Octopus Overlords

Thanks for the reply. Yeah, I think I would like the game a lot, eventually. I plan to give it another shot but I keep thinking they must be close to 'full release' here soon, which isn't typical of me, I normally am all over EA games without much need to wait.

One of the Satisfactory youtubers I follow was guessing next spring for full release and that seems reasonable at the pace they have been going. I think the current state of the game is well worth playing and I don't expect release to be much different except for maybe another tier on top of what we have in EA and hopefully a bit of polish.

I'm up to fifteen hours and I'm having a blast. It really is an excellent blend of factory game and open world. I just unlocked coal and I'm running conveyors across the landscape so I can keep the power plant nearer to my hub and to the water it needs. Very cool building pipelines across the countryside to get enough water flow. I'm now at the point where I want to do what I did in Dyson Sphere Project, plan out my factory space so I can connect my iron miners to an array of smelters then put constructors and assemblers downstream of that, with storage containers as end points. So I'm out with scratch paper laying out the flow diagram. Cool stuff

jztemple2 wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 6:36 pm I'm up to fifteen hours and I'm having a blast. It really is an excellent blend of factory game and open world. I just unlocked coal and I'm running conveyors across the landscape so I can keep the power plant nearer to my hub and to the water it needs. Very cool building pipelines across the countryside to get enough water flow. I'm now at the point where I want to do what I did in Dyson Sphere Project, plan out my factory space so I can connect my iron miners to an array of smelters then put constructors and assemblers downstream of that, with storage containers as end points. So I'm out with scratch paper laying out the flow diagram. Cool stuff

tempting tempting. I bought it a few years ago but returned it. But I'm getting that itch, but don't want to pay full price.

naednek wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 7:01 pm

jztemple2 wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 6:36 pm I'm up to fifteen hours and I'm having a blast. It really is an excellent blend of factory game and open world. I just unlocked coal and I'm running conveyors across the landscape so I can keep the power plant nearer to my hub and to the water it needs. Very cool building pipelines across the countryside to get enough water flow. I'm now at the point where I want to do what I did in Dyson Sphere Project, plan out my factory space so I can connect my iron miners to an array of smelters then put constructors and assemblers downstream of that, with storage containers as end points. So I'm out with scratch paper laying out the flow diagram. Cool stuff

tempting tempting. I bought it a few years ago but returned it. But I'm getting that itch, but don't want to pay full price.

According to Augmented Steam. the biggest discount on the game in the past was 40% off last June.

This is my first factory with a lot of inefficiencies, but I wanted to try to build something for end-to-end manufacturing.

coopasonic wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 4:08 pm One of the Satisfactory youtubers I follow was guessing next spring for full release and that seems reasonable at the pace they have been going. I think the current state of the game is well worth playing and I don't expect release to be much different except for maybe another tier on top of what we have in EA and hopefully a bit of polish.

And the 'entire story' right? Am I correct, they still haven't revealed any of that yet?

Unagi wrote: Wed Apr 26, 2023 10:38 am

coopasonic wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 4:08 pm One of the Satisfactory youtubers I follow was guessing next spring for full release and that seems reasonable at the pace they have been going. I think the current state of the game is well worth playing and I don't expect release to be much different except for maybe another tier on top of what we have in EA and hopefully a bit of polish.

And the 'entire story' right? Am I correct, they still haven't revealed any of that yet?

I mean I suppose there will be something there, but setting expectations above "next to nothing" would be a mistake in my opinion. This isn't subnautica. It would be nice if there was some story, but totally unnecessary for my enjoyment.

coopasonic wrote: Wed Apr 26, 2023 11:22 am

Unagi wrote: Wed Apr 26, 2023 10:38 am

coopasonic wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 4:08 pm One of the Satisfactory youtubers I follow was guessing next spring for full release and that seems reasonable at the pace they have been going. I think the current state of the game is well worth playing and I don't expect release to be much different except for maybe another tier on top of what we have in EA and hopefully a bit of polish.

And the 'entire story' right? Am I correct, they still haven't revealed any of that yet?

I mean I suppose there will be something there, but setting expectations above "next to nothing" would be a mistake in my opinion. This isn't subnautica. It would be nice if there was some story, but totally unnecessary for my enjoyment.

