A Game of Dwarves

 PC
Metascore
60

Mixed or average reviews - based on 11 Critic Reviews

Critic score distribution:
  1. Positive: 0 out of 11
  2. Mixed: 10 out of 11
  3. Negative: 1 out of 11
  1. CD-Action
    Feb 6, 2013
    70
    It has a low budget feel to it but decent length of the campaign and low price combined with deficit of similar games make A Game of Dwarves worth your time. [CD-Action 02/2013, p.44]
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  2. Eurogamer Sweden
    Nov 30, 2012
    70
    A Game of Dwarves is a welcome return to the Dungeon Keeper style of management games. Despite a few strange design choices and a lack of strong momentum in the lengthy campaign, the game still offers great value if you are looking for a rather relaxed session of dwarf herding.
  3. Gaming Nexus
    Nov 26, 2012
    70
    A Game of Dwarves could have been a better revival of the genre that Dungeon Keeper started, but it's still a solid title and at $10, anyone in this particular niche will get what they payed for.
  5. PC Gamer
    Dec 27, 2012
    66
    Mildly rewarding, but largely unremarkable. There are better options for the management- minded out there.
  6. Meristation
    Nov 11, 2012
    65
    It is unfair to compare A Game of Dwarves with Dwarf Fortress... since it's not even trying to compete against it. This is a simplistic game that won't cause too many headaches, and it's perfect for relaxation. A Game of Dwarves is worth enjoying and its price is a perfect reason to justify the purchase.
  7. Games.cz
    Apr 14, 2013
    60
    A decent management strategy game that is charming because of the managerial strategic principle, its unusual environment and humour. However, it suffers because digging to another floors is badly transparent, the game is not variable enough and it does not offer as much as the similar titles.
  8. Destructoid
    Nov 6, 2012
    60
    A Game of Dwarves is exceedingly easy to get to grips with, and it's functional, if not as fleshed out as one would have hoped.
  9. The Escapist
    Oct 23, 2012
    60
    The AI can be a bit clunky and its reluctance to bring important developments to your attention can be annoying, but if you're out for some simple strategy fun that won't bury you in arcane rules (or you just dig the idea of building your own glorious underground kingdom), A Game of Dwarves should suit nicely.
  10. Gamer.no
    Nov 2, 2012
    50
    Heavily inspired by the likes of Dungeon Keeper, this base building game fails to achieve the greatness of it's ancestor. There's some fun here, but outside of trying to navigate your increasingly complex dungeons, it's not challenging enough.
  11. GameSpy
    Nov 1, 2012
    50
    In the end, one of the many cluttered rooms serves as a metaphor for the whole experience: sure, all the stuff in there works, and it serves a purpose, but a little more elegance could have made the whole remarkable.
  12. GameWatcher
    Nov 12, 2012
    40
    It's unfinished, it doesn't communicate vital information to the player very well, and – let's be honest here – it's all more than a little repetitive. Every level just feels like you're doing the same things over and over again. There's fun to be had certainly in the building and exploration departments, but it could've been handled with a lot more care. This isn't a game, it's a tomb.

User Reviews

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User Score
6.4

Mixed or average reviews- based on 66 Ratings

User score distribution:
  1. Positive: 27 out of 66
  2. Mixed: 27 out of 66
  3. Negative: 12 out of 66
  1. Mochnant
    Nov 13, 2012
    5
    "A Game of Dwarves" is a not likely to satisfy many players. It is not Dwarf Fortress, it is not Dungeon Keeper, it is not the Sims. What it"A Game of Dwarves" is a not likely to satisfy many players. It is not Dwarf Fortress, it is not Dungeon Keeper, it is not the Sims. What it is is a shallow, well meaning, half-game with very attentive developers. Unfortunately, no amount of developer forum interaction can make up for the thin gruel that they are working with. Gameplay is repetitive, the graphics are cutesy but not endearing, and so many design decisions seem to have been either bungled or not made at all. In the game's defense, it is priced at a very budget level ($10) and that certainly reduces any feelings of being ripped off. There is a game here to play, and I got a few hours of enjoyment learning the system, but once the newness wears off, most will move on to something meatier.… Full Review »
  2. RedMattis
    Nov 12, 2012
    3
    If you're reading this hoping for a challenging sandbox survival game, look elsewhere. Enemies appear only in air pockets dug out by theIf you're reading this hoping for a challenging sandbox survival game, look elsewhere. Enemies appear only in air pockets dug out by the player, and keeping a good supply of resources is just a matter patience of not getting careless along the way (forgetting to make farms). This is the fundamental problem with the game if you're looking for a survival challenge.

    Aside of these problems a number of other major issues and a significant lack of polish plague the game.

    [Combat]:
    Enemies lack proper patch finding and will when encountered instead wildly teleport around the level until they find a dwarf to beat up. Your own dwarves cannot be controlled (aside from teleporting them) and soldier dwarves will simply bullrush your enemy they can patch-find their way to, even if they are on the other side of the level and have 1% of their maximum health available (no way to prevent this aside from sealing them in).
    Enemies teleporting makes traps useless, and since you can't stop your dwarves from blindly rushing into battle the only factor is having more and higher level dwarves than the enemy monsters.

    [Resources]:
    Certainly better than the combat, but basic resources are surprisingly rare, while 'rare' resources when found can buy you immense quantities of these resources, which leads to situations where the best way to get "stone" is to find an unholy rock and sell it for a few thousand rocks. Unfortunately you also need to mash the "buy rock" button a few hundred times since you can only buy very small stacks. Aside from this you have a few minor issues like resources sometimes permanently disappearing from your resource tab if they reach 0.

    [Graphics & Sound]:
    The sound and graphics for the game are both nicely done and get the point across. Aside of a few minor issues designing a good looking dwarf fortress is both possible, fun and fairly easy to do.

    [Summary]:
    A few major design flaws and a severe lack of polish across the board prevents this game from reaching its full potential. Perhaps the game will change later on, but as the game is now I do not feel that I can recommend it to anyone. 3/10 (note that I consider 5 to be an average game)    … Full Review »
  3. jubjub1277
    Oct 24, 2012
    10
    This game is really great for its price and is basically a updated version of Dwarfs Fortress. Its really easy to get into and is very casual.This game is really great for its price and is basically a updated version of Dwarfs Fortress. Its really easy to get into and is very casual. The game also requires an activation for it on steam and the total download is about 1.4 GB/s. The game is really enjoyable and I can casually play it while doing other things at the same time. Also if you buy it now there's additional free content in the in-game shop which is pretty nice. The art style is interesting and the story is very humorous. This game is definatly worth the 10$ and i love it. There were some minor AI issues but its easy to overcome them and for such a cheap game its not that big of a deal. Definatly get this game if you're into games such as minecraft and strategy/management games.… Full Review »
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