dwarf fortress

Dwarf Fortress is a free construction and management sim and roguelike indie video game for PC created by Bay 12 Games, composed of Tarn Adams and his older brother Zack.

Originally released in 2006, the game takes place in a random generated fantasy world with ASCII graphics where the player either takes control of a colony of Dwarves and survive or play as Dwarves exploring the world. Despite its graphics, the game is famous for its difficult learning curve and the hilarious, random events that might befall on the player, leading to the game's community tag line: "Losing is Fun!". Since it's released, the game is continually update with new features and fixes, leading to a large fan base for the game.

On December 6, 2022, a paid version of the game published by Kitfox Games with improved graphics and soundtrack was released on Steam and Itch.Io. The paid version was made by Tarn due to waning income from his Patreon and to support his brother due to Zack's declining health. The paid version of the game was well received, becoming the best-selling title on Steam upon release.