Agreed, factory games don't seem to need much of a story to be enjoyable.

jztemple2 wrote: Wed Apr 26, 2023 12:45 pm

coopasonic wrote: Wed Apr 26, 2023 11:22 am

Unagi wrote: Wed Apr 26, 2023 10:38 am

coopasonic wrote: Tue Apr 25, 2023 4:08 pm One of the Satisfactory youtubers I follow was guessing next spring for full release and that seems reasonable at the pace they have been going. I think the current state of the game is well worth playing and I don't expect release to be much different except for maybe another tier on top of what we have in EA and hopefully a bit of polish.

And the 'entire story' right? Am I correct, they still haven't revealed any of that yet?

I mean I suppose there will be something there, but setting expectations above "next to nothing" would be a mistake in my opinion. This isn't subnautica. It would be nice if there was some story, but totally unnecessary for my enjoyment.

Agreed, factory games don't seem to need much of a story to be enjoyable.

I agree entirely, don't really care about the story - I just remember them having objects in the game (like black nodes or crystals, memory isn't clear) that speak to some future purpose and I recall being annoyed that they even had them in the game.

(not some big condemning level of 'annoyed', just kinda distracting)

Now, let me clarify my statement. There isn't a story, at least that I've seen so far. However, the exploring is really interesting and makes the game, to me, more appealing than say Dyson Sphere Program. I've just done a long (well, fifteen minute ) cross-country trek on my tractor to identify some coal veins I can use. While doing so I had to cross streams and go up ledges on the sides of hills. I also found a special object sitting in a lake and had to be inventive with ramps and platforms to access some difficult locations. So there's a lot more than just plunking down factory buildings and conveyor belts.

Unagi wrote: Wed Apr 26, 2023 1:54 pm I agree entirely, don't really care about the story - I just remember them having objects in the game (like black nodes or crystals, memory isn't clear) that speak to some future purpose and I recall being annoyed that they even had them in the game.

(not some big condemning level of 'annoyed', just kinda distracting)

The real annoying thing is the voice that keeps demanding that you collect those WIP items whenever you are near one regardless of the fact they currently have no purpose.

Just made my first AWESOME shop purchase, got nice railings so I don't have to use half walls:

Old way:


New way:


That's good because ramps like these make me nervous


I'm glad I waited till this update to get the game, you can nerf the nasty animals in the option menu. While I'm sure a lot of people enjoy the challenge, I'm really more about the building.

I'm sure if I was playing multi-player my teammates would be horrified at the chaotic way I build. I just really am not inclined to do a lot of planning, at least not at this stage.

I hope whoever came up with the idea of the quick to build lookout towers got an award, those are real handy when laying out buildings and conveyors.

Been a busy afternoon, I've made the blueprint designer which is very cool. I've also set up my first truck route to fetch sulfur from a faraway mine. I'm now hunting across the map to find quartz.

I now have signs, I am a happy camper





I now have two automated tractor routes, they are pretty fast.

Very cool. I wish I found these factory games more appealing. In theory I should love them, but I have no creativity at all, so leaving me to my own devices doesn't work out well. And when I follow other peoples' ideas, I eventually realize I'm just following instructions rather than playing, so I drift away to play something else.

This happens all the time. Factorio and even Surviving Mars are two notable ones that jump out at me.

I like watching other peoples' factories though. Very cool.

GreenGoo wrote: Fri Apr 28, 2023 1:44 pm but I have no creativity at all

I'm not really creative either. I put down buildings and such as I need to produce stuff. I like problem (note, not puzzle) solving and this game is full of that. The signs are a great help so I don't have to go up to each storage container to remember what is stored in it. I still go running all over the place tweaking this and picking up that. I've still got a lot of goals to achieve as I'm still at Tier 4.

I could kick myself for letting two years go by after first trying this game, but on the other hand it would not be as polished and full of content as it is now. I'm still having a lot of fun after 32 hours.

Here's a look at the map with a closeup of my main HUB and factory area, followed by a slow pivot looking around. At the top of the HUD you can see the compass and on it you can the icons for the various factories and storage units I have marked on the map.

Your factories are more polished than mine. I basically never put up a wall or guardrail and clipping is rampant! I kind of wish they didn't allow clipping but I am not sure I would survive if they prevented it.

A quick look at my first manufacturer, making computers. The circuit boards are made in the smaller facility on the left and then the boards right a belt to the high container. I'll figure this out better next time



I'd have to say that I was a bit mislead by some of the Satisfactory videos posted. It seemed like the point of the game was to cover the landscape with factories from horizon to horizon. I'm over 50 hours in and I'm still working on small facilities and hand carrying a lot of stuff. I'll probably stay in this mode till I unlock all the Tiers, or at least the one I'm on now, which unlocked petroleum and will unlock trains.

And a look from my catwalk to the valley where I have some of my facilities.

