Okay, so I'm playing an outpost and digging out defenses in Masterwork DF when, all of a sudden, dragon raports. I activate my militia while the birdies kill two of my dwarves. Out of the surviving five, four decide this would be an excellent time for some chow or a drink. Battle commenced with -- such as dwarves charging the raptors without bothering to pick up weapons. Don't know how many of these things were my fault, but either way, when I had only one dorf left and most of my lifestock was dead or mutilated beyond hope of survival, I abandoned the settlement.
This, the last of many frustrations picking up DF again, prompted me to make a topic, a sort of rant if you will, at how much it nags at me to have wounded/dead dwarves to things that shouldn't be challenges in the first place. Dwarves who can't do simple things like digging channels without falling in or causing cave-ins. Expedition leaders who never get around to talk to emissaries because they prioritize sleeping or putting seeds in stockpiles. The apparent inability to give direct orders when you really, really need to (as in, "you there, pull that lever. Now"). Patients dying of thirst or hunger because no one bothers to feed them. Lack of mouse support. Different key binding logic from menu to menu. Inefficient UI (having to hit 'n' key for new to add individual things to your list when you could've just gone into the list and hit + by each item to start adding them, for example). Inability to preview embark sites before going through the hassle of choosing items. The list goes on and on.
I don't mind bugs and problems with a game, especially one that is essentially a hobby project, but these are issues that have been around for as long as I can remember -- I remember the "dwarves eat, drink and sleep at ridiculous times" issue coming up in Boatmurdered, and that was back when DF still had only one z-level!
:puppy eyes:
Toady, I hugely respect your work and have the utmost respect for your talent and dedication, and I sincerely believe DF is a fantastic game with lots of potential, and after posting this I'm diving right back in to start a new fort -- but please, isn't it time to go into polishing mode and iron out all the kinks before adding even more features?