We all have problems from time to time. Generally they revolve around not enough money and not enough video games. Some may be tempted to turn to theft to get a stack of games to play through. But why go that route when you can get a huge pile of commercial games for free? 

Over the years developers and publishers have opened their vaults and let loose crazy amounts of commercial games to run rampant as freeware. We wholeheartedly support this type of activity by them. It's almost as if they are giving back to the gamers who give all their time and money to keep them fed and clothed. I'm not saying game publishers owe us anything, aside from value for our dollars/euros/pounds/crowns/yen/etc I'm just saying it's a cool practice and I wish more and more companies would contemplate it instead of attempting to bleed us for every penny we earn at all times.

 You may be surprised at some of the titles on the list like Command & Conquer, Sam & Max, Defender of the Crown, Wolfenstein, F.E.A.R., Lode Runner, SimCity, Star Trek and more...

So check out this list of commercial games that have been released as freeware (from Wikipedia's list of the same name)

 I left all the links in place so you can check them out on Wikipedia.

A

• Abe Lincoln Must Die! (2007) is the fourth part in the Sam & Max episodic series by Telltale Games, released as freeware on November 5, 2007.
• Abuse (1996) is a side-scrolling shooter.
• Akalabeth (1979), a.k.a "Ultima 0", is a role-playing game by Richard Garriott.
• Alien Carnage (1994), a.k.a Halloween Harry, is a side-scrolling platform game published by Apogee Software.
• Allegiance (2000) is a multiplayer space shooter / RTS by Microsoft Research.

B

• Battlecruiser 3000AD (1996), a space simulator by Derek Smart.
• Battlecruiser Millennium (2003), a space simulator by Derek Smart.
• BC Kid (1992), a platform game by Factor 5.
• BC Racers (1993), a racing game by Core Design.
• Beneath a Steel Sky (1994), an adventure game by Revolution Software, released to support the ScummVM Project.
• Beyond the Titanic (1986), a text adventure game by Apogee Software, re-released as freeware in March 1998.
• Bio Menace (1993) is a side-scrolling platform game by Apogee Software, released as freeware in December 2005.
• Boppin' (1994), a puzzle game published by Apogee Software, released as freeware in 2005.
• Brány Skeldalu (The Gates of Skeldal) (1998), czech computer role-playing game published by Napoleon Games, released as freeware in December 2007.

C

• Castle of the Winds (1989) is a tile-based RPG for Windows 3.x, written by SaadaSoft.
• Castle Infinity (1996) is an MMOG by Starwave.
• Caves of Thor (1989) is a maze game by Apogee Software.
• Command & Conquer (1995) is a strategy game by Westwood Studios

D

• Defender of the Crown (1986) is a strategy game by Cinemaware.
• Dink Smallwood (1997) is an RPG by RTsoft, released as freeware on 17 October 1999.
• Dr. Blob's Organism (2003) is a shooter game by Digital Eel, released as freeware on November 29, 2007.

E

• Elite (1987), space trading game by Acornsoft, freeware release in 1999 courtesy of game developer Ian Bell.
• Elite + (1991), space trading game by Acornsoft, freeware release in 1999 courtesy of game developer Ian Bell.
• Enemy Nations (1997) is a real-time strategy by Windward Studios.

• Wolfenstein: Enemy Territory (2003), First-person shooter by Splash Damage.

F

• F.E.A.R. Combat (2006) is the multiplayer portion of F.E.A.R., by Monolith Productions.
• Fish Fillets (1998) is a puzzle game by Altar Games which was released under the GPL in 2002. Subsequently the Fish Fillets NG project has recoded the engine to enable multi-platform release.
• Flight of the Amazon Queen (1995) is an adventure game by Interactive Binary Illusions, released to support the ScummVM Project.
• FreeSpace 2 (1999) is a space combat simulation computer game developed by Volition, Inc.

G

• Glider and Glider PRO
• God of Thunder is a puzzle game by Adept Software.
• Gridlee (1983) is an arcade game by Videa.
• Ground Control is a futuristic real-time tactics game released as freeware on July 1, 2004 to serve as promotion for its sequel, Ground Control II: Operation Exodus.

H

• Hardwired (a pre-release version of Red Zone) (1994), a shooter by Zyrinx for the Sega Mega Drive/Genesis.
• Heros: The Sanguine Seven (1993) released for free by the author in 2005.
• Hidden and Dangerous Deluxe (1999) is a game by Illusion Softworks, released as freeware to serve as promotion for its sequel, Hidden & Dangerous 2.

J

• Jetpack is a platform game by Adept Software.

K

• Ken's Labyrinth (1993) is a first-person shooter by Ken Silverman.
• Katakis (1987) is a side-scrolling shoot-em-up arcade game by Factor 5.
• King of Chicago (1987) is an action, adventure, and strategy game by Cinemaware.

L

• Lode Runner Online: Mad Monks' Revenge is a side-scrolling arcade game by Sierra Entertainment, based on the concept presented by the classic game Lode Runner (malfunctions on Win2000, WinXP and greater).
• Lure of the Temptress (1992) is an adventure game by Revolution Software.

