about 2 years ago - Twinsen - Direct link

For the past one and a half years I've been working on a secret Factorio project. Today we are finally revealing it.
As announced during Nintendo Direct, Factorio is coming to Nintendo Switch! It's already in the final stages and the global release date is set for 28th October 2022.

Here is what to expect:

  • All of the game's content will be available. The gameplay is not simplified and there are no artificial limits.
  • There will be no mod support.
  • Multiplayer will be available, including playing cross-platform. Nintendo Switch Online is required for online play, but not required for LAN games.
  • Save files are compatible between all platforms. There will be no save transfer feature at launch, but you can transfer your saves using multiplayer.

Performance

One of the first questions you might ask is how does the game perform. We worked on many optimizations to make sure the game performs as well as possible. You should expect 30-60 FPS (both in TV mode and handheld mode). As for UPS, the average player should be able to go through all of the content and launch a rocket, while staying at 60 UPS. But don't expect to be able to build mega-bases without UPS starting to drop, sometimes significantly.

Can you really play Factorio with controllers?

Factorio was developed for 10 years with only keyboard and mouse in mind, so making sure the game is fully playable with controllers was no easy task. Playing with a controller is slightly slower, and will take some getting used to (just as it does when playing with keyboard and mouse for the first time). After becoming familiar with it, I find it very comfortable. I recommend everyone to play through the first levels of our tutorial campaign, as it's a great way to get acquainted with playing Factorio with a controller.

What about Steam Deck and PC controller support?

I actually started working on the port for Nintendo Switch before the Steam Deck was even announced, so first I will finish what I started. Currently the controller support is optimized for and built around the Nintendo Switch system, the Joy-Con™ controllers, and their features. There's still more work to be done for generic controller support, such as dealing with the many controller types, handling mods, ability to switch between "keyboard and mouse" and "controller" modes, etc. Also I want to make it a priority to focus on the initial feedback coming from Nintendo Switch players, to make sure any bigger issues are ironed out quickly. So generic controller support is planned, just that like most things, it will take some time.

Please help with translations

The standard of quality for releasing on Nintendo Switch is high, so shipping with incomplete translations (like we usually do) is not an option. For this reason the game will only include complete and good quality translations. On around the 26th of September I will add the final localization for the release, so I ask our community translators to please make sure your language is 100% translated on Crowdin if you want it to be included in the release for Nintendo Switch. As many texts were added or changed, I will be looking at Crowdin issues the following days, to help translators. Translations for Japanese, Korean, Simplified Chinese and Traditional Chinese are especially important. Big thanks to our community translators who help make the game more accessible.

The development journey

In next week's Friday Facts, I plan on going into more details about the long development journey, so stay tuned for that.

about 2 years ago - /u/Twinsen01 - Direct link

Originally posted by Terrorsaurus

The only reason it's completely doable on Steam Deck is because the trackpads. I'm REALLY curious what the Switch control layout is going to look like. This is pretty exciting, and I'm glad that official controller support is being worked on. My initial guess as to how they'll pull it off is by combining buttons into larger submenus. For example, holding RB would bring up a radial menu with things like copy/paste/etc. Going to be real interesting to see their solutions.

Pretty much spot on. Holding RB will bring up a radial menu that has quickbar items, tools(copy, paste, new blueprint book) and panels(trains, blueprint library, tips and tricks)

about 2 years ago - /u/Twinsen01 - Direct link

Originally posted by TheSkiGeek

And then after that they said they would (IIRC) "never" port the game to anything that wasn't x86.

We are many developers and we don't always agree with each-other :P

about 2 years ago - /u/Twinsen01 - Direct link

Originally posted by abusbeepbeep

I can plug a USB keyboard into my switch. Any idea if Factorio will support that? I guess perhaps not since you would also need a mouse

Currently you can plug a keyboard(and mouse too) and map some actions to keyboard shortcuts, but you will still need a controller to play. In the future I want to implement full mouse and keyboard "mode" so you can just play with for example a wireless mouse and keyboard.

about 2 years ago - /u/Twinsen01 - Direct link

Originally posted by RoadsideCookie

Is this all coming in the base game as well so we can get controller support on PC/Steam Deck?

Yes, eventually.

about 2 years ago - /u/Twinsen01 - Direct link

Originally posted by DrBrainWillisto

Why is it not priority to get support on the deck over the switch?

Because I started the Nintendo Switch port before the Steam Deck was even announced, so first thing's first. Also it's just me working on the projects, as the rest of the team focuses on the expansion, so it takes time.

about 2 years ago - /u/Twinsen01 - Direct link

Originally posted by qkvb

Is this something you worked on alone? Asking because of the "I"-tone of the article. You da real MVP!

It was mostly my pet project and I was the only one working full time on it. I tried to let the rest of the team focus on the expansion and not get in the way, but others helped me out with some things, such as graphics optimizations, web backend, testing, playtesting and feedback.