Attention: Nerds, Fantasy lovers, Castle building fans, Dwarf enthusiasts, Game programmers, and Roguelike game fans.

User Rating: 9 | Dwarf Fortress PC
Dwarf Fortress (Chapter II - Slave to Amok: God of Blood) is so horrendously in depth it's nearing insanity. Everything from the dynamic flow of water in the moats to several dozen types of ore, gems, and utility stone is by the book. You carve out your humble abode by digging straight into the ground or into the side of a mountain. When I first started playing this over a year ago it was only two dimensions and fun but frustrating. With the most recent version the possibilities of X, Y and Z dimensions is mind boggling. Micro-managing and planning gamer types will be endlessly obsessed. Starting and restarting over and over becomes necessary but incredibly addicting. I recommend replacing your desk chair for a lounge chair as you tweak thirty different jobs for your, up to, 200 individual dwarf characters. Keep in mind this game is still in alpha. Download it now and fuel the game revolution!

Thumbs up to:

1) "Goo goo gah gah." It's only in alpha which is the infant stage of all computer games. It's so new you're not even allowed to capitalize the 'a' in alpha! Seriously, next phase is Beta where most companies start to allow access to demo versions. Bay12 Games has opted for an alpha release. Their 2008 donation report totaled over $32k which means there's much more to come.

2) "I just peed a little." You'll be giddy every time one of your colossal, brilliantly hatched, meticulously engineered and carefully manifested plans comes to fruition. I have been playing and replaying this game for over a year and I always go back to it.

Thumbs down to:

1) "Wha?" For the first few hours there is a tough learning curve but there is an in depth Wiki and active forum. I usually get five replies within 24 hours. The controls are comprised of letter key strokes, arrow keys and some detail work using the mouse.

2) "Damnnn!" It doesn't look pretty. It definitely needs a GUI facelift which may come as soon as the next release a few weeks from now or as late as the Beta version, I hope. The graphics consist of letters, numbers, symbols and simple graphics.

Main site: http://www.bay12games.com/dwarves/index.html
Wiki: http://dwarf.lendemaindeveille.com/index.php/Main_Page