About Dwarf Fortress:
Damn, this should be the absolute minimum. Slap on some GUI and it would be sooo awesome...
Ya it would be nice to play straight through Stonesense, and plenty of fans have been calling for it for a long time. It may happen someday. You can set it up to run parralel to the game and update the image according to a frequency you set, so you don't have to look at the DF map anymore. You still have to use the same old GUI, though.
I had the same problem as you at first, though. I was interested in the game for a couple years and looked at it a few times and gave up in minutes. Then I read Boatmurdered and decided, "Ok. That's it. I'm learning this game. Tonight." After I was determined to push through the initial confusion, I found that getting playably comfortable with the interface only took a couple hours. After a few days of playing, you can do most functions in the game reasonably quickly. Of course it helps if you've played any roguelikes before.
man i wish i was more interested in dwarf fortress now but it seems like there's no challenge for me any more
i even start with nothing, only my 7 dwarves, on the shittiest terrain i can find, and once i get them a constant food source and the start of a home, knowing that I can go on to build a mighty fortress from there, i get bored
i still play it now and again for adventurer mode
im hoping that when the army arc is completed etc, i will find more fun playing it again
Been paying attention to the features of the next release? It looks like it will change things a lot. I imagine we'll have to be much more careful with our production and use of resources. Politics/trading will also be more crucial.
For the sake of thoroughness
1. The economy is going to be made completely dynamic with a real system of supply and demand.
2. More in-depth food production processes and you'll actually have to care for your livestock.
3. Ores are going to be made less common, making exploratory mining and selective use of metals more important.
4. I think nearby civs may turn aggressive based on need for resources? Not sure about this one, but I think I've seen mention of it.
5. I'm especially excited about the effect this stuff will have on world gen. It will actually simulate the rise, fall, and migrations of populations based on available resources, trade routes, etc.
