Posted by Gravecat at 5:20 pm under Game Spotlights, Gaming. Comment?
As a break from all the energy drink reviews I’ve been posting recently — and there are more to come, I’m afraid, as my fridge is loaded with numerous other brands waiting for the literary chopping block — I’m going to mention a game I’ve tried a few times in the past but only recently was able to really get into, that being Dwarf Fortress. For those not in the know, the game simulates a colony of dwarves — the kind of Tolkien-esque bearded, ale-swilling, axe-wielding, gold-mining creatures that anyone even remotely familiar with high-fantasy settings will be all-too-familiar with. The game creates a randomly-generated world — populating it with civilizations, cultures, heroes, history — and then allows the player’s initial party of seven to choose an unclaimed spot in the wilderness, and “strike the earth”.
What sounds simple is, in fact, possibly the single most absurdly complex game in existence today. The survival of your dwarven band must be managed at every level, from building a militia to defend from goblins and hostile beasts of the wild, to managing farms, kitchens and breweries to keep the workers fed and happy. Thankfully, the load is somewhat eased by the dwarves’ ability to think for themselves and take care of their needs provided adequate provisions are made — rather than telling Athel Rursibrek to dig a tunnel or craft a table, you simply assign the job to be done and the most appropriately-skilled member of your team will take up the task when not doing anything more important.
While this may not seem overly-complex, the sheer depth and intricacy of every aspect of the game is frankly staggering. Dwarves injured in combat can suffer internal bleeding from broken bones, furniture or trade goods can be crafted from literally dozens of different materials with engravings of things, people or places the craftsmen enjoy or have seen, fluid mechanics simulate the movement of water or lava through pits, lakes or channels, and the personalities of each dwarf are radically different — my expedition’s leader, Sodel Etostcerol (“Sodel Containedlens”), likes galena nickel, crystal opal, yak hoof, crosses, thrones, and mules for their stubbornness. She is impervious to the effects of stress, but rarely happy or enthusiastic and occasionally given to procrastination. That’s about a twentieth of the information provided on the page detailing her appearance, personality, thoughts and feelings.
Unfortunately, all this complexity comes at a cost — not only is the game’s learning curve so steep it practically bends backwards, but the actual configuration or inclusion of graphics packs — the game is ASCII text by default, much like the classic roguelike games of yore — is a serious headache. This kind of barrier to entry both discourages casual gamers, and fortifies the game’s often-elitist fanbase — I myself have been trying to play the game for some time now, but the lack of up-to-date tutorials and frustratingly archaic configuration were too discouraging, not to mention the sheer confusion of being given control of a colony and not being properly told where to begin. Fortunately, a solution has arisen to solve these problems.
The aptly-named Lazy Newb Pack is exactly what every uncertain newcomer to the game would desire; a simple front-end GUI provides configuration options and easy installation of graphics packs, as well as a number of add-on tools to make playing the game easier, and an associated series of video tutorials runs a beginner through the basics, from configuring and starting the game, to creating a new world and making a well-constructed fortress, explaining the process in great detail along the way to ease the passage through the initially daunting learning curve. The process has become easy enough that any gamers could likely get a grip on the basics and slowly expand into the more advanced aspects of the game, though it’s still an experience I’d recommend only to those willing to put serious concentration, focus, and dedication into what amounts to an incredibly deep gaming experience.
If you’ve been put off by the game’s difficulty, lack of decent up-to-date tutorials, outdated methods of configuration, or simply find the concept appealing and feel like giving it a go, I strongly recommend trying the Lazy Newb Pack and watching the video tutorial series. Just remember: losing is fun!
