How to not get bored

[DragonHarrier]

I am playing on vanilla 0.14 and i keep getting bored of my worlds. Mainly because they are never as efficient as i want and i feel it is easier to start from scratch.

My current world is my longest played one, i have researched the rocket, but the cost to make it has put me off (again, because of the inefficent nature of my factory). I am using the ultimate layout guidde, but finding good places to put them where they can get the right amount of materials is hard, especially with lots of ore patches ruining the look.

Can anyone suggest a way to reinvigorate this world so i stick with it and make the rocket? Mods and cheats are not an option as i am going for the 'complete the game' (Smoke me a kipper) achievement.

[Fel]

If the best answer (mods) is out of the window, you could try different world settings (even in 0.14, you could make train worlds and/or bitter hell by playing with the options when generating the map).

Multiplayer can also be a good way to re-ignite interest.
Building differently can make an interesting challenge, like going for a compact, maze-like setup instead of main buses, using bots or not depending on your usual style and so on.

The achievements have a few nice ideas on things that are not usual (as little manual crafting as possible, rushing the rocket in under 8 hours and so on), but if you want more of those challenge, there are always nice ideas floating around in the official forums (that's where those achievements originated from in the first place).

Based on what you said, I would think that making plenty of smaller, specialized factory-bases linked by trains could be a bit of fresh air for example, and that doesn't require starting a new world, you can definitely start making your rocket parts and all that in small bases all over the place for example.
If you enjoy the combat a bit, trying to make the best armour and going on a rampage can be a bit of fun for an hour or two too.


Trying out 0.15 might give you just enough changes to make it enjoyable too.


It's not like there are no ways to have a different experiences even without mods, but how much you will enjoy each really depends on you (and even on the mood at the time).

[DragonHarrier]

That's the thing, i want to start a new world, but i want to finish this one first. I already have the best armor and i keep going around taking out bases (mainly to stop them storming my island). I would love to use trains, but there is too many resources near my base to merit the use.

[Name Lips]

There are a few options. I'm a "serial game restarter." I probably only play one out of every thirty games to the end. I like the beginning of games, getting things set up, overcoming early challenges, etc. Once it's clear that winning is inevitable, why spend the next 30 hours proving it to myself? So I start again. I do this with lots of games, but base-building and civ-style games are probably the best candidates.

There's nothing wrong with that style of play so long as you're having fun -- which is the whole point of gaming in the first place.

The second option is to play different games. It's possible that you're bored with factorio specifically, which is why you can't summon up the endurance to work on larger bases. Play something else for a while, and factorio will seem more interesting and fresh when you return to it.

[Fel]

I'm not even sure I launched single rocket ever since I started playing, so I am also a serial restarter (usually for the tiniest of reasons too, like not liking my setup and not having bots yet to deconstruct everything).

For the same world, trains can mix things up, delving into "programming" and making not-that-useful contraptions just because you can, going on a rampage against bitters with full combat gear, having fun trying to make a massive smeltry even if you can't actually use all of the resulting plates, automating useless things just because...

There are plenty of things you can do that involve doing other things compared to what you usually do.

I find the train thing to be the most fun among those, because you can then use it to basically tour your world whenever you need to take your mind off trying to optimize your factory and such, and knowing how to make decent setups with automated train deliveries can be really useful anyway.

[DragonHarrier]

Hmm, i would like to get the achievements, but fun is more important than that. I wish you could still get achievements with mods (as long as the mods don't make it too easy to get them)

I think i will just start a new modded world. Anyone got any good mods (preferebly not ones that make it harder)? Is it true there is a mod which adds artillery carts for trains?

[Warlord]

Originally posted by Fel:

I find the train thing to be the most fun among those, because you can then use it to basically tour your world whenever you need to take your mind off trying to optimize your factory and such, and knowing how to make decent setups with automated train deliveries can be really useful anyway.

I did that last starting last map, and I loved it. My current map has at least 50 trains going around, yet I still use 2 1-way tracks. I ought to bump it up to 2 lanes each way, but I can't figure out how to do that without changing up my roundabout, and I love my roundabout blueprint....

[𝓝𝓪𝓬𝓱𝓸𝓫𝓸𝓲]

I'm a serial game restarter as well. I used to play Minecraft religiously and i found i had more fun early on than later in the game when you have tons and tons of resources and farms everywhere etc etc. Factorio has been a bit different though since infinite research is a thing and my goal is to go as high with mining productivity as i can get.

As name lips said, there's nothing wrong with restarting a lot, video games are about fun ^_^... except dark souls ;)

As far as i know modded achievements are separate from vanilla achievements, however, the last time i played with mods sometimes i wouldn't get any achievements or they were screwed up in a weird way. On one random occasion the map i played said i had all the achievements as vanilla already unlocked.. As for GOOD mods that don't make the game harder...Advanced electric is pretty cool since it adds more solar pannels and accumulators (something that needs addressing in vanilla imho), Resource spawner overhaul is another popular one, I like Angel's infinite Ores as well. Those should all be .14 compatable but sadly those are really all the ones i used.

I forgot to add .15 like infinite research! It's not really as good as the infinite research is now ( too easy to research higher tier tech) but it definitely is pretty nifty if you like having that sort of thing.

