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Dwarf Fortress Steam release date set for December

The Dwarf Fortress Steam release date has now been revealed, although several features for the legendary subterranean city-builder will be added post-launch

Dwarf Fortress release date: A top-down view of a dwarven fortress, with a large lake of hot lava on the right side and several chambers and hallways tiled in purple

At long last, the Dwarf Fortress Steam release date has been revealed. The updated Steam version of the legendary systems-driven city builder will launch December 6, but the developers say there will be several features that won’t be quite ready when that day arrives and will be added in the weeks and months following the release.

“As we suspected back in February, we won’t be able to squeeze in everything we’d have liked without the potential of a major delay,” developers Tarn and Zach Adams explain in the announcement. The team is currently working on the last few graphics for creatures and buildings, and will have Legends mode prepared for launch.

Here’s the trailer, featuring some of that lovely music the team revealed recently:

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However, it’s not 100% clear that Arena mode, Classic Mode, or Steam Workshop integration will be ready by the ship date. The Adams brothers say that if these components do indeed need a bit more time, they’ll be added via patches in the weeks after launch.

Later on, the pair says, the team will hopefully be implementing new plant-specific sprites, as well as custom art for baby animals (rather than scaled-down versions of the adult sprites). Another feature the team is looking at is ports for Mac and Linux – but Bay 12 Games and Kitfox are seeking outside help to do that properly.

The Steam edition of Dwarf Fortress isn’t just a tileset for the legacy ASCII version of the Adams brothers’ game – it has a full graphical user interface with countless enhancements that make it far more accessible and better organised than it’s ever been.

We’ll be ready to strike the earth when Dwarf Fortress arrives next month.