Factorio for the iPad?

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brunzenstein
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Factorio for the iPad?

Post by brunzenstein »

That would open a market for this product which could pale the current sales spike on steam.
Surely a task but for a mostly keyboard driven game but certainly not impossible giving that the newest generation of iPad & iPhone have pressure sensitive screens and open enough possibilities to outpace a keyboard driven game by more the a mile.
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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by brunzenstein »

Times have changed since 2014 thought...

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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by daniel34 »

brunzenstein wrote:[...] open enough possibilities to outpace a keyboard driven game by more the a mile.
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Name one task in Factorio that will be easier to do on a (pressure sensitive) touchscreen than with keyboard and mouse.

Also, quote from the thread linked by sillyfly:
slpwnd wrote:This might happen but not before 1.0. We focus on PC for now.
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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by brunzenstein »

daniel34 wrote: Name one task in Factorio that will be easier to do on a (pressure sensitive) touchscreen than with keyboard and mouse.
Being able to play Factorio (on) mobile opens a world hundredfold times bigger then being bound to the stationary PC - playable everywhere -, on the bus, train, waiting in line at the supermarket or for a girlfriend at McDonalds or simply in the park waiting for the summer. Also ideal for state employee :D

On top of that - Factorio could be easily and transparent synchronized via iCloud between iPhone / iPad and Mac you could start on any machine with exactly the setting you left the former.
Given that the Macintosh world is notorious and historically very weak in games this can be (like the excellent War of mIne proves, which is playable on all platforms including mobile of any branch) being a smash hit
Last edited by brunzenstein on Tue Mar 22, 2016 12:39 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by ratchetfreak »

brunzenstein wrote:
daniel34 wrote: Name one task in Factorio that will be easier to do on a (pressure sensitive) touchscreen than with keyboard and mouse.
Being able to play Factorio (on) mobile opens a world hundredfold times bigger then being bound to the stationary PC - playable everywhere -, on the bus, train, waiting in line at the supermarket or for a girlfriend at McDonalds or simply in the park waiting for the summer. Also ideal for state employee :D

On top of that - Factorio could be easily and transparent synchronized via iCloud between iPhone / iPad and Mac you could start on any machine with exactly the setting you left the former.
That's not answering the question.

What gameplay mechanic is easier on a mobile device than with mouse+keyboard.

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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by brunzenstein »

ratchetfreak wrote:
What gameplay mechanic is easier on a mobile device than with mouse+keyboard.
I cannot tell befor I tried it :P - but the clever polish producers of "This war of Mine" (won several top-awards) showed how a keyboard driven PC game can be excellent being brought to the mobile world.

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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by daniel34 »

Your argument was that a pressure sensitive touchscreen does outpace a keyboard driven game by a mile. It was about the input method. I can see how Factorio could work on a touchscreen with greatly reduced functionality, but it will always be easier and faster to control Factorio with keyboard and mouse.

Example: with a transport belt in hand you can do the following actions:
(1) run around
(2) run around while laying belts (in a straight line nonetheless)
(3) rotate the transport belt in hand
(4) put the transport belt back (Q key)
(5) remove other buildings on the map / mine stuff (trees)
(6) open the map
(7) open the inventory
(8) board a train / car
(9) shoot stuff with C / SPACE
(10) put it in a chest/machine by CTRL+click (half of it with CTRL+right-click)
(11) drop it on the ground with Z
(12) collect other items with F
(13) enable ALT-view
(14) ... pretty sure there are more ...
Now tell me how you would do all these events with a touchpad instead of keyboard and mouse. Just to differentiate between (1) and (2) would be difficult. I don't know how (9) fast combat could be implemented. How would you implement (3), (11) and (12)?

You would probably have to remove some of that functionality and add GUI buttons to open map / inventory / technology screen. Or a context menu that pops up when you click on an entity to select info (hovering over it), remove (right-click), open (left-click), take all (CTRL-click), take half (CTRL-right-click), ...

How would I run down a row of furnaces and remove all of them? On a keyboard I just keep the right mouse button pressed and run along them. Same for taking the contents of all of them: run along them and CTRL+click (or right-click for half) every furnace.

Then there is the problem of accuracy: When working on a pc/laptop with mouse I can easily work on my oil refining system and lay pipes down where I want them. But on a tablet/smartphone I'd have to zoom in and be very careful where I touch or I suddenly find water in my oil because I laid down the pipe one tile off target.

