Over the years, Tarn and Zach Adams have been happy with the donations-based, self-sustained model they put into place to support themselves and Dwarf Fortress, on PayPal and Patreon. With its text-based graphics, its (very) challenging learning curve, its procedurally generated world and its advanced simulation, Dwarf Fortress has been captivating players for almost two decades, and never technically came out of alpha.
Released in public alpha in 2006, the original Dwarf Fortress reached the status of cult classic over the years, with a dedicated, hardcore community. The life's work of brothers Tarn and Zach Adams (under the name Bay 12 Games), it has been in active development since 2002. Dwarf Fortress is an oddity across the games industry.
