Compilation: A Kind of Feedback [WIP]

[ranzhans]

Foreword & Introduction

Thank you for FF - As a genre fetishist I have to admit that the puzzle factor of stability and heat surprised me very pleasantly, outlining the function and resulting limits and possibilities feels rewarding in a fresh way. Going beyond things like “striving” makes the intellectual happy and I see incredible mountains of potential!

I am absolutely above reviews such as too heavy, optics whining & research only consists of two "inline frames", which the devs should too, because after all, EA is created for games like this - instead of, as is usually propagated, absolute freedom from fools until the exit cam!

In my opinion, a wonderful addition to the genre, with the potential to surprise anyone who thinks they've made every spaghetti dish!
The level-based idea of transport also develops a lot of momentum later in the game and the “looping through” of items in particular is a great idea!
I would also like to emphasize that a certain amount of "upscaling" due to the limited lifespan & increasing costs of bots is a very refreshing way to create the need for more materials.

My big downer: The price should be thoroughly reconsidered, despite 6 years, a kind of unique selling point and a lot of potential, I find a price at the level of a Satisfactory's optics festival, DSP's complexity & Factorio's god status is almost a bit bold. This point may not hinder the likes of me, but a casual person who thinks "spaghetti again" and reacts cautiously because of the look will no longer want to be a pig in a poke at this price at the latest.

I'll take the liberty of opening a topic here and adding my thoughts, because I believe that the constructive part could be misunderstood if it wasn't ignored. I hope that despite the raw form and half-baked thought processes, the background becomes clear and thank you in advance for taking a look.

If I mention things that may be fixed or not understandable, I ask for your indulgence and am open to questions.
The same applies to things that I might request, but was too unqualified to recognize the solution that already existed!

---

Feature requests, suggestions & suggestions

1. Having looked carefully at the key assignments and knowing that due to the recent release, there is little to no knowledge about such things on the internet; Is there no way to hide the interface? Please submit immediately!
   
2. Inventory management: Is there really no way to determine the number of items I pick up? Apparently I can't even halve a stack, which with no options to withdraw stacks after an hour - has always been a workaround so far. This becomes particularly annoying when I think of items as fuel. Please make it at least rudimentary in half using Shift+Click, or create a corresponding dialog!
   
3. Why can't I see my selected Seed? I assume its purpose is, among other things, sharing. I would have liked, for example, to be able to read it out in my score entry in order to use existing local knowledge after my first start on the hardest settings ended in a massacre.
   
4. Machines such as assemblers are provided with an on/off switch in the interface
   
5. As far as I know, Alarms are new and unpolished, but are currently an absolute burden in the mid- and endgame, where these are a permanent condition (to put it an impertinence). I suspect that a display time that is too long for, for example, destroyed tank blocks tends to connect with the next attacks, which unfortunately, due to the lack of a "right click for - I know" function, unfortunately leads to increasingly ignoring the flashing icons after the acoustic message. This is followed very quickly by the first Hauler, who crawls across the screen with his butt shot off - what a shame!
   
6. Obelisks are perceived by cargo drones as an obstacle or delivery point, which in the explicit example becomes an obstacle if those placed near an asteroid. In the example, the drone remained at the supposed end point and prevented command blocks from landing for loading.
   
7. Is it technically not possible to edit a Blueprint? I don't expect a tree structure after release, but an option to edit - at least the description - would be nice to have!
   
8. I read in the patch notes that inputs for many items were reduced because a mall, for example, would be too complex. Without knowing the status quo, I currently find it too simple - especially with quantum computers, I would have expected more and a lot from it. But since Polymer & Metal Matrix, for example, start with the ores as a starting point, there is no need to devise large complexes later - apart from greenhouses. In comparison, we looked at DSP and here the tree for the white matrix is on fire!

---

Enemy Scaling

I like challenges and often miss the spice of genre representatives and can only guess at how the technical background is implemented. Nevertheless, even after restarting on "normal enemy hardness", I find the scaling this to be too time-dependent instead of as expected, a strong orientation towards my position and my research progress. I haven't done any detailed tests on the topic of "no research in relation to the increase in challenge", but from my point of view I feel that "diddling" and especially the time elapsed at the beginning when getting into the game is quickly punished. Here Tridents come around the corner while I commute unchanged from bauxite to the iron box and try to get my brain on the inserter wavelength.

To clarify: the level of hardness and the considerations it provokes are exactly right for me, but I imagine that some casuals quickly become frustrated, since even this genre now takes these into account - so maybe take a look value.

