Confused on Steam Play and Proton? Be sure to check out our guide.
We do often include affiliate links to earn us some pennies. See more here.

Factorio [GOGSteam, Official Site] 0.16 is a huge release for this fantastic early access game and it comes with a lot of shiny new stuff.

Note: You will likely need to opt-in to the Beta on Steam for this release.

For those that haven't played it, Factorio is a sandbox building game about making a huge factory on an infinite world. It doesn't sound like much, but when you get going it's really hard to stop. It becomes more and more complex as you go further through the game and you can make some truly incredibly looking bases. You can play it by yourself or join up with others online!

First of all, in this update the map generation has been changed to include cliffs. Previously, Factorio maps were rather flat. Sure they had water, trees and aliens, but cliffs add a lot to the experience.

If you want to learn more about the changes involved in adding cliffs to Factorio, see this blog post. Also, the map generation was adjusted to have proper transitions from ground to water.

On top of that, they've also introduced the artillery wagon and artillery turret, which can automatically fire across a long distance to take out aliens and their nests. It can also be manually fired, if something is particularly bothering you.

There's plenty of smaller changes like your main inventory can now be filtered, mini-tutorials, plenty more high-resolution textures for items and terrains, players can now ride as passengers in cars/tanks in multiplayer, balancing changes and bug fixes. See the full changelog here on their official forum, there's a lot to take in and plenty I haven't covered.

It's a fantastic game that will rip away hours of your life, I fully recommend it.

Note: Our GOG link is an affiliate link.

Article taken from GamingOnLinux.com.
3 Likes
About the author -
author picture
I am the owner of GamingOnLinux. After discovering Linux back in the days of Mandrake in 2003, I constantly came back to check on the progress of Linux until Ubuntu appeared on the scene and it helped me to really love it. You can reach me easily by emailing GamingOnLinux directly. Find me on Mastodon.
See more from me
The comments on this article are closed.
18 comments
Page: «2/2
  Go to:

Cyril Dec 16, 2017
Quoting: monnef
Quoting: stretch611Also, for those that are interested, the devs have not participated in and have no plans to discount factorio during any sales. There is no reason to wait for a sale, or you will be disappointed.

Thanks for the info, removed it from my wishlist. 20euro is a bit too much for me for such poorly looking game (also I dislike they stance on sales, so I am not supporting it).

It's a bit hard i think, but i didn't know about their state about sales. And i don't dislike their logic there, so it's still on my wishlist.
Liam Dawe Dec 16, 2017
Quoting: monnef
Quoting: stretch611Also, for those that are interested, the devs have not participated in and have no plans to discount factorio during any sales. There is no reason to wait for a sale, or you will be disappointed.

Thanks for the info, removed it from my wishlist. 20euro is a bit too much for me for such poorly looking game (also I dislike they stance on sales, so I am not supporting it).
It's an unfinished game. People buying it are supporting them, I applaud their no sale approach right now so people who support them earlier arent paying more than those later.

As for the way it looks, i think its great. If you turn your nose up in this way, youre likely missing out on a lot of good games.
Ehvis Dec 16, 2017
View PC info
  • Supporter Plus
Quoting: monnefThanks for the info, removed it from my wishlist. 20euro is a bit too much for me for such poorly looking game (also I dislike they stance on sales, so I am not supporting it).

You can also argue that doing sales devalues the game. Especially if you see those AAA games go 50% off two months after release. Not a good way to reward those that paid full price for the product.
TheSHEEEP Dec 16, 2017
View PC info
  • Supporter Plus
Quoting: monnef
Quoting: stretch611Also, for those that are interested, the devs have not participated in and have no plans to discount factorio during any sales. There is no reason to wait for a sale, or you will be disappointed.

Thanks for the info, removed it from my wishlist. 20euro is a bit too much for me for such poorly looking game (also I dislike they stance on sales, so I am not supporting it).
First of all, the game looks pretty wonderful. Once you are really automating things, it's like looking at your very own tiny little clockwork going in motion. And killing aliens.
If you like strategy games that involve planning in a very big scale and the trailer doesn't blow your mind, something might be wrong. You may want to visit an ophthalmologist.

Second, the game offers way more value for money than 99% of 30+€ games. We're talking about hundreds of hours here, if the gameplay is for you. If that is not worth 20€ to you, you quite simply should be ashamed of yourself.

Third, I get the impression you are simply not a gamer but prefer to look at things mindlessly. I recommend going to the movies instead or an art gallery, though good luck getting far with your attitude on pricing. At least cinemas where I've lived do not really offer sales.

And finally, nobody likes beggars.


Last edited by TheSHEEEP on 16 December 2017 at 2:50 pm UTC
stretch611 Dec 16, 2017
I would like to point out that the trailers of the game were created with the older graphics. (I think they are the current low-res mode.)

Many of the graphic changes over time has been laid out in their Friday Fun Facts (the weekly dev update.) So here are a few links of those changes (most links have before and after.)



Edit: Found this one too: Terrain and Logo


Last edited by stretch611 on 16 December 2017 at 7:00 pm UTC
monnef Dec 17, 2017
Quoting: liamdaweAs for the way it looks, i think its great. If you turn your nose up in this way, youre likely missing out on a lot of good games.

I don't mind the old school look (heck, I love Minecraft, played that for hundreds of hours, even wrote few mods), but 20euro for a gamble I'll love gameplay is too much for me. Just compare it to other games - Ark was recently for 23euro and it's a AAA-like game (has its issues, but is great looking, 3D, tons of content - long progression, many dinosaurs, lovely map, multiplayer); Overwatch is now for 20euro and it is an AAA game - piles of content, everything 3D, very polished, game being actively developed for over a year and still getting regularly new heroes, maps and events.

And to be frank I don't trust indie devs much, I don't have very good experience with them "supporting" their games - Darkest dungeon is utterly broken for me (can't even get to the game from menu) and support is ignoring me for a year now (they responded only the first time that they are handing it to devs). Recently I have bough Spacechem and again, broken. I wrote to a support, but judging from unanswered questions on Steam to similar issues to mine I am very skeptical.
Ketil Dec 17, 2017
There is a free demo if you don't know if you will like it. It is quite limited compared to the full version though. Full version is mostly generated infinite world based on your generation parameters, while the demo is the first two levels of a campaign factorio also has. The campaign has limited land and teaches you the most basic things.
no_information_here Dec 22, 2017
Quoting: 14Even though I break my rule at times, I really hate buying EA games.
I hate buying E.A. games as well. However, I have made a few (very few) exceptions. This was one of them. I certainly don't regret it.

For any game, you need to read reviews and look into the quality of the dev. Don't just lump all devs together as being the same. However, if the game does not look appealing to you, don't buy it. Just because some of us think it is excellent doesn't mean you should buy it.
While you're here, please consider supporting GamingOnLinux on:

Reward Tiers: Patreon. Plain Donations: PayPal.

This ensures all of our main content remains totally free for everyone! Patreon supporters can also remove all adverts and sponsors! Supporting us helps bring good, fresh content. Without your continued support, we simply could not continue!

You can find even more ways to support us on this dedicated page any time. If you already are, thank you!
The comments on this article are closed.