This is an accessibility mod for the popular game Factorio. The goal of this mod is to make the game completely accessible to the blind and visually impaired.
This "read me" file covers the basics of the mod, which include the installation guide, the mod controls, the FAQ and links to other information sources.
The game can be purchased from Factorio.com or from Steam.
After purchase, you can create an account or log in at Factorio.com.
If you have a steam key, you can have it connected with your account, or you can log in with Steam directly.
From Factorio.com, either from the main page or the downloads page, you can download the latest stable release.
To install the full version, follow the instructions below for the .zip file install.
To update to the most recent patch, follow the instructions below for the patch install.
Note: If you have done a full installation using the .zip instructions, there is no need to follow the patch install directions until a new patch comes out.
- Download "Factorio Access.zip"
- Open the .zip file and copy its contents
- Navigate to the folder you have Factorio installed. It should already contain a /bin folder, a /data folder, etc.
- Paste the files into your factorio folder
- That's it! You are now ready to run launcher.exe in administrator mode
- If you are a jaws user, you may want to copy Factorio.jkm from the .zip into your JAWS settings folder, found in your user's AppData folder. An example file path is
C:\Users\Crimso\AppData\Roaming\Freedom Scientific\JAWS\2022\Settings\enu\
- Download control.lua, data.lua, and config.ini
- Navigate to your Factorio folder
- Go to mods/FactorioAccess_0.0.1
- Paste both control.lua and data.lua in this folder
- Navigate back to your Factorio folder
- Go to the config folder
- Paste config.ini into this folder
- All done! You can now run launcher.exe in administrator mode to play the game with the new patch
Movement: W A S D
Note: When you change direction, your character doesn't immediately move a tile in that direction. Think of it like turning your head before taking a step.
Change movement mode: CONTROL + W
Note the 3 movement types are as follows:
1- Telestep: Press a direction to turn in that direction, then continue pressing in that direction to move.
2- Step-By-Walk: This mode is similar to Telestep, however the player character will physically take steps in the direction chosen. The biggest difference is footsteps.
3- Smooth-Walking: In this mode the character will move similarly to in a sighted game. The player will be notified if they run into something, but otherwise will not be notified of entities they are passing. Very fast, and great for getting around!
Get entity description: L, for most entities such as buildings
Get building status: RIGHT BRACKET, for applicable buildings when your hand is empty
Open building's menu: LEFT BRACKET
Mine or pick up: X
Open player inventory: E
Rotate: R
Note: If you have something in your hand, you will rotate that. Otherwise you will rotate the building your cursor is over.
Additional Note: The first time you press the rotate key, it will simply say the direction a building is facing. Subsequent presses will actually rotate the building.
Picker tool: SHIFT + Q, brings to hand more of the selected item if you have it in your inventory
Nudge building by one tile: CONTROL + SHIFT + DIRECTION, where the direction is one of W A S D.
Pick up items on the ground or on top of nearby belts: F
Copy building settings: SHIFT + RIGHT BRACKET on the building, with empty hand
Paste building settings: SHIFT + LEFT BRACKET on the building, with empty hand
Quickly collect the entire output of a building: CONTROL + LEFT BRACKET on the building, with empty hand
Quickly collect half of the entire output of a building: CONTROL + RIGHT BRACKET on the building, with empty hand
Speak cursor coordinates: K
Cursor mode: I
Move cursor freely in cursor mode: W A S D Jump cursor to character: J
Teleport player to cursor: SHIFT + T
Increase cursor size to examine a larger area: CONTROL + I
Decrease cursor size to examine a smaller area: CONTROL + SHIFT + I
Note: You must be in cursor mode for the size of the cursor to make any difference.
Open player inventory: E
Navigate inventory slots: W A S D
Get slot coordinates: K
Get selected item info: L
Pick up selected item to hand: LEFT BRACKET
Add selected item to quickbar: CONTROL + NUMBER KEY, for keys 1 to 9 and 0.
Switch to other menus: TAB
Close menus: E
Read item in hand: Q
Get info on item in hand: L
Empty the hand to your inventory: SHIFT + Q
Picker tool: Grab in hand more of the item in front of you, if you have it: SHIFT+ Q
Grab item in hand from the quickbar: NUMBER KEY, for set up quickbar slots
Place building: LEFT BRACKET, for items that support it
Toggle build lock for continuous building: CONTROL + B, while switching cursor modes and emptying the hand also disables it.
Rotate: R
Note: If you have something in your hand, you will rotate that. Otherwise you will rotate the building your cursor is over.
Additional Note: The first time you press the rotate key, it will simply say the direction a building is facing. Subsequent presses will actually rotate the building.
