Factorio (Again)

My slightly muddled factory

I have had a lot more time to play +Factorio since my last post about it and have had more time therefore to form a more in-depth opinion. I have played a few games  with the longest lasting around 12 hours gameplay so far. I have not managed to get as far as I'd like I don't think but that's probably because I was/am still discovering more things about the game.

I hadn't had any issues with the game in terms of bugs or glitches until the latest update which was released last friday (6th of June) but the developers had warned users of this. However these glitches have been merely graphical and can be attributed, according to the forums, to my VRAM allocation being low due to my web browser or another similar programme being open. 

The technology tree at the stage I'm at

The tech tree has been more expansive than I was anticipating. It looked pretty in-depth when I started the game for the first time, but as you unlock technologies more get unlocked and this leads to yet more and the list seems to go on and on. I still haven't touched on a load of the technologies but I am already overwhelmed with choice, however this appeals to me as the technologies so far. Although they have made the game more complex they have also made the game more enjoyable as the craftable items become cooler, or more interesting, or more useful. I'm constantly surprised by how well the game runs and how polished it seems at such an early stage of development. 

A train, cause why not?

The gameplay itself is very easy to pick up and creating vast, expansive factories is easier than I had anticipated. The beauty of the game is that every factory is unique. Of course there are going to be some similarities between games in terms of certain areas being set up efficiently but as the map is randomly generated resources will have to come from different places leading to a new challenge every time. A friend of mine also has the game and when we look at each other's factories we can see bits of what is happening but it is so much easier to understand what is happening in your own factory as you placed everything there, so you know how it works exactly.

I cannot recommend this game enough, I have been playing it every day without fail since buying it over a fortnight ago, granted these sessions have not been particularly lengthy but they have been enjoyable and I have managed to rack up the hours very quickly whilst maintaining some sort of a social life...