Be constructive instead of just complaining: I associate this, as a lack and inspiration, with the lack of a pause function like in Desynced - in which I can look into machines, analyze facts and give commands. In FF I often found myself using a workaround via the ESC menu and the visible game section. Later I even started reloading save games later so that I could work on blueprints in peace until then, or practice things dry first, without the punishment of enemy scaling due to a massive loss of time.
I don't think this genre should penalize "hooking"! Pressure is wonderful, but at times I was afraid when rockets ate entire tank blocks that with the same R-value - I had no chance, which at times felt like stress. The increasingly strong group of 5-10 ships should soon be replaced by a somewhat more inscrutable behavior.
I now know that, for example, the stellar research value increases, although it goes beyond the usable range or connection to the current research assignment - this can possibly lead to a sense of time/strength without having given an assignment.

Short version: Please check my subjective feeling, the strong dependence on time and enemy strength is justified and think about a pause function in which I can at least look at and plan things.

---

Endgame & Dyson

Wanted?: The production of the first Dyson Bots ended with "no available spheres found", as with defense platforms. However, mining drones, for example, start their work directly from the factory without requiring a lot in my fleet or a hangar. With Dysons I first had to set the required settings in hangar 1, after which they started to the sphere. The behavior feels like a bug and forced me to build another sphere in advance because I assumed that this game area might be less tested.

How was it actually intended?: After setting a required quantity of 1 in the hangar, production worked and led me to questions:

1. Is there no way to control the number?
   
2. Can I get around this by deploying number X from my fleet every 20 minutes? (No, because Fleet is only operated at screen width)
   
3. Why should I send 1200 bots into the race, which generate 50MW and the corresponding heat and drill holes in my walls, at least in the last part of the factory? (I had no idea about a hard cap ~20°C/s)
   
4. Why does the energy distribution only seem to work in series, with overheat at the end?
   
5. Why do branches from a main line absolutely not work? (Not even in the form of a quantity divided by collection points distribution?)

Why am I asking these questions?
A Dyson receiver regularly burns out when the delivery quantity fluctuates or even fails due to a lack of production of bots.
It is absolutely clear to me that a staff artifact without power causes the state to be unusable, but micromanaging it becomes a burden because it is unlikely to not use staff arts later in the game, paired with X dublicators, which is what this station is e.g. can only start from 1MW of power, as the unusable state appears to exist as long as X% of the requirement is reached and the artifact switches on. As a result, the Dyson Button burns out when automated, replaced by bots every 2 seconds as I rush back to base.
In the current state, I say: I'd rather take the Antimatter batteries out of the garage again (custom for all areas and reliably deliver to the point) and ♥♥♥♥ on the Dyson story! Oh yes, a workaround instead of removing dublicators until my solar panel starts up again - is to place singularity power plants on the main line - well absolutely not controllable (no prioritization) - but the main thing is that the company runs! Do you think! Nothing hardcap - Dyson receiver paired with these === Correct! I rush around again and put out fires, turn the channels and hope to see a pattern at some point. Sure we get Strange Matter - but I can cover myself with Ursos!

Suggestion: At least an adjustable target number should be adjustable on the sphere, instead of theoretically maintaining 1200 a 20min lifetime, wasting massive resources just to maintain my pepper mill with 10kW!

---

Suspected problems

Stations stuck
Stations that have problems with the landing instructions do not seem to react and behave technically as "started" - therefore cannot be selected or removed, for example by cutting them out. In one of my examples, a common periphery was hanging on some comet catchers; only after individual parts were partially removed did another one start. It was only then that I became aware of a problem and I then had to delete all the individual parts separately. However, I think comet accessories are generally not intended to be movable - which should be communicated in some way.
Suggestion: Perhaps an appropriate todo for a planned notification system to issue a message in the event of a failed landing on instructions.

Surprisingly, I rarely had crashes and, thanks to the auto-save interval, never had any major drama.
In my case, these mostly occurred when I marked dozens of elements for removal via cutting, which is probably due to the bots and logistics network, which in my case wasn't a big movie - I suspect there are problems with the decision-making process where to go with it afterwards. Unfortunately, it is absolutely not reproducible and it always feels smoother after a restart.

---

Final word & small print

Although I know English, my word order is sometimes poor. That's why I used a translator - if the context was unclear here, I apologize and assure you that I will be willing to submit the above if necessary.

If necessary, I will add the things that were omitted from such a list and mark them accordingly.

[slims]

This is incredible feedback, thank you for such a detailed write up.

I've fixed some issues outlined already (Dyson Bots, and being able to dismiss alarms).

I agree enemy scaling needs a lot of work, a rework on attacking logic and enemy scaling is on the roadmap!

BTW Shift + rightclick will grant you half the stack :)