Please - tell me why you enjoy this game so much

[Bonne]

Dear all

I have a friend, who for a long time has tried to get me to play this game. I've always tried it, and then after a very short time just left. I think the longest I've played was a couple of hours.
I've read tons of posts about Factorio, for the sole reason that I simply cannot understand what people love about this game.

I do understand the fact that it's incredibly satisfying having an effective pipeline, but for what reason? WHY is it so fantastic to make the production of materials more effective? I work with optimization of processes and development, and that's fun - but why go home and do the same thing for no reason? I'm aware of the end-goal being to build a rocket, but I'm really having a hard time using my few hours off, to simply create a small factory, optimize it, optimize it, new machines, optimize it, new design, optimize it and done.

I'm not saying this is anyway to step on somebodies toes, I'm really curious as to what people find so enjoyable in this game. I feel like I'm color-blind, and everybody can see the beautiful landscape, and that kind of pisses me off - I would really love to get that enjoyable feeling people say they have, when they play this game.

Please, open my mind :)

Best regards.

[lady_whynot]

You're just not a gamer. Find another hobby and good.

"Human plays only where he is in the full meaning of the word Human, and he is only there completely human, where he plays." (Friedrich Schiller)

[Overeagerdragon]

Okay; I don't want to step on your toes but I want to set 1 thing straight before I answer your question:

I CANNOT make you love this game...the reasons I'm going to give are strictly my own and you might not find any comfort or worth in them whatsoever. After all; taste is VERY personal (much like an opinion). Now we have that out of the way; let's go!!

First of all I absolutely love resource management games because they allow me to be in total control (or at least total control up to the point I wish to be) over what I do, want, how to achieve that and how to (not) mess up. It's about building something, even if it's insubstantial; something totally my own. I plant the seeds (so to speak) and reap the reward. As such the rocket doesn't even come to mind in ANY of the games I play because I'm NOT playing this game to "win" it. Instead, for me, it's meditative and to go back to your practical example of actually working in an optimization process; I, myself, am schooled as a Laboratory Automisation and Infotechnology specialist. that sounds like a mouthfull and really impressive so let me immediately burst your bubble by saying that basically it means I know how to automate lab processes (trust me; a monkey could do it). So this means I'm always busy with ratio's, automisation, research and development...pretty much EXACTLY what you do in Factorio. So from your point of view I do Factorio in real life so I should be totally sick of it after a 9hr workshift and 2 hrs of travel time.

But I'm not.

Factorio, like I said before, is a meditative experience for me. I can do it in my own time (as opposed to having a deadline), whenever I want to (or not), the way I want to (as opposed by strict policies set by my employer) but more importantly: HOW I want to because Factorio offers me a multitude of ways to make the game my own.

So when something in the game annoys me; I change it. Don't like that I constantly have to handcraft belts? Let's automate that. Don't feel like automating my science? Then let's just bulk produce the flasks and put them in a big chest to feed my labs whenever it pleases me. No clue about how to handle the extreme amount of byproducts I get because I wanted the chemistry aspect of Factorio to be more realistic by installing mods like Bob's, Angel's and ilk? Let's watch a youtube and learn from the best.

Factorio is a resource management game in which I continuously have to manage stocks, supplies and scout out for new and rich materials to process unless my power (*money) runs out (or iron, copper w/e)
Factorio is a survival game in which I race against the clock to get on top of the (alien) food chain (*) before I become lunch.
Factorio is a tower defense game in which I need to protect my base (*my pride and joy) against people(*) who wish to crush that dream (did I say people? I meant biters ofc)
Factorio is a logic puzzle in which I need to think about expansion Vs threat. Overproduction Vs power consumption or even more basic; do I REALLY need to crack all my heavy oil to lubricant?
Factorio is a strategic game in which I continuously have to decide between what's more important right here, right now(*).
Factorio is life (saw those *'s ?? yeah here's where I refer back to those); in which I have to make continuous decisions and hope I made the best one. Will I venture out in the unknown? Or can I make due with what I have from the comfort of my own home?
Factorio can be quit or started over any time I want but it doesn't have to be perfect....it doesn't have to be pretty, it doesn't have to conform to the strict narrow mind of society who says I need to wear a 3-part suit, run 50 miles per day, be able to lift 500 pounds and look like a supermodel whilst doing it all the while cracking a smile as I do it.

