Print

Please login or register.
1 Hour 1 Day 1 Week 1 Month Forever
Login with username, password and session length

[Max White]

Plus not alot of people get sucked into Dwarf Fortress from watching it as it doesn't exactly catch your eye with it's visuals

If you don't know what your looking at, then those are just wavy red equals signs moving around, if you DO know what it is, you get unlimited fun AND fun.

[Emily]

I'm not sure Dwarf Fortress is quite as extremely niche as people tend to take it to be.  I'd stick it somewhere in the middle of the niche section of the scale.  Compare it to, say, Nethack.  And probably even more obscure games I've never heard of.

The ascii graphics are definitely the reason it isn't as popular as Minecraft.  Also multiplayer. I doubt the money thing really has anything to do with it.  Well and that you need to learn how to: dig, cut down trees, make furniture, irrigate cave floors, create bedrooms, and brew drinks to even get your basic survival down, and that skill set doesn't help you once goblins start showing up.

But once you know what you're doing the game isn't exactly hard.

Also as far as minecraft not having much to do after you get set up, it should be noted that once you've gotten some defenses up and set up your basic industries there isn't particularly large amounts of late game content in dwarf fortress yet, either.  It might take a bit longer until you reach that point, but it's still there, and before you know it all there is to do is carve scale models of the USS Enterprise out of a mountain.

[breadbocks]

You dare to COMPLAIN about df?!?!?!?!?!?!!?

[lordnincompoop]

You forgot to leave the first letter uncapitalised.

[Duke 2.0]

I'm not sure Dwarf Fortress is quite as extremely niche as people tend to take it to be.  I'd stick it somewhere in the middle of the niche section of the scale.  Compare it to, say, Nethack.  And probably even more obscure games I've never heard of.

The ascii graphics are definitely the reason it isn't as popular as Minecraft.  Also multiplayer. I doubt the money thing really has anything to do with it.  Well and that you need to learn how to: dig, cut down trees, make furniture, irrigate cave floors, create bedrooms, and brew drinks to even get your basic survival down, and that skill set doesn't help you once goblins start showing up.

But once you know what you're doing the game isn't exactly hard.

Also as far as minecraft not having much to do after you get set up, it should be noted that once you've gotten some defenses up and set up your basic industries there isn't particularly large amounts of late game content in dwarf fortress yet, either.  It might take a bit longer until you reach that point, but it's still there, and before you know it all there is to do is carve scale models of the USS Enterprise out of a mountain.

Both games are known as Sandboxes for a reason. There are gameplay elements in place, but ultimately people will still build giant towers to their greatness for no real gameplay reason. Just because you know? So long as what you can make looks cool the game will be a hit.

[Dakk]

Also as far as minecraft not having much to do after you get set up, it should be noted that once you've gotten some defenses up and set up your basic industries there isn't particularly large amounts of late game content in dwarf fortress yet, either.  It might take a bit longer until you reach that point, but it's still there, and before you know it all there is to do is carve scale models of the USS Enterprise out of a mountain.

Colonize hell? Put up a functional military? Set up an awesome dungeon for your adventurer to explore? Fend off increasing hordes of goblins and creatures from the deep with elaborate sets of traps and thingamagigs?

Really though, DF at least gives you some features you can work with and have fun with in the late game, late game minecraft consists of carving multiple phallic monuments and clearing out some simple dungeon until you have a full set of diamond gear and get tired of fighting the same mobs all the time.