Satisfactory just landed its most significant update since launch, and it’s a game-changer for those wanting to play on Valve’s Steam Deck. Coffee Stain has packed this 1.1 patch with over a year’s worth of work, making the sprawling factory sim far more accessible outside of a traditional mouse-and-keyboard setup.
That changes with the 1.1 update. The menus now respond neatly to analogue stick input, so you don’t have to wrestle with the trackpad, and building conveyor belts or placing assemblers is much more natural. It’s still imperfect, the text can be tiny, and Satisfactory isn’t Deck verified yet, but it’s playable enough to relax on the couch or curl up in bed while crafting your dream factory. I’m already envisioning those late-night sessions.
The update doesn’t stop at controller improvements. The photo mode got a serious overhaul, adding new filters, effects, and even a “dolly mode” for smooth camera transitions or creating short videos, perfect for showing off your industrial masterpieces. Coffee Stain’s Steam announcement highlights this as a creativity boost for players who want to capture their builds in style.
Other gameplay tweaks include the ability to dismantle debris from crash sites for extra resources, and trains now require buffers at the end of tracks to prevent them from flying off. There are also new resource transportation options: priority mergers let you decide which inputs feed the belt first, and a throughput monitor tracks resources per minute rolling along conveyor belts. Pipelines can now be built with specific straight or curved sections, tidying up your factory’s plumbing.
Perhaps the most interesting addition is the personnel elevator. You can build one with multiple customizable floors and names, speeding up vertical travel inside your factory. I’m curious to see how the community pushes this feature. Will someone try to rival the iconic space elevator?
Coffee Stain also squeezed in numerous visual upgrades, quality-of-life improvements, and bug fixes. The studio admits this patch is partly in preparation for the game’s console debut later this year, but PC and Steam Deck players get to enjoy the bounty right now.
Patch Notes Highlights
- Controller support improved with analogue stick navigation for menus and building.
- Photo mode revamped with new filters, effects, poses, and dolly mode for video creation.
- Crash site debris can now be dismantled for resources.
- Trains require buffers at track ends to prevent overshooting.
- Resource belts get priority mergers and throughput monitors to optimize flow.
- Pipelines have dedicated straight and curved build modes for better layout.
- Buildable personnel elevator with multiple floors and customizable names.
- Various visual enhancements, bug fixes, and quality-of-life tweaks.
Wow, that’s a lot packed into one update. Have you tried the new Steam Deck controls or tested the personnel elevator yet? What’s your favorite new feature?