Factorio is my freedom.....I love the job the game gives you because my reward is pride; which means much more to me than a paystub at the end of every month and I don't have to care my base is an ugly mess of belts, bots and imperfect ratio's

Try telling that to my boss :)

[Fel]

The answer to most of your "why" is simply "because".

The whole point of the game is to automate various processes, all of them with the same basic and predictable tools that continue to work as long as their conditions are satisfied.
When something works, it's because you did things correctly, when things are optimized it's also because you designed it that way.

If you don't get satisfaction from the process of figuring everything out and piecing things together to form an automated factory that does exactly what you made it to do, it simply means that you are not part of the target demographic and you can safely go play something else.
The game is very niche, and those that enjoy the process will get a lot out of it, but a niche means that only a fraction of the people playing games will find it enjoyable.


"why go home and do the same thing for no reason?"
Funny enough there is a portion of the player base that works in various jobs in engineering and that find the game fun because there aren't hundred pages of specs for each machine, no unexplainable failures, no delays because of external reasons, nobody (except you as the player) messing up, no big cost associated with trying things, rebuilding things in a different configuration...
For quite a few people that work in those jobs it has been called a "wet dream" because of that.

But it's also completely fine to want to do something completely different from your job during your free time, there is nothing wrong with wanting to blow aliens with a bazooka instead of playing this if it gives you more enjoyment.

[pat]

If you've played it for a couple of hours, that was plenty enough time to determine that you like it or not. It's not for you. Doesn't make you a bad person.

[brian_va]

really isn't anything else like it, but if this isn't your type of game, you'll never put thousands of hours in it like many have. don't force it, if you aren't having fun, go play something else.

[GunRunner89X]

Why do people enjoy shooter games? Simulation games? Sports games? No matter how good or popular a game is, there are always those that just won't like it. Most gamers seem to enjoy shooter games, I couldn't care less about them. It is what it is.

[johntarmac]

Originally posted by Bonne:

I work with optimization of processes and development, and that's fun - but why go home and do the same thing for no reason?

You obviously need to get a different job so you can enjoy Factorio properly.

[Zamber]

I loved tycoon games (OTTD, Industry Giant II Mostly) so Factorio was a dreamgame for me.
I don't play "efficient".
I just build enormous factories and stock thousands of items as hoarder like me should do it.
And have a ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ of fun from it. ;]

I think without like such tycoon/colony/production genres you will struggle to find any intresting gameplay in Factorio.

[CMH]

I think the game is just not the type of game OP would enjoy.

If I'm a betting person I'd say an RPG would be a better fit: something with lots of story and able to chase down sub-plots... maybe TES or Witcher series.

Or maybe just a simple shooter, in and out, no commitments, no need to optimize or build.

[impetus_maximus]

there is always something that can be tweaked/improved/expanded.

[Bender24k]

Forget optimization - launch a rocket! That goal is not so easy. 60 hours the first time for me - taking it easy had a ton of fun. Now just did it in 30 hours, again - not a speedrunner. Lots of Achievements to collect if you are into it. It's fun to make all the little machines dance to your whim!

[DCYW]

So much to do in one game. I like games with complexity of survival.

[Nasabot]

Factorio is not really about optimization (for this it lacks content), but about scaling up.

[Overeagerdragon]

Originally posted by Nasabot:

Factorio is not really about optimization (for this it lacks content), but about scaling up.

Then download mods to expand upon that content. If you add Bob's, Angel's, Pyanadon's and their high tech variants you'll never launch a rocket again (or at least struggle to get that far)...

Just a suggestion though; you be you :)

[JOHNNY]

never have ever a game give me a sense of constant objective and constant improvement .