Not to say this cannot be done somehow, but with less functionality and speed/comfort. I would probably stick to keyboard and mouse. I can even see this easier to control with a controller (I have done so once, for half an hour, wasn't too bad) than with a touchscreen.
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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by brunzenstein »

All this can be done on a touch sensitive touchscreen - given with some hassle.
Look:
I run Factorio (most probably not so convenient as you) on a MacBook and use no mouse but the build in trackpad - so no big difference - probably not as effective as with a mouse but it works.
And with a BT keyboard attached to a iPad or iPhone all your arguments fall flat down on her bellies :-)
Everything in life is a evaluation of benefits and drawbacks - so the benefit of a hundredfold sales possibly outweighs its given drawbacks - as I mentioned: look at "This war of Mine" - really not comfortable on my iPhone, but people love it still and sales sales skyrocket

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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by daniel34 »

brunzenstein wrote:And with a BT keyboard attached to a iPad or iPhone all your arguments fall flat down on her bellies :-)
I wanted to include a paragraph about convertibles and keyboard docks, but
Brunzenstein wrote:playable everywhere -, on the bus, train, waiting in line at the supermarket or for a girlfriend at McDonalds or simply in the park waiting for the summer.
I thought you would argue about having to take a keyboard with you. (And what about smartphones?)

I actually do have a cheap 10.1" Netbook that runs Factorio fairly well (except it is 32-bit and 1024x600 display) and do take it with me ocasionally on the train / outside in general. The difference is that when the game is ported to tablets then keyboard and mouse/touchpad are not mandatory anymore, but optional.
So Factorio has to provide an input method for touchscreen only, as most new buyers won't have/use it with a keyboard because it will be branded by the public as 'mobile' game.
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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by Rockstar04 »

None of this even takes in the fact that the game would have to be mostly rewritten (in a different programming language) to run on an iOS device

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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by brunzenstein »

Rockstar04 wrote:None of this even takes in the fact that the game would have to be mostly rewritten (in a different programming language) to run on an iOS device
This is true. But there is no free lunch

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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by ShizukaMiyuki »

brunzenstein wrote:
ratchetfreak wrote:
What gameplay mechanic is easier on a mobile device than with mouse+keyboard.
I cannot tell befor I tried it :P - but the clever polish producers of "This war of Mine" (won several top-awards) showed how a keyboard driven PC game can be excellent being brought to the mobile world.
The game "This war of mine" can easily be ported to mobile, due to the simplicity of its controls, however for Factorio going to mobile? I have concerns which can make this game either its little brother acting as a minimalistic version of Factorio where some features are left out due to limitations, or it not being ported to mobile at all.
1) Complex controls, as you mentioned pressure sensitivity are now a thing with Apple with the exception of a few Android phones, but how about most android products? does that mean only people with Apple products of a certain version can buy the game? and people with pressure sensitivity feature present in a few android phones can play it?
2) Screen Clutter, so since there's no keyboard, I imagine the game will have things such as an analog stick, this also means on-screen UI bottons for things such as Inventory, Production Menu, Research Menu, Map, Menu Button, Shoot button, etc. the game on PC itself already has a lot of screen UI.
3) Screen Size, sure I know you specified it on an Ipad for a reason, but if its on the app store, its available on most Apple devices including the Iphone, add that up with the screen clutter and you get a messy screen and accidentally pushing buttons.

I know its possible with a bit of creative thinking to over come these challenges, but lets face it, porting this will only be a lost for the developers in-terms of money, since most people would rather play a game like this with the comfort of a keyboard and mouse.
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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by brunzenstein »

ShizukaMiyuki wrote: I know its possible with a bit of creative thinking to over come these challenges, but lets face it, porting this will only be a lost for the developers in-terms of money, since most people would rather play a game like this with the comfort of a keyboard and mouse.
Your statement hold some hard facts - anyhow - it would have been nice to have had... :D

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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by ShizukaMiyuki »

brunzenstein wrote:
ShizukaMiyuki wrote: I know its possible with a bit of creative thinking to over come these challenges, but lets face it, porting this will only be a lost for the developers in-terms of money, since most people would rather play a game like this with the comfort of a keyboard and mouse.
Your statement hold some hard facts - anyhow - it would have been nice to have had... :D
Yeah, even I wouldn't mind if any game can be on any platform, as long as the people who develop it can cope with a possible financial risk. :)
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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by tigar »

the whole "functionality has to be gotten rid of" / "adding ui buttons" is kinda wrong granted it would be easy but what about gestures?

