New Game: Small changes with big impact.

[zOldBulldog]

Getting close to 2000 hours and starting a New Game always annoyed me. Not the burner and manual stuff stage, the choosing of settings before start.

Thinking of what would improve the experience I came up with this small list:

1) Import settings button:
In the first New Game tab, it let's you import the settings from one of your game saves so that you can tweak them.

2) Spawn deposits size as specified amount, separate from map settings for ore generation :
The 0.17 map generation is much improved. But different people like to start the game in different ways. Some like to start small, some big and very orderly, which requires more resources. Being able to specify the desired size of the closest deposit to spawn (I. E: 50k, 250k, 1M, 2M... Just type the number) would let players start in whatever way we prefer. Of course do this for the 4 deposits at spawn (coal, iron, copper and stone) as well as the single closest oil and uranium deposits in the biter infested area.

3) Preview spawn marker : A simple indicator of where you will spawn. So obvious that I am surprised it is not already there.

4) Preview ore sizes : Just like in game, if you hover the mouse on a deposit... show its size.

Can we play without these? Of course yes. But these pretty simple changes would make Factorio far more enjoyable than it already ease. Being a developer myself I'd bet that 1, 3 and 4 combined would take less than a day to do and be a big improvement. 2 is a bit longer but not much, maybe a day or two?

[Qon]

1) Import settings button:
In the first New Game tab, it let's you import the settings from one of your game saves so that you can tweak them.

This is already a feature though :s
Just take the map exchange string...

[zOldBulldog]

1) Import settings button:
In the first New Game tab, it let's you import the settings from one of your game saves so that you can tweak them.

This is already a feature though :s
Just take the map exchange string...

That is an excellent way to share map settings between players, but it is a bit clunky for games in your save folder. It is much easier and intuitive to push a button, see a list of what is in your save folder, choose one, modify settings as needed.

[Maddhawk]

Basically, if I understand this right, you want to be able to save custom profiles for various settings, besides the default profiles that Wube has provided.

I.E.

"Jack's Mega Train Death World"

Patch frequency: 33%
Patch size: 600%
Patch richness: 600%

Enemy frequency: 400%
Enemy size: 600%

Research Que: Always On
etc. etc.

Where "Jack's Mega Train Death World" would be a custom map settings profile that could be selected from the same drop down menu of basic settings profiles? Is that what you mean?

[zOldBulldog]

Simpler than that.

I would like it if the first time I play a profile I get the default wube profile for that game type (normal, railworld, ribbon, deathworld, etc).

But if at any time I modify the settings for a game type, the changed set becomes ***my*** default profile for that game type.

No fuss, no new buttons, not even need to think. Just remember the last set of choices. Choose a preset, I get ***my*** defaults, hit play. Totally intuitive.

And if I later change it again ... that becomes the new default.

[Trebor]

No fuss, no new buttons, not even need to think. Just remember the last set of choices. Choose a preset, I get ***my*** defaults, hit play.

Nice, but I suggest one new button "Reset defaults", to reset back to original default values.

[5thHorseman]

Basically, if I understand this right, you want to be able to save custom profiles for various settings, besides the default profiles that Wube has provided.
I.E.
"Jack's Mega Train Death World" would be a custom map settings profile that could be selected from the same drop down menu of basic settings profiles? Is that what you mean?

This is what I would like.

I would like it if the first time I play a profile I get the default wube profile for that game type (normal, railworld, ribbon, deathworld, etc).
But if at any time I modify the settings for a game type, the changed set becomes ***my*** default profile for that game type.

I don't like this idea as it changes what "Railworld" is. Even if there is a way to restore to defaults, it will cause confusion when two people are discussing Rail worlds and neither can actually remember what the defaults are.

[zOldBulldog]

No fuss, no new buttons, not even need to think. Just remember the last set of choices. Choose a preset, I get ***my*** defaults, hit play.

Nice, but I suggest one new button "Reset defaults", to reset back to original default values.

Yes, of course.