Well, actually, there's no reason it
couldn't happen. This is just a problem for a garden-variety
VCS, applied to Dwarf Fortress saves. Run DF through some thin shell that automatically downloads the latest version on startup and merges the changes on exit/command... the only real problem would be cracking open the save format, but given the ingenuity of the community here (
how many memory-hacking utilities are there at present?), I doubt it'd be an obstacle impossible to overcome. You might not even have to - it depends on the structure of the saves, but a simple diff might suffice. Servers are certainly available - we've got the wiki and DFFD, and this would most likely take significantly less bandwidth/space than the latter. The real problem would be conflict resolution - what happens if two people try to reclaim the same site at the same time? Either
someone's progress is getting erased, or you need to fork the save - probably the best solution, though it would present difficulties with UI...
TL;DR:
- It's completely do-able without any intervention on Toady's part. (Though a little help on the saves
might be useful.
- If I weren't about to go to bed, I'd be strongly tempted to try to start setting it up right now.
- Hooray!
EDIT: I'm essentially agreeing with Hummingbird, I guess.
Also, just realized: I'm wrong, it's not nearly as (currently) doable as I thought. One world, one (running) fort. (Or adventurer.) It could work for something that was updated with each abandon/adventurer death - or as an automation tool for inheritance-style community forts - but not otherwise.
Pity. Still a good idea, just not as much so as I thought. The OP's suggestion, which I've only tangentially discussed, is a good one. I endorse it with all of my mighty powers.