Posted by Derek Yu Thu, 16 Apr 2009 22:33:00 GMT
A programmer dwarf reclines with his pet and his lute.
Happy belated birthday, Tarn. Congratulations on the new kitten… gulp!
I’m going to get flamed for posting this, aren’t I?
Posted by Alehkhs Sat, 10 Jan 2009 09:23:00 GMT
Are you tired of dying in the winter?
Tired of tree-hugging elves murdering over a simple wooden chair?
Tired of moody dwarfs striking in the workplace?
Do you try and try again to play Dwarf Fortress?
Do you say to yourself over and over, “Maybe next year,” or “If only the interface made sense”?
IF YES, then you need
With these simple, ten-minute videos, you TOO can enjoy the pleasures of a sustainable mountain fortress!
Just listen to these satisfied viewers:
And now a message from captain_duck:
“I remembered how hard it was to get into DF, to learn the basics, and how I really wanted some video help with that instead of just a FAQ.
So why not make one myself? ... since I wanted a walkthrough, others probably wanted it too. So I just started making these videos.
And I was right apparently, I’m getting tons of comments and messages about people who couldn’t get into DF at all, but my videos really helped them to understand the game.”
Posted by Derek Yu Wed, 23 Jul 2008 16:34:00 GMT
39d was released today, bringing with it a host of nice, shiny improvements. There’s also a really good three-part interview with Tarn up on kwanzoo (part 3 goes up tomorrow). The interviewer is Matt Boyd of Three Panel Soul.
One thing I was a bit saddened to hear was that Tarn’s making less from donations now than he was before (EDIT: Tarn meant before, when he was a mathematician). But hell, I want the guy to live comfortably, given how much enjoyment he’s brought me and the internets over the years. If you’re a fan, consider giving a little to toast the new release. And I don’t know how well-known this is, but as a reward for donating you can get some awesome presents: either a short story that’s illustrated with a single line of ASCII art, or a crayon drawing.
And for those of you that are tired of hearing about DF, well, tough plump helmets! But seriously, I imagine this will be the last release for this particular arc. See ya!
Posted by Derek Yu Wed, 16 Jul 2008 16:38:00 GMT
For those that really can’t get past the ASCII in Dwarf Fortress but really love graphics and want to try the new release... just thought I’d point out that Ian McConville (Three Panel Soul) has released a pretty sexy character tileset. For information on installing the tileset, or making your own, head over to the official unofficial DF Wiki.
Here’s a bigger version of the screencaps on the left. (Thanks, hroon!)
And definitely keep your eye on the development log, because it looks like there could be a new release tomorrow (and possibly more soon after). The next version will address a few bugs, including a pathfinding issue that caused jobs to be randomly cancelled.
Posted by Derek Yu Tue, 15 Jul 2008 07:16:00 GMT
Yes! New Dwarf Fortress release. Actually, two releases – the second version (39b) patches up a lot of bugs that were found by players in 39a, including a nasty (and kind of hilarious) bug that caused dwarfs to sleep indefinitely.
The biggest changes to the game are in World Generation. Heroes will duel with heroes, civilizations will wage bloody wars against one another, and megabeasts like titans and dragons will roam the earth, hunting and being hunted… all in savage detail that is readily available to you in Legends mode (see the screenshot above). Jeez. Thousands of yarns spun before the game even starts!
Not only that, but you can create your own worlds using an in-game editor.
Boy, the mind reels at the idea of a fantasy world whose in-game history is enriched by the depth of these “real-life” adventures. It’s nuts. I love it. Be sure to read Tarn’s development journal for more insight into the new features.
TIGdb: Entry for Dwarf Fortress
Posted by Derek Yu Mon, 03 Mar 2008 10:18:00 GMT
Finally got around to reading this Gamasutra interview with Dwarf Fortress co-creator Tarn Adams (the other half being his brother, Zach). It’s a really great read that covers a lot of Dwarf Fortress’s history and pre-history, and also gets into a lot of geeky stuff like pathfinding and fluid dynamics.
But this is the best part:
Yes, frickin’ Beastmaster! I love that movie! I love you guys!
The image depicts YADFA (Yet Another Dwarf Fortress Anecdote), from DF forum member goldminer:
Via this DF forum thread.
Posted by Derek Yu Sat, 16 Feb 2008 14:15:00 GMT
I don’t usually post about each new DF release, but I wanted to point your attention to creator Tarn Adams’s post with the release. Recently, he’s been adding infrastructure to support religion for all the races, and he wrote a mini-story about one of his encounters at a goblin temple.
It’s not often that Tarn writes in length about his personal experiences within the game, so… I’ll transcribe it here for you, after the jump. It’s pretty awesome.
Read more...Posted by Derek Yu Fri, 08 Feb 2008 17:07:00 GMT
I love trawling the Dwarf Fortress forums looking for interesting stories. Given the open-ended nature of the game, you never know what kinds of things will come up. Remember the rat that was killed by spinning vomit?
Here’s a real gem, though:
Part of a thread titled “The most horrible thing you have seen so far.” Dwarven life is not easy, my friends. Oh no.
Posted by Derek Yu Sun, 27 Jan 2008 17:28:00 GMT
Dwarf Fortress player sinoth has developed a great utility called “3dwarf” that lets you rip map data from the popular Roguelike, and then view them in 3d. 3dwarf lets you explore the maps via a floating camera, and has various helpful options for viewing the map, like “height map mode,” which colors each layer based on how high it is.
Now if only there was a “dwarf mode” to let you walk through your fortress FPS-style!
(Image Source: Dorten)
Posted by Derek Yu Wed, 16 Jan 2008 16:27:00 GMT
There’s a great podcast discussion with Tarn Adams on GeekNights. Tarn, as you may or may not know, is one half of the Dwarf Fortress team, and its sole programmer. The other half, Zach (also Tarn’s brother), develops stories which Tarn makes work within Dwarf Fortress’s intimidating game engine.
The podcast focuses on Dwarf Fortress, but Tarn touches on a variety of subjects, from his older games to his thoughts on gaming and game design in general. I found it to be pretty fascinating.
And, I gotta say, for a self-described introvert and the developer behind one of the most insanely detailed games ever made, Tarn is very well-spoken and sounds really down-to-earth. Respect!
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