I’m basically just working, playing, and occasionally doing home improvements along with the regular daily/weekly chores. The big work project isn’t at a point yet where I can really talk about it much (not a matter of secrecy, more a matter of being in a state of flux) and chores are boring, so let’s talk about games.
(more…)Category: Games
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Hello, Summertime
It’s been a slow posting month, probably not helped by the fact that I’m essentially on a Satisfactory hiatus. (I’m expecting 1.0 to drop early in autumn but we don’t know for sure yet. Whenever it does, it’ll break all existing saves, so… why bother?) Is it time to find another game to post about? Maybe. Or perhaps I should post about a variety of games, since that’s actually what I’m playing now. Honkai Star Rail, Gems of War, Titan Quest (yes, the precursor to Grim Dawn which I like far better), FFXIV (some day I’ll reach level 50)… I’m sure there are others I’m forgetting.
Oh right, Unicorn Overlord, which I keep trying to gel with and just can’t for whatever reason. That reason is probably something to do with the fact that most of the actual strategy is in setting up “unit” compositions because once you’re in a battle scenario the outcome of any given clash is predetermined. How exciting. How fun. Let’s play 12-directional rock-paper-scissors without even the fun of directly controlling the output of a combat clash.
Anyway. Living in the new house is still going great aside from the screeching dishwasher, and while it’s a bit annoying to need to don two layers every time the AC comes on… I’ll take that over the AC simply having almost no effect (and being too loud to hear yourself think, on top of that).
Work is progressing along. The odds are good that I won’t be getting any time off for the next few months as we have a big migration looming. Yay? We’ll see.
Anyway. I hope your summertime is cool and cozy.
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Satisfactory – Phactory Phase 3
I sent the Phase 3 materials shipment up the Space Elevator a few play sessions ago. So, how has my overall approach to this new save (the “New Clear Plan”) gone so far?
In short: A qualified success.
There’s a neat light show when you send the Space Elevator up, but capturing the best single instant in a screenshot is too tricky for my skills. In long: Well, let’s dig into that…
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Satisfactory: Roundabout Mk2
So there I was, building a rail line through the jungle, when I reached a point on the map at which it made sense to place a roundabout. As I started in on the build process I’ve used a couple dozen times now (type ’roundabout’ into the search field to see other posts about the development of this process) I realized that the requirements of the approach and exit placement weren’t going to fit the location. I needed an alternative.
At middle right you can see the connected approach line from the north, but getting that to bear right into the westbound exit was going to be a nightmare. Never mind joining up the northbound exit, the stub for which is shown at lower right. At first I thought of doing a criss-cross interchange but I prefer having the option of letting a train loop back around if necessary at every one of these intersections. Still, I figured that an interchange would probably fit this particular location better than a roundabout so I went looking for information on how best to build one.
I didn’t find that. Instead, I found guidance on how to build a different style of roundabout, approaching it as more of a modified diamond than a rounded square. The difference is largely academic in the long run, but the practice of building it is definitely trickier.
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Satisfactory: Progress Without Progress
Here’s a summary of how today’s hours upon hours of Satisfactory went for me, in order to illustrate how sometimes you move forward by moving sideways… a lot.
Please enjoy this view from hundreds of meters above sea level as I descend from a very, very high drop pod crash site. My hands were sweaty the entire time, yes, thankyouverymuch. I can’t progress further in the game without clearing Phase 3, which means I need to make Modular Engines and Automated Wiring to feed to the Space Elevator.
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Satisfactory: Oilands Ho!
As previously noted, this new save sees me starting out where most brand new players start (yet I never have): The southwestern grassy starting field. It has upsides and drawbacks, all of which I took into account before making my fateful, game-changing decision.
(Okay, there’s one upside I didn’t think entirely through beforehand. I’ll get to that.)
Along the west coast of the game map (Satisfactory uses a fixed game map, it’s the same for everyone for every play through) one finds the second best concentration of crude oil in the game. I know there’s an official, agreed-upon term for the site but I’ve always called it The Oilands.
I have built a plastic-and-rubber factory on that particular crude oil node at least three times before. I think I have the hang of it by this point. Islands, with oil, get it? Of course you do, and you wish you’d thought of it first.
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