M

• Major Stryker (1993) is a scrolling-shooter game by Apogee Software, released as freeware in March 2006.
• Marathon Trilogy is a series of first-person shooters by Bungie.

N

• Netstorm (1997) is a real time strategy game by Titanic Entertainment/Activision, released as freeware in 2002.

O

• One Must Fall: 2097 (1994) is a classic fighting game by Diversions Entertainment, declared freeware on February 10, 1999.
• onEscapee (1997) is an action-adventure game by Invictus Games, Ltd., released as freeware on January 26, 2006.

R

• Railroad Tycoon Deluxe (1993) is an economic simulator by MicroProse.
• Riftspace (2000) by Starwraith 3D Games is a space mercenary simulation built after the ideologies of Elite.
• Rising Eagle: Futuristic Infantry Warfare (2008) is a futuristic first-person shooter.
• R-Type (1987) is a side-scrolling shoot-em-up arcade game. The Amiga version (1989) is freely downloadable at Factor 5's website.

S

• Savage: The Battle for Newerth (2004) is a blend of FPS and RTS gameplay by S2 Games.
• S.D.I (1987) is an action adventure game by Cinemaware.
• Shadowbane (2003) is a fantasy MMORPG by Ubisoft, released as freeware in 2006.
• SimCity (1989), a City-building game, was released under the GPLv3 for the One Laptop per Child project, and as Micropolis to the general public (the original title of the game).
• SkyRoads (1993) is a platform puzzle game by Bluemoon Interactive.
• Spheres of Chaos (1992) is a shooter game by Iain McLeod, released as freeware in October 2007.
• Star Control II (1992), an adventure/action game mix released under the GPL by Toys For Bob under its subtitle The Ur-Quan Masters ten years later.
• Stargunner (1996) is a scrolling shooter by Apogee Software, released as freeware in 2005.
• Starsiege: Tribes (1998) is a first-person shooter by Dynamix/Sierra On-Line, released as freeware in May 2004 as publicity for the release of Tribes: Vengeance.
• Star Wraith III: Shadows of Orion (2000) by Starwraith 3D Games is a space military simulation featuring multiplayer capabilities.
• Star Wraith IV: Reviction (2000) by Starwraith 3D Games is the sequel to Star Wraith III and has a similar concept.
• SubSpace (1997) is a 2D top-down space shooter game with massive multiplayer capabilities originally released by Virgin Interactive
• Supaplex (1991) is a Boulder Dash-like puzzle game by Michael Stopp and Philip Jespersen.
• Supernova (1987) is a text adventure game by Apogee Software, rereleased as freeware in March, 1998.
• S.W.I.N.E. (2001) is a real-time tactics game by StormRegion, released as freeware (S.W.I.N.E. Free Christmas Edition) in 2005.

T

• The Adventures of Fatman (2003) is an adventure game by SOCKO! Entertainment, released freely distributed under the Creative Commons (Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives) license later the same year.
• The Adventures of Robby Roto! (1981) is an arcade game by Bally Midway.
• The Elder Scrolls: Arena (1994) is a role-playing game by Bethesda Softworks, floppy disk version released as freeware in 2004 to mark the 10th anniversary of the TES series, and as publicity release prior to the 4th installment, Oblivion.
• Teen Agent is an adventure game released in 1995 as shareware. DOS version later released as freeware.
• Traffic Department 2192 (1994) is a top-down shooter by Epic MegaGames, released as freeware by its author, John Pallett-Plowright, in 2007.
• Tribes 2 (2001) is a first-person shooter by Dynamix/Sierra On-Line, free download release in 2004 as publicity for the release of Tribes: Vengeance.
• Trivia Whiz (1988) is a trivia game by Apogee Software.
• Turboraketti II (1993) is a cavern-flying game by Heikki Kosola.
• Tyrian (1999) is a space shooter by Epic MegaGames, released as freeware by its author, Jason Emery, in 2004.

U

• Universal Combat (2004), a space simulator by Derek Smart, released as freeware on January 2, 2008.

V

• Vantage Master Online (1998) is a tactical RPG by Nihon Falcom, released as freeware in 2002.

W

• Warzone 2100 (1999) is a 3D real-time strategy game set during a post-apocalyptic Earth.
• Wings (1990) is a flying game by Cinemaware.
• Wings v1.40 (Cavern-flying) (1999) is a cavern-flying game by Miika Virpioja.
• Word Whiz (1988) is a trivia game by Apogee Software.

X

• Xenophage: Alien Bloodsport (1995), a fighting game by Argo Games/Apogee Software, released as freeware in 2006.

Z

• Zero Tolerance (1994), a Sega Mega Drive/Genesis first person shooter game by Technopop.

Thanks to all the people who helped compile this list on Wikipedia.

See, you needn't turn to a life of crime in order to get your gaming fix. You can pick up all these free titles and play them until you have enough cash for that next big title you're waiting for. 

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