About Tyrian 2000
Tyrian is a vertically scrolling shooter that Eclipse Software developed for MS-DOS and Epic MegaGames published in 1995. Jason Emery programmed it, Daniel Cook drew the art, and Alexander Brandon and Andreas Molnar composed the music. A shareware version 1.0 circulated from September 14, 1995, and version 1.1 followed on October 26 that year.
Tyrian 2000 is the slightly enhanced version published in 1999, and it’s the edition DOS.Zone lists. Wikipedia names MS-DOS and Windows as the game’s platforms and gives it both single-player and multiplayer modes, while DOS.Zone tags its listing as an action shoot ’em up.
In 2004 the game was re-released as freeware, so anyone can play it without paying. That free release leaves out the CD’s audio tracks because of download size. Daniel Cook later released his Tyrian artwork under CC BY 3.0, a Creative Commons license.
How it runs in your browser
Play opens the Tyrian 2000 listing on dos.zone in a new tab. DOS.Zone runs the MS-DOS program through js-dos, its browser version of the open-source DOSBox emulator, so the game runs as if on an old PC while it actually lives in your tab. Everything loads from the site: there’s nothing to install, no freeware archive to fetch and unpack, and no sign-up. DOS.Zone carries no ads.
The listing rates the game 5 from 4 player reviews. Its description is a stock paragraph that only confirms the game is free, needs no registration and has virtual controls for phones. It doesn’t say whether the CD music is included or how saves are handled, so look at the game’s own menus and DOS.Zone’s page before you start a long run.
Controls and devices
Tyrian was built for a PC keyboard. DOS.Zone doesn’t list the controls, so check the game’s setup and options screens once it starts. Click into the emulator window first so it picks up your keys.
The site shows virtual on-screen controls on phones. A shooter made for the keyboard is easier to handle on a desktop or laptop, though, and we haven’t tested it on a touchscreen. Chromebooks haven’t been checked.
Who it’s for
It suits players who enjoy vertical shooters from the DOS years, and anyone who wants a 1990s PC game that its makers let go for free, with no files to hunt down. If you played the 1995 release, it’s also a quick way to try the slightly enhanced 1999 edition. Fans of Epic MegaGames’ catalogue can follow it with Jazz Jackrabbit, the 1994 platformer Epic made itself, which also runs on DOS.Zone. Death Rally is another 1990s DOS game that is freeware today, and it plays in the browser the same way.
Is Tyrian 2000 Free, Safe and Official?
Is Tyrian 2000 free?
Yes. Tyrian was re-released as freeware in 2004, and Tyrian 2000 is the slightly enhanced version from 1999. DOS.Zone runs it in a browser tab with nothing to pay and no account.
Do I need to download Tyrian or set up DOSBox?
No. DOS.Zone loads the game files from its own site and runs them through js-dos, its browser build of DOSBox, so you don’t fetch the freeware release or install an emulator yourself.
Can I play Tyrian 2000 on a phone?
DOS.Zone offers virtual on-screen controls on phones, but the game was built for a keyboard and we haven’t tested it on a touchscreen. A desktop or laptop is the better fit.
