We are back with another patch for Adventure Mode! The most notable update this time is the quest log and information screen which will help with keeping track of all the events in-game. We also have tons of new sprites for flowers, fruits and leaves for the over 180 different plant and tree species. And finally, we have baby sprites for dwarves! No more confusion about whether red-clothed adult dwarves are actually children.
Tarn has been busy with an international move but things should be settling soon and the patches should appear more frequently. Thank you for your patience through these major life events on the dev team! We’ve also created a new FAQ, specifically addressing the most common comments and questions we’ve been seeing on Steam. We’ve done a few of these community FAQs in the past but this one will be focused on Adventure Mode development and how things work behind the scenes.
Babies in the trade depot!
Patch Notes for Beta 20
- Quest log and information screen in adventure mode
- Child and baby pictures for dwarves
- Many new fruit, flower, leaf pictures
- Updated dwarf clothing images
- Made good/bad thoughts about tombs work
- Fixed error with experiment portrait mandibles
All of the legumes and their flowers
It's quite possible you will run into problems with hair and clothing colors etc. so we still have some adjustments to make on that front.
In case you missed it, we uploaded a new devlog by Tarn on Youtube where he highlights some of the biggest features that have made their way to Adventure mode and which ones are still left to do.
[previewyoutube=pgywjcG0Y5k;full][/previewyoutube]
FAQ
How is Kitfox Games involved with Dwarf Fortress development?
Kitfox gets the game on Steam, helps with promotion, and handles the money side of things. Technically the artists, audio folks, and programmer working on Dwarf Fortress are contracted through Kitfox, but are managed by Bay 12. Kitfox does not directly assist in the game’s development in any way, other than occasional playtesting or coordination. Tarn and Zach are the creators of Dwarf Fortress, and we want to preserve and protect their vision.
Besides, even if we wanted to send our programmers to help with Dwarf Fortress, they wouldn’t be able to help due to the nature of the game’s uniquely built codebase. Our job is to help Tarn and Zach grow Dwarf Fortress to fruition on their own terms. We take care of as many distractions and relieve as much stress as we can. It is not our role to tell Tarn how to work on his game. We do not force deadlines on him. We do not have shareholders to persuade.
We believe this is the only way to sustain Dwarf Fortress development in a healthy way that will allow Tarn and Zach to work the way they want to on the game, ideally for the rest of all our lives.
The game released in 2022 and is selling well. Why are updates so slow?
We can’t and won’t hire a bunch of programmers to make updates go faster, even if it is a huge project. So far, we’ve added exactly 1 programmer to the team (Putnam), who was selected based on extensive pre-existing understanding of the codebase and a relationship with Tarn. Dwarf Fortress is the single most complex simulation ever created, mostly by one programmer, and it was started in 2006. Work on this labor of love is necessarily based in trust. We are optimizing to make the best game, according to Tarn’s vision, no matter how long it takes, rather than trying to optimize for speed.
Modders have the freedom to move fast and break things, and we’ll continue to support them. This is a lifetime project. This is not a game that will ever be “finished”, but our pace is focused in the long-term. Updates will come slowly but steadily “forever”.
Selling the game on Steam does not change the way that Tarn and Zach will continue to develop. Dwarf Fortress is not like any other game on OR off Steam, and was far ahead of its time, partially because of its unique development approach. We know it can be frustrating to wait, but we will not interfere just because some fans are impatient.
Why aren’t there any updates to Fortress Mode right now when it’s the main game mode?
Many of the fixes going into Adventure Mode will improve Fortress Mode, but you’re right that the time between improvements for Fortress Mode are longer right now. Adventure Mode has been important to Dwarf Fortress for a very long time, and has its own cult following of fans who prefer its playstyle, as well as the interplay between the two modes. Tarn has to focus on completing the beta before returning to regular development. Putnam is continuing to develop other features and fix bugs, but there’s a lifetime of work to do.
How are updates going to work when Adventure mode is complete? What are the next updates after Adventure Mode is complete?
After Adventure Mode leaves beta, development of both modes can proceed in parallel. Fortress Mode and Adventure Mode rest on the same world simulation, so updates are often shared, but each mode has its quirks and special features and we'll be improving them both. You can expect Fortress Mode to be made more rich with each major update, which will be more regular than in years past, rather than waiting for literal years to get giant sweeping changes. We're looking forward to it!
Why isn’t (this known bug from 8 years ago) fixed by now?
Sometimes it’s hard to fix, sometimes it’s just not impacting most players, and sometimes it’s related to a feature that’s planned to have big changes or improvements “soon” anyway, so it’s more efficient to look at it then. Maybe check the bug database for more information, because the bug wranglers might have interesting discussions you can read about it, or contribute information of your own to help track it down.
Why are you selling merch or posting community updates when there haven’t been any patches in a while?
Currently our only merch is designed and sold by FanGamer, who takes care of everything for us. Tarn and Kitfox make final approval on designs before they are sold but otherwise have no involvement in that process. Community updates help us inform players of things outside of development but related to Dwarf Fortress. These updates are written by the community manager Alexandra and sometimes Tanya and do not take away from time spent working on development. We try not to do these too much and we can understand how it’s frustrating to receive these updates when you are hoping for patch notes or updates to the game.
What about the Mac build?
After investigating the programming requirements, we have decided it’s best to cancel the Mac build for the time being. Porting the game over to Mac would take significant time and resources away from improvements to Fortress and Adventure Mode that simply don’t make sense for us to dedicate right now, given the low number of Mac-only users. There is a significant amount of work that would be required for maintaining a Mac build that would delay all patches in the future, and as we know, you all want patches faster. We aren’t saying it will -never- happen but do not count on it any time soon. We are very sorry to all the Mac users who have been waiting patiently for an update on this.
Thank you to everyone who has joined us on this long development journey and have supported us thus far. Dwarf Fortress is truly a unique game that requires a unique but unconventional approach to development and we hope to continue being transparent about where that journey takes us.
See you for the next patch!
-Kitfox