say on my windows 10 tablet i set up a series of gestures to replace the lack of a keyboard/mouse granted its not as fast as a kb+m or gamepad(steam controller specifically) but i can still do the following

play on a world at home
realize i have to go to work
upload save to tablet
continue to play until i arrive at work

granted i might not be able to instantly switch from placing items to fighting biters back to placing assemblers instead it takes several gestures but still its nice playing

also just to say i bound fire and alt fire to volume up/volume down and a single tap is place object in hand and a press and hold for 2 seconds is open inventory where as press and holding 2 buttons is right click(to destroy and such)

im sure that if anyone ever did make a wrapper/rewrite for factorion on ios similar functionality could be added until then just get an android/windows tablet
oh and just to note although factorio's linux version can be made to run on a heavily modified android phone/tablet the stability is far from perfect(atleast my attempts anyway)

now to get it on xbox one and ps4 that be fun might be something interesting to look at i think especially xbox one considering its now just windows 10(or so they say)

anyway i do hope too one day see an ios version of factorio

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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by ShizukaMiyuki »

tigar wrote:the whole "functionality has to be gotten rid of" / "adding ui buttons" is kinda wrong granted it would be easy but what about gestures?

say on my windows 10 tablet i set up a series of gestures to replace the lack of a keyboard/mouse granted its not as fast as a kb+m or gamepad(steam controller specifically) but i can still do the following

play on a world at home
realize i have to go to work
upload save to tablet
continue to play until i arrive at work

granted i might not be able to instantly switch from placing items to fighting biters back to placing assemblers instead it takes several gestures but still its nice playing

also just to say i bound fire and alt fire to volume up/volume down and a single tap is place object in hand and a press and hold for 2 seconds is open inventory where as press and holding 2 buttons is right click(to destroy and such)

im sure that if anyone ever did make a wrapper/rewrite for factorion on ios similar functionality could be added until then just get an android/windows tablet
oh and just to note although factorio's linux version can be made to run on a heavily modified android phone/tablet the stability is far from perfect(atleast my attempts anyway)

now to get it on xbox one and ps4 that be fun might be something interesting to look at i think especially xbox one considering its now just windows 10(or so they say)

anyway i do hope too one day see an ios version of factorio
true gestures can help, but again would people buy a game from the app/play store that is available and more convenient on PC? sure a few may buy it, but its more of a bite the bullet situation if they do, although... it would be awesome if save files can be shared PC to IOS/Android, if so I would buy it, but that's just me.
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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by brunzenstein »

ShizukaMiyuki wrote:
tiger wrote: anyway i do hope too one day see an cos version of factorio
true gestures can help, but again would people buy a game from the app/play store that is available and more convenient on PC? sure a few may buy it, but its more of a bite the bullet situation if they do, although... it would be awesome if save files can be shared PC to IOS/Android, if so I would buy it, but that's just me.
If you give the App store (also on the stock exchange) a good hard look then you will find out that:

- PC / Mac desktops in private use are soon being retried
- the market for mobile apps explodes
- Apple is traditionally weak on games so the App user are searching for anything which looks like decent quality in that very segment.
And the offer is very sparse indeed.
- Apple is hosting a section with independent games
- PC games ported to iOs, like "this war of mine", "Civilization" as well as also heavily keyboard dependent "Transistor" are enourmous successful in sales
- Factorio sales would also quadruple if it would be available to the gigantic iOS market
- Apple could easily give anybody on the planet a free iPhone and still would make billions with the sale via iTunes & the App store.

I know what I'm talking about - I use Mac's since 1984
Last edited by brunzenstein on Fri Mar 25, 2016 2:58 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by ratchetfreak »

brunzenstein wrote:
ShizukaMiyuki wrote:
tiger wrote: anyway i do hope too one day see an ios version of factorio
true gestures can help, but again would people buy a game from the app/play store that is available and more convenient on PC? sure a few may buy it, but its more of a bite the bullet situation if they do, although... it would be awesome if save files can be shared PC to IOS/Android, if so I would buy it, but that's just me.
If you give the App store (also on the stock exchange) a good hard look then you will find out that:

- PC / Mac desktops in private use are soon being retried
- the market for mobile apps explodes
- Apple is traditionally weak on games so the App user are searching for anything which looks like decent quality in that very segment. And the offer is very sparse indeed.
- Factorio sales would quadruple if it would be available to the gigantic iOS market
- Apple could easily give anybody on the planet a free iPhone and still would make billions with the sale via iTunes & the App store.

I know what I'm talking about - I use Mac's since 1984
my2cents

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But game performance on apple hardware is bad. Their openGL support is several versions out of date they refuse to add Vulkan support and instead try to force Metal on everyone.

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Re: Factorio for the iPad?

Post by brunzenstein »

ratchetfreak wrote: But game performance on apple hardware is bad. Their openGL support is several versions out of date they refuse to add Vulkan support and instead try to force Metal on everyone.
Maybe, maybe not., If others can cope with that, then the programmers of Factorio surely can as well.
Look at "Minecraft", "Civilization", "Grim Fandango" or even "Transitor" a extreme hungry graphic resource eater and normally keyboard dependent runs without hickup on any iPad or iPhone

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