18 Games Like Dwarf Fortress
Our collection of games like Dwarf Fortress offers other games that combine city building, randomisation and roguelike features together in fantasy worlds.
Dwarf Fortress is a unique management title that allows players to craft their own story with ASCII art that present the world through symbols and text only. Originally released in 2006 following an extensive alpha development phase Dwarf Fortress is continually updated and expanded with a vision and roadmap that is likely to take decades to fully implement. Gameplay in Dwarf Fortress is a blend of adventure, fantasy, city building and settlement management that gives players control over a Dwarven settlement.
With various challenges and a steep difficulty players will battle for survival in the harsh and randomly generated game worlds with a sandbox framework that lets you set your own goals, most commonly surviving as many days as possible. With many ways for your settlement to meet its ultimate and permanent demise you'll rarely feel safe as your resource needs grow and you fight off various threats. Alternatively players can explore adventure mode where you'll control a single character similar to a RPG adventure
The games like Dwarf Fortress here focus primarily on other fantasy city building and management games that have unusual, unique or difficult mechanics at the core of their gameplay.
Dark Gnome
Dark Gnome gives players the opportunity to help a generation of dwarves throw up their arms and revolt against the oppressive rat kingdom that has prevented them from leaving freely in the valley for countless generations. You’ll recruit your own team of dwarves as you travel across the countryside of various maps hunting for items, gaining experiencing and building our your dwarf settlement with supporting vendors and activities. Opting to present itself through a retro pixel design this...[Read Review]
Evil Genius
Evil Genius mixes simulation, management and real time strategy putting players in charge of their own evil villain lair as they attempt to complete their plans for world domination one country at a time. Originally launched in 2004 Evil Genius still has a strong cult like following of fans with comparison to the popular Dungeon Keeper series of games which launched several years earlier. With age does come some limitations however with graphics and general polish quickly falling behind other mo...[Read Review]
Oxygen Not Included
Oxygen Not Included challenges you with space colony simulation across varied procedurally generated worlds that each offer their own distinct fight for survival. From food, warmth and even oxygen as your resources under constant threat you’ll need to guide your colonists to survive and in time thrive to a civilisation that is self sufficient and safe from external threats. Released in 2019 for Windows, Mac and Linux this space adventure has some similar survival mechanics to Klei Entertai...[Read Review]
Factorio
Developed as a real time strategy game and released in 2014 through the Steam Early Access Program is Factorio a game all about taking basic parts and building upon them again and again to create a thriving society. The idea behind Factorio revolves around a crash landed man on a far off alien planet who must rely on the resources contained on the planet to build a rocket. The game design promotes open ended gameplay with players able to achieve this goal (or even ignore it) however they wish in...[Read Review]
Dungeon Keeper
The original Dungeon Keeper is often credited as popularising dark humour in games and was released in 1997. Challenging players to manage their own dungeon while defeating various heroes the game was hugely successful and led to an equally satisfying sequel (Dungeon Keeper 2) two years later. Dungeon Keeper sends players on a journey to claim every single land in the game world that is currently in the hands of the goodly heroes or a rival keeper. As players progress the once green covered land...[Read Review]
Prison Architect
Maximum security prisons aren’t a common theme for a video game but one that Prison Architect explores in detail with its takes on the management simulation genre as players control a private construction business. With a campaign of several levels that also serve as your tutorial players the majority of gameplay takes place in sandbox setting of prison management. Prison Architect takes place in a top-down 2D environment and clearly draws from a number of classics in the tycoon genre with...[Read Review]
Dungeon Keeper 2
Dungeon Keeper 2 might have only been released two years after the original hit game but makes significant leaps in graphics and mechanics to expand on the Dungeon Keeper franchise. Once again you’ll be thrown into the underground to build your dungeon, attract creatures, craft traps and ultimately fight on the side of evil, it’s good to be bad. Despite the vast evolution in mechanics and graphic style this has not come at the cost of the familiar dark style of the Bullfrog franchise...[Read Review]
Craft The World
Craft The World is a sandbox game with strategy elements for PC, Mac and iOS whereby players will be creating their own dwarven colony from humble beginnings. Mixing elements from a range of titles in similar genres Craft The World’s overall experience is a gaming treat and offers replayability at the same time. Craft The World puts you in charge of your own dwarf society that grows from a single dwarf to a thriving community of adventurers (often 12-14 depending on your level completion t...[Read Review]
