# mattiasgustavsson/dos-like

Engine for making things with a MS-DOS feel, but for modern platforms

Repository: https://github.com/mattiasgustavsson/dos-like
Canonical: https://ross.abutalabs.com/products/dos-like
Language: C
License: NOASSERTION
License Family: other
Last push: 2026-03-29T21:51:20+00:00

## Health v2 (maintenance only)
Score: 56/100 (v2, computed 2026-09-03T02:20:16.233290+00:00)
- activity 74, release rhythm 8, longevity 100
- inputs: {"age_days": 1790, "days_push": 157, "days_rel": null, "gap_med": null, "n_releases_24m": 0}
- flags: no_license
- formula: round(0.45*activity + 0.35*rhythm + 0.20*longevity); archived -> min(score, 10)

## Adoption (not part of the score)
Stars 1185, forks 54 (observed 2026-08-28T04:03:54.916814+00:00)

## What it is
A small C framework, like a tiny game engine, for writing games and programs that recreate the look, feel, and sound of early-90s MS-DOS software on modern platforms. It ships with examples of classic DOS effects and builds with a simple compiler call on Windows, Mac, Linux, and WebAssembly.

## Use cases
- make a retro DOS-style game in C
- recreate the look and feel of early 90s DOS programs
- build a VGA-style demoscene effect
- write a retro-styled app that runs on Windows, Mac, and Linux
- compile a DOS-feel program to WebAssembly
- learn classic DOS graphics and sound techniques

## When to choose
- you want an authentic DOS-era aesthetic without targeting real DOS hardware
- you prefer a minimal C library with no complicated build system
- you want to target desktop platforms and WebAssembly from one codebase

## When to avoid
- you need a full-featured modern game engine with asset pipelines and editors
- you want to run software on actual DOS or retro hardware
- you need 3D rendering or modern GPU features beyond the DOS-style effects

## Facets
- artifact type: framework
- maturity: active
- function: game-engine, graphics, audio-processing, gui
- domain: graphics, cross-platform
- platform: windows, wasm, cpp, c
- tags: ms-dos, retro, dos-style, sdl2, single-header, tiny-c-compiler, nostalgia, vga-graphics, game-development, retro-computing, macos, linux

## Member repositories
- mattiasgustavsson/dos-like (main) score 56

## Provenance
- Observed fields: from GitHub, fetched 2026-08-28T04:03:54.916814+00:00.
- Health v2: computed from the inputs above; adoption is never an input.
- Inferred fields (summary, facets, guidance): AI-extracted, prompt v1, taxonomy v1, on 2026-08-30T06:24:07.855176+00:00, confidence not recorded.
  - readme: https://github.com/mattiasgustavsson/dos-like (fetched 2026-08-28T04:03:54.916814+00:00, sha 43dc78ae3908)
- Data as of 2026-08-30T08:39:29.467469+00:00.