Dwarfs always dig too greedily and too deeply
It is a nice little game in which feeling of this phrase is represented quite well. Your dwarfs are always digging, always trying to find treasure. They are always reckless and dangers are plenty. Game is about crisis management and your ever expanding hub makes it feel like you are trying to save dwarfs from themselves.
Gameplay
Game is quite simplistic and quick to understand. You have your pause and speed up options. Game is about being able to quickly find danger areas and to respond them in time. Pause is essential in this. However, speed up button does not accelerate in game time meaning that if you want to achieve high score, you have to use it all the time. Game is balanced around paying attention and speeding game through. The more you speed it through, the bigger your score is. This results in a reckless gameplay, taking risks and not completely taking care of problems. In order to achieve high scores, it is mostly about luck. This is the only lasting value this game has, otherwise base gameplay is quite shallow even if it is fun.
How tough does dwarves have it?
Difficulty primarily comes from not being able to respond to crisis in time and it becomes too big to manage. More difficult game modes merely restrict the amount of resources you have to manage crisis. It prevents you simply walling off problematic areas due to sheer costs of it. Difficulty comes primarily from watching dwarfs and not allowing them to kill themselves. It is an exercise in attention and other part is just luck. It is a good formula for casual gameplay, but trying to play higher difficulties at longer period at times leads to frustration and tediousness.
What tools does a dwarf has?
Besides its trusty pickaxe, sharp sword, this game is quite minimalistic and it doesn’t have many options. You can respond quickly with a pause and an instant wall. You can blow up a hole and wall of dangerous areas. You can build outposts which become increasingly expensive. However, this game does lack options. For one, your soldiers will be completely useless in your base. You have clumsy and expensive arrow keys to navigate them together with workers. There are no tools to protect your dungeon actively like asking your guards to patrol your dungeon, setting routes, etc.
Game seriously lacks more turrets, more defensive dig outs, more dangerous enemies.
Furthermore, there are plenty of dead icons in this game which does not do anything. Entire sub-menu is useless in arcade mode.
Conclusion
It is a fun little game. Everything in it just works, but don’t expect it too much like some people. Game lacks variety, it tedious to play when trying to achieve high scores or on a long map. It is shines the best at 15 or 30 minutes quick breaks.