Factorio and Satisfactory are incredibly similar mechanically and share a similar gameplay loop; however visually they could not be less alike, today let’s put these games head to head and see who comes out on top.
Factorio (4/5)
Factorio employs retro 2D graphics to focus the attention on the gameplay itself, the sprite work is outstanding, and animations look fantastic, due to the simplistic nature of the graphics, Factorio is very accessible to a wide range of gamers, with most off the shelf computers bought within the last decade able to meet its very modest minimum requirements.
Satisfactory (4.5/5)
Satisfactory is a beautiful game that has benefitted dramatically from Coffee Stain Studio’s close relationship with Epic, and the year of exclusivity on Epic Game Store gave it the time and money it needed to grow without being beaten to death by steam reviewers, who often take a poor view of early access titles, especially those with teething troubles.
Overall it’s a polished product that is well optimised, unlike most early access/unreal engine survival games.
Due to the stunning high-quality 3D graphics, it’s a far beefier title, and while the minimum requirements are pretty standard in 2022, if you truly want to run it at its best, you need a dedicated GPU.
Factorio (5/5)/Satisfactory (4.5/5)
Factorio and Satisfactory offer fantastic gameplay loops that are very similar, while the first person focused gameplay of Satisfactory is more fun when playing with others, I prefer the top-down strategic view of Factorio when playing single-player, being able to view the bigger picture quickly, helps to create some truly amazing setups.
To be clear, Satisfactory allows almost identical setups, however, the organic nature of the Satisfactory maps makes this a far more difficult affair, unlike Factorio, which mostly takes place on brown/flat earth tiles.
Both titles offer a wide range of unlockable/researchable components and provide a good sense of progression.
Factorio (4/5)/Satisfactory (3/5)
Factorio and Satisfactory take different approaches to combat, while Factorio takes an RTS/Tower Defence approach, Satisfactory is a more traditional Unreal Engine first-person shooter experience, with enemies serving as a hindrance to exploration rather than being an actual threat to your base.
Neither system is perfect, but Factorio is the less tedious of the two, requiring players to plan out excursions into hostile territory while ensuring their base is well defended.
Factorio (5/5)/Satisfactory (5/5)
Factorio and Satisfactory are both fairly priced and offer amazing value for money, Satisfactory is slightly more expensive on Steam than Factorio, but on Epic Game Store it often goes on sale much cheaper than what would be possible on Steam due to the smaller storefront cut (12% vs 30%) and the availability of Epic Mega Sale Coupons.
No matter which game you buy or which storefront you buy it on, you will find incredible value for money with Factorio and Satisfactory.
Factorio (5/5)/Satisfactory (5/5)
Both Factorio and Satisfactory reap the full benefits of having large passionate communities, with a multitude of guides and modifications being made available to the community.
While Satisfactory has a slightly larger community due to its very successful year of exclusivity on Epic Game Store and subsequent Steam launch, both games frequently peak at 18k+ on Steam, ensuring there is ample opportunity to chat and play with likeminded individuals.
Factorio (23/25)/Satisfactory (22/25)
In conclusion, Factorio is a slightly better final product; however, with Factorio having finished its early access journey and Satisfactory still having around a year to go, it’s possible that this time next year, Satisfactory could dethrone the king of the genre.
For now, I fully recommend both games to anyone interested in base building and resource management games, and you can check out our full reviews of both titles below.
Is Satisfactory Worth Playing?