I did a quick translation of the article, for those who are interested. My english is very rusty but i hope it should at least be better than babelfish.
The freeware-roguelike „Dwarf Fortress“ is a gem of a game like from a bizarre parallel universe: One of the most complex, addicting and interesting games of our time – access only to those with a will to suffer
What does a recent PC-game do with the accumulated calculating power of a modern computer? The obvious answer – see „Crisis“, „Bio shock“ or „World in Conflict“: It presents a photorealistic game world that can hardly be distinguished from reality. While graphic-power indeed made enormous leaps in the last years, the old field of AI-programming stagnates on a mediocre level. Only programming of realistic physics can be called a huge actual effort, aside from surface-cosmetics. But there is another way.
Slaves to Armok: Good of Blood 2: Dwarf Fortress, a freeware game by Bay12games takes a different way – and it does so consequently, that, like an astonished reviewer aptly remarked, the thought of a parallel world comes to mind, that has not much in common with the rules of the computer and video games industry. Even newest processors are tortured 20 minutes at the first start-up before the game has generated a complete fantasy word. Nevertheless erosion, the run of rivers, geological sediments and a thousand year fantasy history are generated to create a consistent, some 1000 square miles spanning world, that can be visited in „Adventure Mode“ or like in a main game played as a sophisticated strategy-simulation, taking the role of the mentor of a growing group of indirectly controlled dwarves, who are pioneers, building a new home in a carefully selected spot somewhere within the massive world.
A huge task, because many things have to be considered: The dwarfs can be used as mason, woodcutter, miner, cook, fisherman, hunter, militia, brewer, jeweler, farmer, blacksmith and many more. They have to trade, defend themselves and expand – requiring the necessary infrastructure and resources. „Dwarf Fortress“ plays like a mix between "The Sims", "Sim City", "Civilization", "The Settlers" and real time strategy – with two distinct differences. One one hand the game surprises with its unbelievable complexity and its always surprising love for detail – on the other hand, and this is a matter of opinion, it is presented entirely in ASCII. In other words – there is nothing, that can in good conscience be labeled as graphics – Nethack and other roguelikes send their regards. Nevertheless, „Dwarf Fortress“ was elected „Roguelike of the Year“ by the community of „ASCII dreams“.
Those who already quit now because of the supposed eye-torture miss one of the most fascinating and versatile games of the last years. Because one look into the forums of the fantastic fan community of „Dwarf Fortress“, which is still „only“ available as often updated alpha, reveals the uniqueness of the game: Gamers are thrilled and lovingly tell stories from the game, reports from always bloodcurdling antics of the ASCII dwarves in the multitude of possible situations in the game. Like the story of the mad dwarf who manufactures a pair of leather trousers out of a fellow dwarf. Or how another fort captured a monstrous cave spider and domesticated it for silk production. Or the in fan circles famous saga of the fortress „Boatmurdered“, that was played as a serial multiplayer game, spanning several weeks and that grew to epic dimensions.
"Dwarf Fortress" creates anecdotes. Who once fell victim to the fascinating charm of the game will often find themselves watching their working dwarves in astonishment and experience a great time.
In fact the complexity of the game reveals itself by painstakingly learning the painfully unintuitive user interface: Every single, always randomly generated dwarf possesses detailed peculiarities, preferences and even neuroses and tics. Pets like cats and dogs multiply, while cats – a typical humorous-realistic trait of the game – select „their“ dwarves themselves and play from this point on an important role for the sanity of the owner.
That e.g. often used trails are represented in meager ASCII or frozen ice can be mined like other solids and be used as building material during winter, shows the extensive, charming level of detail, that keeps surprising you even after many hours.
Thanks to a Wiki and a step by step instruction the introduction to the game is complicated but possible. After some tries the complicated interface and the graphics are forgotten, given the unfolding, living world. "Dwarf Fortress" tortures its players – but those who take the burden of the beginning will be rewarded.
Increasingly complex ideas for watering - despite the simple graphics the physics of the watered are surprisingly accurate – and increasingly ambitious digging projects leave almost infinite freedom to the player's creativity, which is proved by a collection of impressive maps that is available online.
"Dwarf Fortress" is a sandbox game, that requires completely different approaches and solutions after each start. After surviving cabin fever, lack of space, water or lava breaches, famine and cold winters, you can expect sieges from aggressive wildlife – polar bears in the north, elephants in jungle regions – or unfriendly other civilisations like goblins: Tragedy is inevitable. "Losing is fun" is not without reason the semi-official motto of the game. But still every settlement, even the inevitably doomed test fortress of a new player, is registered in the history of the world – and can be visited and explored as a more or less impressive ruins in "Adventure-Mode".
Sandbox games like "Oblivion" or "GTA", that have dedicated themselves to the simulation of a „living“ world can only rudimentary keep the pace of this seemingly scurrile-megalomaniac project. The developers, two US American brothers aged around 30, whose younger brother Tarn Adams, a former post-doc at Texas A&M, now living on the voluntary donations from fanatic fans, are planing much more:
In the design documents the planed dimension of the huge world simulation, which is only rudimentarily represented in "Dwarf Fortress", becomes evident. Once the state of Beta is reached, the interface is to be redone. The users spoiled by the eyecandy of other games can already install prettier tile-sets, that make the game at least a little more good-looking.
Recently a 3D – Visualiser stirred hope for a future possible 3D version. Until that day comes hardened gamers should get involved in the bizarre adventure right now, play an absolutely exceptional game – and after a short induction period catch a glimpse of an exceptional simulation through the ASCII-salad.
[ January 20, 2008: Message edited by: myd ]
[ January 20, 2008: Message edited by: myd ]
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Topic: Telepolis DF Article (German) (Read 1574 times)