That's... wild.


As soon as I can make concrete in volume I am done building anything on the ground. The fact you have a manufacturer sitting on the ground kind of terrifies me.

coopasonic wrote: Mon May 01, 2023 3:34 pm That's... wild.


As soon as I can make concrete in volume I am done building anything on the ground. The fact you have a manufacturer sitting on the ground kind of terrifies me.

This won't scare you then . This is a more conventional arrangement for a blueprint factory. Two storage containers feed an assembler, then the output of that goes with the input from three other storage containers into a manufacturer. I used an upper floor and vertical conveyors to save space.

Completed Tier 6 and Phase 3. I'm starting to get a little burned out as I'm still running around bringing stuff from A to B, rescuing stranded tractors and searching for the elusive power slugs. I unlocked the radar tower which is nice for the resources being shown, but while it tells me that there are 22 power slugs in the area, it doesn't say where . I'm maintaining a list on scratch paper of where I'm currently using my power shards, but I need to put that on something I can alt+tab to so I can keep it up better.


I've not decided which milestone to do next, but I think I need to do some serious rebuilding of my factories. They are just too chaotically spread out. And I'm really needing to get rid of the tractor transport, or at least redo them so they don't end up deadlocking or running out of fuel.

Trains for "fuel-free" inter-factory transport and the handheld scanner to track down power slugs when you know there are some around.

So, because of you. (Damn you!) Got back into this game. For a while. I got past my previous 'quitting point'... Made it to here:


A nice steady factory making solid biomass from leaves and wood, and then production lines that terminate in containers of Concrete, Iron Sheets, Iron Rods, Screws, and Wire and Cable. (The most basic of basics)

jztemple2 wrote: Wed May 03, 2023 11:27 pm Completed Tier 6 and Phase 3. I'm starting to get a little burned out as I'm still running around bringing stuff from A to B,

But I'm also remembering the thing that got to me a little. It doesn't happen in Factorio or Dyson, but in this game, I am seriously just tired of all the 'getting myself' to the place where I would want to start developing things, and then going back to the main base, etc.

Still, I enjoyed my play this time way more than my first play... And I will say that making the large base of foundations was a big part of that... it just helps me feel like I'm actually organizing things.

Alas, I may have put the game down one more time. I can tell that I may like this game - but I will likely only want to play through it once... So I am going to just wait for release I think.

coopasonic wrote: Thu May 04, 2023 7:41 am Trains for "fuel-free" inter-factory transport and the handheld scanner to track down power slugs when you know there are some around.

I've actually built a little train line which runs in a circle loading at one station and unloading at the other. A conveyor belt runs the cargo back to the first station

I've used the scanner and have about three dozen power shards, but now it takes a field trip to go look for them and I need to have more automation so I can have the extra time.

Given the stage you are at, anything done manually is wrong!

I will say that is one of the reasons playing co-op is nice. You can split up duties.

coopasonic wrote: Thu May 04, 2023 10:06 am Given the stage you are at, anything done manually is wrong!

Spoken like a programmer.

Isgrimnur wrote: Thu May 04, 2023 10:48 am

coopasonic wrote: Thu May 04, 2023 10:06 am Given the stage you are at, anything done manually is wrong!

Spoken like a programmer.

But it's true, I really need to get more things automated.

Unagi wrote: Thu May 04, 2023 8:22 am A nice steady factory making solid biomass from leaves and wood, and then production lines that terminate in containers of Concrete, Iron Sheets, Iron Rods, Screws, and Wire and Cable. (The most basic of basics)

I really am getting obsessed with this game. We're at the beach right now and instead of kicking back and reading a book (my usual beach activity) I'm using your post as the start of making up an automaton plan

I was going to build my third radar tower and I had traveled quite a ways and found an acceptably high terrain feature. And so I built ramps up and up and it occurred that maybe I didn't *need* to put the radar tower on solid ground. Turns out that's true, so I simply kept building ramps and then catwalk stairs until it was higher than any terrain I could see. This video is my decent from the tower, placing power poles and cables on the way down.

FWIW perhaps you're just making an aesthetic choice but the radar tower works no matter the height. It scans a fixed radius in the x,y directions irrespective of the z.

malchior wrote: Fri May 05, 2023 8:54 am FWIW perhaps you're just making an aesthetic choice but the radar tower works no matter the height. It scans a fixed radius in the x,y directions irrespective of the z.

Ah, not according the wiki!

