I like Dwarf Fortress because it provides a unique difficulty. Its not "frustratingly difficult" (I've been playing Jak 2
) and at the same time it isn't completely easy. Some of you have brought up COD, and this is one that has, surprisingly, both of those extremes. Unless you are damn good, or just happen to find people at the same skill level as you, you will almost always get blown away in multiplayer. That's been my experience, and I suck, so I suppose that view is biased. In COD's campaign, the game is almost too easy. Turning up the difficulty just makes enemies healthier, and bullets hurt more. That is not !!FUN!! In most games with guns, Fallout 3 especially, I tend to find some way to edit the game to make damage to me and the enemy both lethal.
Now take a look at Dwarf Fortress. The danger to both me and my enemies are almost always, in some way, equal in Adventure Mode. Giant rat gets a lucky hit in on your throat? Too bad, you're jugular just got severed! Of course there are ways to improve your odds, but there's always that slight chance you know? Same goes for Fortress mode. Its so complex you can automatically assume you've done something wrong at some point, and that it will later come back to bite you in the rear. All you can do is try to learn what that is, and be prepared. Once you get good at it that challenge fades. Oddly enough, we the players take it upon ourselves to open those gates and face the pansy elven ambushers and goblin siegers ready to tear dwarven flesh in the name of their respective civs. In the end, the game sums up this question with its motto. Losing is fun.
Bow before the Toady One.