Farewell to Rainer Rosshirt – The Man Behind “Down the Drain”

Dear DOSGAMERS!

Although somewhat belatedly, I have unfortunately received some very sad news: Rainer Rosshirt, the iconic PC Games editor, has passed away, as the magazine itself has reported.

His column “Down the Drain” provided a wonderful counterpoint to the occasionally somewhat excessive praise lavished on certain games that later turned out to be complete duds.

Whenever a game was truly awful, Rainer never held back. He expressed his opinion in his own unmistakable way: humorously written, but infused with wonderfully dark humour. This meant that readers could still have fun even with the worst games.

I always greatly enjoyed reading his column in the print edition. Unless my memory deceives me, Rainer also answered readers’ letters. One exchange in particular has stayed with me. A reader asked what he could do about his slow 386. The reply was roughly:

“Install a lead plate and throw it out of the window.”

Simply brilliant.

Rest in peace, Rainer—and thank you for all those unforgettable moments spent reading PC Games.

— Eric