Dwarf Fortress, the legendarily complex simulation game created by brothers Tarn and Zach Adams, has officially sold over one million copies on Steam.
This milestone marks a huge achievement for a game that was initially released for free and developed for two decades before coming to the popular digital storefront.
The commercial version of Dwarf Fortress launched on Steam in December 2022, bringing with it a major graphical overhaul that replaced the original ASCII characters with actual sprites and a more user-friendly interface. These accessibility improvements have clearly paid off, attracting both veteran players and curious newcomers alike.
Financial details reveal that the Adams brothers receive 80% of the revenue, with publisher Kitfox Games collecting the remaining portion. This arrangement has transformed what was once a passion project supported mainly by donations into a sustainable business.
For those who are new to the game, Dwarf Fortress tasks players with building and managing a dwarven settlement, dealing with everything from basic resource gathering to complex social dynamics. The game simulates everything from weather patterns to individual personality traits, creating a depth of gameplay that few other titles can match.
The game’s incredible complexity has spawned legendary player stories over the years. Tales like “Boatmurdered” and “Bronzemurder” have become famous examples of emergent storytelling, showcasing how the game’s systems interact to create unique narratives that no developer could have explicitly programmed.
Dwarf Fortress has significantly influenced the gaming landscape, inspiring successful titles like RimWorld and contributing to the rise of the colony sim genre. Its infamous motto—”Losing is fun”—reflects the game’s challenging nature and the community’s embrace of spectacular failures as part of the experience.
Digging deeper
The Adams brothers continue to update the game regularly, with recent efforts focused on improving performance through multithreading to address the notorious “FPS death” that occurs in long-running fortresses.
The modding community also remains active, creating tools and additions that further enhance the already expansive gameplay options.
