Play Snipes online — the original 1982 DOS game Works — the full original game runs via DOSBox in your browser
Guide updated October 2026 · Runs via DOSBox + WebAssembly
Snipes — a 1982 maze shooter for the IBM PC, drawn entirely in text-mode characters. You roam a maze bigger than the screen, destroying the hives that spawn Snipes and shooting the Snipes themselves before they corner you. Answer the skill-level prompt to start.
1–5: menu choices · Y / N: answer · ENTER: confirm · SPACE: continue
⌨ Keyboard — for menus & name entry
Controls — what does what
| Action | Keyboard |
|---|---|
| Move | Arrow keys |
| Fire | The keys the game lists before play |
| Skill level | A–Z then 1–9 at the prompt |
Runs in your browser tab with DOSBox + WebAssembly — nothing is uploaded. Click the screen to capture input; press Ctrl+F10 to release mouse.
Snipes is no longer sold anywhere, and its publisher is gone or has left it unsold for decades. It is hosted here on the same footing as the Internet Archive's software collections. That is a practical position, not a legal claim. This page carries no advertising. Provenance: /apps/snipes/NOTICE.md. Rights holders: it comes down within 48 hours on request.
About Snipes
Snipes was written by SuperSet Software, the team that wrote NetWare for Novell, and a networked version of it was used to test NetWare. It is one of the oldest games on the PC, from before graphics cards were standard, which is why everything is built from ASCII art. Higher skill letters add ricocheting shots and tougher Snipes.
How it runs here
This is the original DOS release of Snipes, unmodified, running in DOSBox compiled to WebAssembly. The whole game is about 1 MB, so it starts within seconds on a normal connection. Sound and music play once you click into the game.
Frequently asked questions
Can I play Snipes online for free?
Yes. Click Play and the original 1982 DOS version starts in your browser, running in a WebAssembly build of DOSBox. Nothing to install and no account.
Why is Snipes hosted here?
Snipes is not sold anywhere today; we checked the stores listed in its provenance note. It is preserved here the way the Internet Archive preserves old software. That is a practical position, not a legal claim. If the rights holder (the original SuperSet Software authors) asks, it comes down within 48 hours.
Does my progress save?
Saved games persist in this browser between visits, best-effort. Clearing site data removes them.
Can I play on a phone or tablet?
Yes. Touch buttons for the keys Snipes uses appear under the game on touch devices.
More you can play in your browser
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- Alley CatPlay Alley Cat in your browser: Bill Williams' 1984 IBM PC game. Freddy the cat leaps from
- Run your own DOS gameHave another DOS game on disk? Drop it into the DOS player.
Want a game like this on your own site?
Snipes isn't ours to give away — we host it, we didn't write it. But eleven of the games here we did write from scratch, and those are free for anyone to put on their own page: one line of HTML, no account, no permission, no attribution beyond a credit line.