Recently, it's become clear that PC sports gaming is on the verge of extinction -- at least in the traditional sense. The text-sim genre is still coming along well enough, as are some other real-life based simulations, but traditional sports games are vanishing. The reasons are well-documented: increasing piracy, the dominance of home consoles, and the finicky nature of the platform. The latest blow to the market was the announcement that Madden would not be coming to the PC this year. All of this is unfortunate enough, but even more tragic when you stop to realize that, for many of us, the PC provided our first sports gaming experience.

So, with the future in doubt, it's the past that holds the most promise. There are plenty of older sports games that can provide some hours of memories, reminiscent of gaming glory gone-by. Some of these fall into the informal category of "abandonware" and may be out there for you to find.

Some background and legal clarification: Abandonware is a term applied to games that have literally been abandoned -- not manufactured, sold, or supported by any company. Sometimes these games are released into the public domain; sometimes it's not clear who holds the rights anymore. Abandonware is not a legal term, nor is it recognized by any copyright act.

Distribution of abandoned titles is akin to piracy or warez, and is definitely not legal -- although most companies prefer to devote legal resources to current titles. That said, there are websites that work with game companies to distribute their abandoned titles, albeit according to their wishes. Publishers may give the "go-ahead," or may instead send "cease and desist" letters. In any case, sites like "Home of the Underdogs" (http://www.the-underdogs.info/) and Abandonia (http://www.abandonia.com/) find games that are available (for download or purchase) and are worth revisiting.

There are many qualifying titles within the sports genre (traditional and otherwise) that may make you long for the mid-'90s, perhaps the peak of sports PC gaming. Below is a selection from each of the major sports.

NFL Pro League Football: A text-simulation created by the folks at Micro Sports. Where it lacks graphically, it shines with plenty of options and realistic statistics.

Micro League Baseball: Pro League Football's baseball counterpart. This game was my first ever computer game, and I played it from elementary school all the way through high school. It allows plenty of managerial options and a wide array of historical players and stadiums. Think of this game as one of the inspirations for today's full-featured baseball text-sims.

SuperStar Ice Hockey: This is as real as it gets, for 1987. This hockey game featured great on-ice gameplay, as well as an in-depth manager mode.

NBA Hangtime: This was Midway's PC port of the super arcade game NBA Jam. Besides the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles arcade game, no other game ate up my adolescent quarters faster. If you aren't familiar with NBA Jam, think of it as the predecessor to NBA Street. It's two-on-two basketball with crazy dunks and even crazier cheats.

Tennis Antics: The offspring of the NES classic Super Dodge Ball, now mixed with a tennis court. This is a highly arcade-like version of tennis, with outrageous power-ups and over-the-top characters. It's also a more modern game that happens to be legit freeware.

Jack Nicklaus: Signature Edition: This game is still being sold, so you may have to shell out some money (usually found for about $5). That said, it's a great early golf game. I got this game in one of those "ten games for $25" CD-Rom packs that were popular; and, of the 10, it got most of my time. To be fair, if you remember those packs, at least two of the games were near unplayable. Also, check out the great course creator.

Street Sports: Soccer: (Disclaimer: this game doesn't hold up, but it does hold memories for me.) I got this game as a Christmas present, and played the hell out of it on my old Apple IIGS. It's an early "street" game, set on various selectable "urban" fields and featuring a cast of "city" characters -- not nearly as edgy as it sounds. Regardless, it's a fun little game, especially against another player.

I've only scratched the surface of past PC sports greats; in fact a single article could be written on all of the classic baseball games. These "abandoned" games exist out there in cyberspace, if you can find them. They are certainly worth your time, if just for a trip down memory lane -- to a time when PC sports gaming seemed to have an infinite future.