overview

Civil War on MS-DOS is one of those games that looks simple at first—just a map, some tiny unit icons, and basic menus—but before long, you're hunched over the keyboard, agonizing over whether to push your cavalry into enemy territory or hold back and wait for reinforcements. The turn-based battles feel surprisingly tense for something with such minimal graphics, and there's something weirdly satisfying about watching your little blue or gray blocks slowly overwhelm the opponent's lines.

I remember my first playthrough—I went full Sherman, burning through supply lines, only to realize too late I'd left my capital completely undefended. The AI isn't ruthless, but it punishes careless moves. And yeah, you can play as the Confederacy, but good luck making that work without constantly scrambling for resources. The whole thing has this rough, board-game-like charm that makes you forgive its age. If you've got a soft spot for 90s strategy games, this one's still worth firing up in DOSBox.

Each game uses different controls, most DOS games use the keyboard arrows. Some will use the mouse , "Alt" ,"Enter" and "Space bar".