About Lemmings
Lemmings is a puzzle and strategy game that DMA Design developed and Psygnosis published, first for the Amiga. The Amiga version came out in Europe on 14 February 1991, and an MS-DOS version reached North America later that year. Russell Kay, Mike Dailly and David Jones programmed it, Jones is also credited as its designer, and Tim Wright and Brian Johnston wrote the music. The idea grew out of a simple animation that Dailly made while experimenting with Deluxe Paint.
From there the game spread to a long list of systems, from the Atari ST, ZX Spectrum and Acorn Archimedes to the Super NES, Mega Drive, Game Boy, 3DO and CD-i. Several studios made those versions: Sunsoft handled the Super NES, Mega Drive and PC Engine, Probe Software the Game Gear and Master System, Ocean Software the NES and E&E Software the Commodore 64. The game also gave its name to the Lemmings series. Psygnosis’s games now belong to Sony Interactive Entertainment.
How it runs in your browser
Pressing Play takes you to the Lemmings page on dos.zone, which opens in a new tab. The site boots an emulated PC with js-dos, its open-source take on DOSBox for the web, and runs the MS-DOS release on it. DOS.Zone loads the game files itself, so you install nothing, supply no files of your own and skip sign-up entirely. The site doesn’t run ads.
DOS.Zone files the listing under puzzle, with a rating of 5 from 3 player reviews. Its short description confirms only that the game is free, needs no registration and offers virtual controls on mobile. It doesn’t mention saving, so find out how your progress is kept before you commit to a long session.
Controls and devices
The MS-DOS version is played with a keyboard and mouse. DOS.Zone doesn’t list the controls, so look through the game’s own screens and options when it starts, and click inside the emulator window first so it registers your input.
On a phone, DOS.Zone can show virtual on-screen controls, but a game designed around a keyboard and mouse is easier to handle on a desktop or laptop. We haven’t tested it on a touchscreen, and Chromebooks haven’t been confirmed.
Who it’s for
It suits puzzle fans who remember Lemmings from the early 1990s and want the PC version back without hunting for old disks or setting up an emulator, and anyone curious about the game that started a long-running series. The original lists multiplayer as well as single-player modes, but DOS.Zone doesn’t say whether any multiplayer option works in the browser, so treat this as a solo game.
If you like working through puzzles, The Incredible Machine is a 1993 puzzle game from Dynamix that also runs on DOS.Zone. The Lost Vikings, from the studio that became Blizzard, mixes puzzles with platforming and is there in its MS-DOS version too.
Is Lemmings Free, Safe and Official?
Can I play Lemmings online for free?
Yes. DOS.Zone runs the MS-DOS version free in a browser tab, with nothing to install and no account to create. It isn’t made or endorsed by Sony Interactive Entertainment, which owns Psygnosis’s games.
Is this the original Amiga version of Lemmings?
No. Lemmings first came out on the Amiga in February 1991. DOS.Zone runs the MS-DOS version, which followed in North America the same year, inside an emulated PC.
Does Lemmings work on a phone?
DOS.Zone offers virtual on-screen controls for phones, but this game was built for a keyboard and mouse and we haven’t tested it on a touchscreen. A computer is the better fit.