Drop 1 unit of the item onto the ground or onto a belt or inside an applicable building: Z
Insert 1 stack of the item in hand where applicable: CONTROL + LEFT BRACKET
Insert half a stack of the item in hand where applicable: CONTROL + RIGHT BRACKET
Scan for nearby entities: END
Repeat scanned entry: HOME
Navigate scanned entity list: PAGE UP and PAGE DOWN
Switch between different instances of the same entity: SHIFT + PAGE UP and SHIFT + PAGE DOWN
Change scanned category: CONTROL + PAGE UP and CONTROL + PAGE DOWN
Change Sorting mode for scanned list: N and SHIFT + N
Move cursor to scanned target in cursor mode: CONTROL + HOME
Teleport to the scanned target outside of cursor mode: CONTROL + HOME
Open Fast Travel Menu: V
Select a fast travel point: W and S
Select an option: A and D
Confirm an option: LEFT BRACKET
Note: Options include Teleporting to a saved point, renaming a saved point, deleting a saved point, and creating a new point.
Travel freely from building to building as if they were laid out in a grid pattern.
Open the BStride menu with CONTROL + S, and explore your factory with the following controls:
First, select a direction using WASD
Next navigate the list of adjacent buildings with the two perpendicular directions. For instance, if you are going North, then use the A and D keys to select a building from the list.
Last, confirm your selection by pressing the direction you started with. For instance, if I wanted to go to the 2nd item in the northern list I would hit W to go north, D to select option 2, and W again to confirm.
Once you find your target, press LEFT BRACKET to teleport your character to the building.
Warnings Menu: P
Navigate woarnings menu: WASD to navigate a single range
Switch Range: TAB
Teleport cursor to Building with warning: LEFT BRACKET
Close Warnings menu: E
Time of day and current research: T
Save game: F1
Set quickbar #: CONTROL + Any number
Pick from quickbar: Any number
Recalibrate: CONTROL + END
Change tabs within a menu: TAB and SHIFT + TAB
Navigate inventory slots: W A S D
Coordinates of current inventory slot: K
Selected item information: L
Grab item in hand: LEFT BRACKET
Smart Insert/Smart Withdrawal: SHIFT + LEFT BRACKET
Note: This will insert an item stack, or withdraw an item stack from a building. It is smart because it will decide the proper inventory to send the item to. For instance, smart inserting coal into a furnace will attempt to put it in the fuel category, as opposed to the input category.
Multi stack smart transfer: CONTROL + LEFT BRACKET
Note: When you have a building inventory open, pressing CONTROL + LEFT BRACKET for a selected item in an inventory will cause an attempt to transfer the entire supply of this item to the other inventory. Non-transferred items will remain in their original inventory. Similarly, pressing CONTROL + RIGHT BRACKET will try to transfer half of the entire supply of the selected item.
Note 2: When you have a building inventory open and select an empty slot, pressing CONTROL + LEFT BRACKET will cause an attempt to transfer the full contents of the selected inventory into the other inventory. This is useful for easily filling up labs and assembling machines with everything applicable from your own inventory instead of searching for items individually. Non-transferred items will remain in their original inventory. Similarly, pressing CONTROL + RIGHT BRACKET on an empty slot will try to transfer half of the entire supply of every item.
Modify chest inventory slot limits: PAGE UP or PAGE DOWN.
Note: You can hold SHIFT to modify limits by increments of 5 instead of 1 and you can hold CONTROL to set the limit to maximum or zero.
Navigate recipe groups: W S
Navigate recipes within a group: A D
Check crafting components required: K
Read recipe product description: L
Craft 1 item: LEFT BRACKET
Craft 5 items: RIGHT BRACKET
Craft as many items as possible: SHIFT + LEFT BRACKET
Navigate queue: W A S D
Unqueue 1 item: LEFT BRACKET
Unqueue 5 items: RIGHT BRACKET
Unqueue all items: SHIFT + LEFT BRACKET
Select category: LEFT BRACKET or S
Jump to previous category level: W
Select category from currently selected tier: A and D
Q: Does this mod work with the steam version?
A: Not yet, however if you buy the game on Steam you can use your product key to redeem the standalone version on factorio.com
Q: Does this mod work with the demo?
A: No, in fact no mods work with the demo.
Q: Can this mod run the tutorial?
A: Not yet. There are plans to create a custom tutorial, and to make the built in tutorial accessible, but these things are still weeks away. In the meantime, there is some amount of in-game help via item descriptions, while the wiki and this page are the main information sources.
Q: How much of the game is accessible right now? A: All basic interactions with buildings and items are supported. With the recently added support for fluid handling, you can now progress until the late game, which takes dozens of hours. Some iconic optional features such as trains, combat, and multiplayer, are still being worked on. Some unique features have been added to increase accessibility. More about this can be found on the wiki.
Q: My game crashed, what gives?
A: This mod is currently still in early access. Bugs are normal and expected. Please post about it in the issues channel of Discord.
Q: Do I have to pay to use the mod?
A: The mod is and always will be free. The game itself costs $30 on Factorio.com and prices can vary per country on Steam.
For information about the game, such as the resources, machines, and systems, please check out our own Factorio Access Wiki.
Factorio also has an official wiki.
If your question wasn't answered here, please check out our Discord server, and ask your question there.
If you want to help others or discuss the development of the mod or the wiki, feel free to again join us at the Discord server.
An updated changelog can be found here.
While this mod is completely free for all, I am a full time student working on this mod in my free time, thus any and all support is greatly appreciated.
If you are so inclined, you can donate at my Patreon.