Populous: The Beginning
Populous: The Beginning blends strategy and god games together to create an interesting and fun hybrid of the genres where players lead their tribe through an array of missions with their powers. The game serves as the third in the series and was developed by Bullfrog Productions who also developed the highly popular Dungeon Keeper series with features some similar themes and game mechanics. In Populous: The Beginning players will join their own tribe as a powerful shaman who wishes to achieve v...[Read Review]
Banished
Banished joins the ranks of the city build genre with a 2014 release that takes it into a unique medieval setting where you’ll build from humble beginnings into a thriving economic powerhouse. Banished opts not to throw abundance of resources at players either and instead looks to force players into resource scarcity so that every decision is one of balance as you try to survive and with some luck, thrive. Banished starts you off with your own community of outcasts who have come together a...[Read Review]
StarTopia
StarTopia was put together by former Bullfrog employees and has you take control of several space stations as you attempt to create a thriving space hub for the galaxy. StarTopia was released back in 2001 and features the same humour filled gameplay that made the Dungeon Keeper series and similar games such as Theme Hospital so popular. The game takes place in a universe that has been devastated by war with players taking control of one of the few remaining space stations and a beacon of hope in...[Read Review]
Planetbase
Planetbase challenges you to settle the stars with your own team of space settlers as they try to establish a colonist outpost on a remote planet. Originally released in 2015 for Windows the game later expanded to the console market which offers the same science fiction setting struggle for survival as you work with minimal resources far from your home base. Your ultimate goal in Planetbase to master the four game planets that provide different challenges and increasing difficulty and serve as t...[Read Review]
Rise to Ruins
Rise to Ruins (previously Retro-Pixel Castles) challenges you to survive in a game that blends colony management, god like powers and survival into a single game. With noted inspiration from the likes of Banished and Dwarf Fortress but offering something different at the same time Rise to Ruins has wide audience appeal. The core experience in Rise to Ruins though is the management of your village which is presented in a pixel like design. This core game (survival mode) is also designed for playe...[Read Review]
Dwarfs!?
Dwarfs!? (and its free to play counterpart Dwarfs!) lets you command your very own team of Dwarfs in a Lemmings meets Dwarf Fortress approach to gameplay. The free version allows players to experience arcade mode (main game mode) in addition to tutorials and challenge mode while the full version adds sandbox, rush, endless, tower defence and dark mode for more variety. These modes can be added individually to your game or bought in a package (Dwarfs!?) allowing plenty of flexibility. Regardless ...[Read Review]
Gnomoria
Gnomoria puts you in control of a civilisation of gnomes who need your guidance to grow their settlement, fend off attacks, craft and dig. While a sandbox game at heart there is also plenty of management and strategy to also master. Each game in Gnomoria starts in a procedurally generated world with a number of sliders available to players to alter the difficultly and type of experience they wish to have. Options include things like map size, flatness, depth of resources, amount of resources, en...[Read Review]
A Game of Dwarves
A Game of Dwarves puts you at the head of a dwarf settlement and gives you complete control of building a new and thriving civilisation. This civilisation of dwarves is highly customisable with the experience focusing on the dungeon simulation and creation elements rather than a robust and deep layer of strategic gameplay. While this means A Game of Dwarves can’t live up to the likes of Dwarf Fortress in terms of challenge it does provide the necessary tools and freedom to create a thriving dwar...[Read Review]
Space Colony
Set on the otherside of the galaxy that we know with limited resources a powerful corporation has sent a crew of explorers to survive and eventually turn a profit for themselves. With this base deep in alien territory you’ll have to keep these explorers safe from the hostile alien threat that circles your base. Part simulation game Space Colony requires players to not only expand their base but also keep their colonists happy. With each having a mind of their own and a paycheque that they ...[Read Review]
Creatures: The Albian Years
Creatures: The Albian Years is a re-released version of Creatures 1 and 2 which also comes with the additional Life Kits and Object Packs which add additional content to the games. The first two games in the Creatures series take place on the planet of Albia which features a variety of environments similar to that found on Earth. Spread across the world are a number of abandoned laboratories that have been left over from a highly advanced race known as the Shee (who have mysteriously left the pl...[Read Review]