The tower will only provide information for terrain that is below the peak of the antenna, so it is recommended to build the radar tower at a high enough elevation so that all of the surrounding land is below the antenna. Any terrain at an elevation higher than its tip or an area blocked by a terrain feature will not be revealed.

That "or an area blocked by a terrain feature" means I'm going to have to consider adding more towers to be sure of covering all areas. Meanwhile...

Maybe they fixed that recently...I'll check my most recent save because I've been on hiatus a couple of months. I went bonkers at one point and fully automated most of the 'final' project items.

Edit: I just checked. I don't know if that Wiki entry is accurate. Maybe I'm not seeing something I should be but the resources on my map looks like the map on https://satisfactory-calculator.com/en/interactive-map. I built one of towers on the SW portion of the map well below the peak tops and am seeing resources 'over the horizon' there.

FWIW I experimented with this because I thought the described behavior is what it should be but didn't feel like building structures just to elevate them in some sections where I don't have any "works" in.

So last night I was going to start working on my "shopping arcade", a central location where I could get some standard items, like these. Anything else I should add? I've completed Tier 6 but I'm going to postpone any more milestones till I clean up my layout.

Iron Plate
Heavy Modular Frame
Iron Rod
Reinforced Iron Plate
Screw
Modular Frame
Steel Beam
Steel Pipe
Encased Industrial Beam
Wire
Cable
Copper Sheet
Coal (for my truck)

But I got sidetracked with adding that new radar tower, bringing in four new coal power plants and just general tweaking. But this afternoon I'm really, really going to try to focus on that arcade

That's what I called my "Starter Factory" which was a parallel line for each of those items - and I grew that factory out to the following items in the following order:

Biofuel
Concrete
Copper Wire
Copper Sheet
Cable
Iron Plate
Iron Rod
Screw
Reinforced Iron Plate
Modular Frame
Smart Plate
Quickwire
AI Limiter

Essentially it was Copper, Iron, and Caterium inputs to each section and then Containers (edge clipped through the walls! for neatness) in a line. The Biofuel section had input containers into the line. It consists of all those assemblies where on a large concrete base in a line. I put an angle roof on it so it sort of looks like a Space Age factory.

I had a separate facilities for steel stuff because Coal/Iron for me was somewhere else and I picked a location between them. Eventually when I had trains up and running I shipped all this stuff into a central warehouse (with 4 train stations underneath) with a sorting system.

When I run through again (I generally restart every 2 updates so looking forward to Update 8) I'll probably focus on a quick/dirty starter factory -- I spent a lot of time on the starter factory on this go -- and instead concentrate building the central depot as soon as I have trains. Then I can focus on building maxed out production of key goods in single locations. With blueprints this is trivial so I think I"l focus on a build that maxes out capacity on local resource nodes to make finished goods and just ship them to the center versus a big starter factory.

jztemple2 wrote: Fri May 05, 2023 1:52 pmBut I got sidetracked with adding that new radar tower, bringing in four new coal power plants and just general tweaking. But this afternoon I'm really, really going to try to focus on that arcade

Also FWIW I'd run at the edge of power capacity when using coal. When you get oil processing unlocked you can quickly build more power than you need with fuel generators. Coal generators don't produce enough power and coal is way more valuable IMO for steel production.

Edit: You said Tier 6! I totally recommend a basic fuel generator facility at the least. One pure oil making pure fuel -> fuel generator nets you 2 GW. At some point you can upgrade to diluted fuel or diluted packaged fuel and grab 120 rubber/min and generate 3 GW. It's a huge step increase.

malchior wrote: Fri May 05, 2023 2:15 pmEdit: You said Tier 6! I totally recommend a basic fuel generator facility at the least. One pure oil making pure fuel -> fuel generator nets you 2 GW. At some point you can upgrade to diluted fuel or diluted packaged fuel and grab 120 rubber/min and generate 3 GW. It's a huge step increase.

Oh, thanks for that! All these facilities I've built for coal are OK, but I needed to figure out my future power plans.

Meanwhile, a brief video of a ride from my new Shopping Arcade to the Hub. This was something else I was playing around with last night

My new shopping arcade. Fifteen shops, no waiting


Back of the arcade, showing the machines and belts feeding the arcade containers. A number of containers are still awaiting a supply.

This is a short video that shows off the fully completed "shopping arcade" support system. The video starts off with a look at the light purple arcade in the distance and then the camera pans around to show the conveyor belts and the different buildings supported the various items available at the shopping arcade. The buildings and belts in royal blue are all supporting the manufacture of heavy modular frames.

Just a short video where I show off my new hypertube that goes from my petroleum area to my hub.