Arknights: Endfield Development Team shared thoughts on the factory system

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Story Highlights

  • The devs are planning on diversifying the factory system.
  • The game’s blueprint sharing system is there to help with difficulty.

I was reading an interview with the Arknights: Endfield team over on Automation West – huge props to them for getting this! They talked with RUA, a level designer, and Ryan, the lead planner, and the main thing they discussed was the factory system in the game. They really dove into how they were thinking about it, and I wanted to share what they had to say.

Arknights: Endfield is a new game based on the popular 2019 mobile game, Arknights. Developed by Hypergryph and published by GRYPHLINE, it’s a free-to-play action RPG that also includes elements of factory simulation.

What are the devs saying about the game’s factory system?

Automation West wanted to know what the developers thought about player feedback regarding the game’s factory system. The developers responded by sharing data showing that, early in the game, players spend more time exploring and building factories than they do fighting.

As you move further into the game, you’ll fight more often. However, building your base and exploring the world remain important parts of the experience.

We were really surprised by how many players immediately dove into building factories and spent a long time doing it from the beginning of the game.

The developers were asked for their thoughts on the factory system. The game design team, with its members’ strong gaming backgrounds, understood it pretty quickly. However, some people from other teams initially found it challenging.

The developers said that during testing, experienced players often helped those who were struggling by sharing advice and techniques, creating a collaborative learning environment.

They described starting to play as similar to slowly getting addicted to a game after your friends introduce you to it (laughing). They emphasized that playing with others makes it much easier to get invested.

The developers’ view on the blueprint system

The developers have confirmed that players are welcome to use blueprints created by others. They explained that the game’s Automated Industry Complex (AIC) is massive, encompassing everything from building bases to setting up power, mining operations, and even ziplines – so there’s plenty of room for everyone’s creations.

They pointed out that there are lots of ways to approach this, and you’re not locked into any single method. Even if you use pre-made tools to speed things up, you can always return to the more detailed work of research and design whenever you want. This means you can enjoy that creative process at your own pace and revisit it as often as you like.

The future of factory building

When asked about the future of factory systems in Endfield, the developers explained that they won’t simply get harder as you progress. Instead, they’re designed with a focus on variety rather than a steady climb in difficulty.

For example, in places like Valley IV and Wuling, industrial expertise doesn’t simply build up over time. As these areas evolve and are further studied, various new paths for growth become apparent.

They explained that instead of just adding more complicated features, they’re aiming to offer a wider variety of experiences by exploring different gameplay options. For example, they plan to introduce new and engaging factory gameplay in Wuling and hope players will be excited to try it.

Final thoughts

I really enjoyed the interview! It was fascinating to get a peek inside the developers’ heads – to see how they’re thinking about both the game itself and us, the players. They talked about how they’re trying to get the difficulty and variety just right, making it a really delicate balancing act. Now I’m super curious to see what they come up with in the future patches and how they plan to keep things fresh!

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2026-03-12 09:42