[Fel]

Originally posted by Warlord:

I did that last starting last map, and I loved it. My current map has at least 50 trains going around, yet I still use 2 1-way tracks. I ought to bump it up to 2 lanes each way, but I can't figure out how to do that without changing up my roundabout, and I love my roundabout blueprint....

I do the train thing every time I am starting to get bored of a map, and it works every time, making a circuit going everywhere in my base for no other reason than to have fun speeding around, often forgetting to turn off the hazard trains I have for decovation and getting run over...

The good thing about knowing how to handle trains is that it enables you to make multiple smaller, more specialized bases, so that it doesn't feel as overwhelming making each part.
It also translates really well if you want to play with bob or angel mods, because it's nearly required to not have everything in one place with those.

Originally posted by DragonHarrier:

Hmm, i would like to get the achievements, but fun is more important than that. I wish you could still get achievements with mods (as long as the mods don't make it too easy to get them)

I think i will just start a new modded world. Anyone got any good mods (preferebly not ones that make it harder)? Is it true there is a mod which adds artillery carts for trains?

Frankly, aside from pointing out the "utility" mods, that you could find in quite a few threads around here already, I can only tell you to go to the mod portal's website and use the "tags" to filter what you want.

For example, you will probably want to avoid anything saying "bob" or "angel", because those are the main mod groups that make recipes a nightmare (can be fun, but not what you are asking for)
There is really a lot for everyone there.

Black Market that lets you buy/sell things, potentially by-passing mining entirely, as well as buying or selling higher tier stuff if you can't be bothered with making them.
AAI gives you plenty of automatable vehicles, both transport and war ones.
Teleportation lets you teleport around the place when you researched it.

There is even a group of mod that makes the whole map into an ocean with a few islands here and there, and no ore patches, forcing you to use other ways to get your ores.

There are quite a few mods that change the enemies, and even more that give you nice toys to play with.

It's really a question of what you want.

By the way, while mods don't give you steam achievements, you still have the pop-ups for them when you launch the rocket, as the game does track the modded achievements separately


For weapons on trains, there are a few mods that add equipment slots to vehicles (same as power armour equipment slots), letting you put things like laser defenses, but the most stable one is more or less linked to bob's mods.
They work fine without the parts that make the game hardcore, but they are definitely balanced to go along with the rest of his mods.

[Nailfoot]

I have 1200+ hours in the game and have only launched that dang rocket in 2 or 3 playthroughs!

The world I have BY FAR had the most fun in was a train world. I had over 200 trains in that world. Almost every item in the game was made at an outpost somewhere and trucked to another outpost to be used as a raw resource.

The base easily launched several rockets a minute continuously for an hour.

There was always lots to do in that world and the area was HUGE so I had to take a personal train anytime I needed to go anywhere.

And I've never used a mod, not a single one...

[DragonHarrier]

Originally posted by Nailfoot:

I have 1200+ hours in the game and have only launched that dang rocket in 2 or 3 playthroughs!

The world I have BY FAR had the most fun in was a train world. I had over 200 trains in that world. Almost every item in the game was made at an outpost somewhere and trucked to another outpost to be used as a raw resource.

The base easily launched several rockets a minute continuously for an hour.

There was always lots to do in that world and the area was HUGE so I had to take a personal train anytime I needed to go anywhere.

And I've never used a mod, not a single one...

Yeah, i think my next world i will put the resources as very rich and big, but far apart, so i have to build outposts. But i think i will play on peaceful so that i don't need to worry about defense.

[Warlord]

Originally posted by DragonHarrier:

Yeah, i think my next world i will put the resources as very rich and big, but far apart, so i have to build outposts. But i think i will play on peaceful so that i don't need to worry about defense.

Best way to go. You can do peaceful, but you can also choose a new option they added that lets you prevent biter base expansions. This will stop the most annoying wear and tear to a large-scale base complex while still making pollution a thing to watch out for and defend against.

[jamesc70]

I use worlds where I've gotten far but no longer want to play as blueprint labs.

Since they have a lot of research done, and most things available, I can plan out whole areas like modules, instead of having to wait on research to figure out the whole area in a new world.

[Roxor128]

The only times I've abandoned maps is during mod testing, and those are nearly always sandbox maps. Otherwise, I'll hurry up and get the rocket launched if I'm getting sick of the map, usually in a form where I can wander off and do something else while leaving the game to itself to get the thing built. I don't like not having the closure of making the launch.

[impetus_maximus]

Originally posted by Nailfoot:

I have 1200+ hours in the game and have only launched that dang rocket in 2 or 3 playthroughs!

The world I have BY FAR had the most fun in was a train world. I had over 200 trains in that world. Almost every item in the game was made at an outpost somewhere and trucked to another outpost to be used as a raw resource.

The base easily launched several rockets a minute continuously for an hour.

There was always lots to do in that world and the area was HUGE so I had to take a personal train anytime I needed to go anywhere.

And I've never used a mod, not a single one...

what he(?) said

[DragonHarrier]

Originally posted by Warlord:

but you can also choose a new option they added that lets you prevent biter base expansions. This will stop the most annoying wear and tear to a large-scale base complex while still making pollution a thing to watch out for and defend against.

Hmm, maybe i should update from 0.14 then, i was going to wait until the official release.