What's that up there?

Hi!  We're Tarn and Zach Adams, the brothers behind Bay 12 Games.  Our father was a programmer and thought it would be a good idea to get us ready for the emerging computer-dominated world by teaching us how to write video games when we were still learning to read.  This is the result!  Our favorite games were the roguelikes we downloaded from the bulletin board systems in the 80s and exploration games like Starflight (where we learned the word "disembark").  We were fascinated by randomly generated maps and experiences that were different every time, and permanent death that still reverberated into future games through persistent save files.  Our early efforts always included these elements, and they grew into the projects we began releasing on the internet in 2000.

Our best-known game is Dwarf Fortress, which we've been working on since 2002.  It was first released in 2006 and we've been improving it ever since.  Known for its depth, the complexity of its mechanics and the stories told by those who played it, Dwarf Fortress was one of the first video games acquired by the Museum of Modern Art in New York.  The game's text graphics certainly aren't flashy by today's (or yesterday's) standards, but they allow us to add more content than we'd otherwise be able to manage.  You can see our current development plan here.  The game is free and you can try it right now!

Why do we need your support?

Bay 12 Games has been our full-time job since 2007, and we've only been able to do it because of the generous support of our fans.  Making games means a lot to us -- Tarn gave up his job as a math professor to devote all of his energy to Dwarf Fortress, and contributions from our players are now our sole source of income.

It's great to be able to release games that everybody can try out free of charge.  Help us continue to bring more fun to everybody!

What are story and crayon rewards?

As a token of our thanks for your support, Zach will write up a little story for you.  You can see some examples on the DF Wiki.  We can also mail you a crayon drawing of something dwarfy.  You can scroll down our support page to see some examples. Anybody that contributes can also have their name put on the list of Bay 12 Champions.