Diggles, the Myth of Fenris

Diggles, the Myth of Fenris is a game released by Innonics on 27 September 2001. The game is a side-scrolling strategy game which is based on a 3D-engine and 3D-graphics. The 3D-graphics are also used to produce in-game movies. You are guiding your dwarves, called "Wiggles" in Germany, "diggles" in the English version and "gnomy" in the Russian version. The dwarves can manufacture tools, weapons, rooms and other advanced manufacturing shops (as part of a moderately large technology tree). You can set up your workshops and rooms in the caves that your dwarves have been digging. Your mission is to dig down and solve quests which contribute to your global quest, which is to chain Fenris, the fiery dog of Odin. You encounter other clans and creatures on the way, some hostile, some not.

Development throughout the game
Since your dwarves have a limited lifespan, most of the development is in equipment, while your individual dwarves develop their skills during their lifetime, passing on only a small portion to their offspring. Digging bigger caves also helps you to place the many workshops, rooms and equipment that you will gather.

Control of the game
Your dwarves usually act in automatic planning mode, which means they will figure out themselves how to get stuff done. This means you can both set goals (like "dig here" or "make food") or you can order individual dwarves around. Your dwarves will get upset if they work too long and don't get enough fun out of their free time, so you will have to provide them with sane working hours and entertainment in their free time.

Design and Production of the game
According to the manual, page 40:

The game was published by Innonics GmbH in 2001, while the software was developed by SEK-ost, Berlin.

According to the manual, page 41:

Producer: Marc Möhring

Development Director: Klaus Starke

Concept and Planning: Thomas Langhanki, Carolin Batke, Carsten Orthband, Ingo Neumann

Gameplay Programming Lead: Carsten Orthbandt

Gameplay Programming: Andrej Treskow, Axel Hylla, David Salz

History
The game was not very well received in the reviews, showing a meta-critic score of 62 out of 100 based on 13 reviews, and also failed to sell well. Reviewers cited a host of problems including technical/graphic issues, AI/Pathing problems, poor user-interface design, extremely slow pace, and excessive micro-management among others.

Despite the age and the negative reviews, the game still has a small fanbase.