Dwarf Fortress co-creator Tarn Adams was amazed other devs had heard of his game the first time he went to a convention: 'I didn't know that anyone knew what we were doing'

Dwarf Fortress co-creator Tarn Adams was amazed other devs had heard of his game the first time he went to a convention: 'I didn't know that anyone knew what we were doing' "I try to have good moral qualities, but I am apparently subject to all forms of flattery and vanity and such." Dwarf Fortress is a bit like caviar—not everyone's into it, but the people who are describe their experiences with it like a religious awakening. But the game's legendary co-creator, Tarn Adams, didn't even know it had a big following for many years, as he told PC Gamer's Joshua Wolens in a recent interview at Gamescom 2026. "Of the 50 or 60 games showing—I'm just ballparking the numbers—I'd say 90% of them heard of Dwarf Fortress and also had a very amazed fan-ish response when we were introduced." It was the first time Adams had a sense of the reach his game had. "From the release of the game in 2006 up until around 2013, I didn't meet another game developer really, except maybe one or two at a Dwarf Fortress-specific meet." He acknowledges things would have felt different then—he was "not a very social person" at the time and DF was "outsider art" for a number of years—but he'd still give his old self "a little pep talk, maybe." 2026 games: All the upcoming games Best PC games: Our all-time favorites Free PC games: Freebie fest Best FPS games: Finest gunplay Best RPGs: Grand adventures Best co-op games: Better together 2026 games: Upcoming games Best PC games: All-time favorites Free PC games: Freebie fest Best FPS games: Finest gunplay Best RPGs: Grand adventures Best co-op games: Better together Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.