Satisfactory Modding Documentation

Basics

Welcome to the Satisfactory Modding Documentation site!

Here you can find lots of information regarding modding Satisfactory, the factory-building sim by Coffee Stain Studios. Modding for Satisfactory is more established than you might think given how long the game has been out. There are already numerous mods released, and there are multiple methods by which you can develop new mods yourself.

In this doc we will mainly focus on the general community, ficsit.app and SML.

If you want to take part in this great community, we recommend you to join our Discord Server or the Ficsit.app Forums.

Modding Technologies

Satisfactory Mod Repository (aka. SMR aka. ficsit.app aka. FICSIT Augmentation Database)

The Satisfactory Mod Repository (SMR) is the most extensive collection of mods made for Satisfactory. It’s easy to upload a mod of your own or write a guide for other users. Uploaded content gets tested for malware and other potential issues. Visit ficsit.app to learn more.

Satisfactory Mod Loader (aka. SML)

Satisfactory Mod Loader (SML) allows Satisfactory to load additional content and is essential in making most mods work. SML provides two key features.

  • Loading and initializing mods directly from "pak" files

  • Loading and initializing native mods written in C++

If you’re looking to write your own mods, we suggest you start with making pak mods. Learn more in our beginners_guide/index guide.

Installing Mods

If you just want to install mods, this section of the guide is for you. First of all, you need to pick a mod that you want to install. Take a look on the SMR. Please note that there are multiple pages of mods you can navigate through with the arrows at the bottom right. You should always read the mod description because some mods have different installation instructions that need to be followed (such as KronosMod). If instructions aren’t followed, the mod won’t work. Most likely the mod you choose will require you to install SML; The purpose of this guide is to help you achieve that goal.

Installing SML

Visit ficsit.app and open up the menu through the menu button in the upper left hand corner. Select the SML Releases tab and click on the View button on the Latest Release box (top left). You should now get redirected to the SML GitHub page. Click on the xinput1_3.dll download link under Assets and save it to your downloads folder. Follow the instructions there to install, or follow the instructions below.

Now open up your Satisfactory installation folder. Most of the times its in your program folder under EpicGames/SatisfactoryEarlyAccess. Follow the folders Binaries and Win64. Now just copy the xinput1_3.dll into that folder.

Congratulations! The first step is done, installing SML. Now, start up Satisfactory and verify that a mods folder gets created in your Satisfactory directory.

Installing Your Mod of Choice

Ok, back to the mod itself. On ficsit.app you just go to your desired mod’s page, click on versions in the upper right left corner and then click download on your desired version. Usually this will be the top version on the list.

Always check to make sure that the SML Version column for the version you choose matches the version of SML you have installed. You can attempt to install the mod with mismatched versions, but most of the time, it won’t work.

Save the zip file to your downloads folder and then open it with a proper zip archive explorer like 7zip. It contains multiple files, which include some but not necessarily all of the following:

  • data.json

    Used by SMR to identify the mod. You don’t need to do anything with this file.

  • .pak files

    These files contain some mod logic, models, textures and so on. To install them you need to copy them again into the Satisfactory installation folder, but this time under Content\Paks Each .pak file should have a .sig file with a matching name. If there is no corresponding .sig-file for each of the .pak files in the archive, you’ll need to copy the .sig file used by Satisfactory (it’s called FactoryGame.sig) and rename it to match the .pak file you’re copying in. Repeat this step for each .pak file there is.

  • .sig files

    See above. Copy them to the same place as the .pak files if you haven’t done so already.

  • .dll files

    These files contain mod logic but interact with the game differently from .pak files and are installed differently. Copy these files into the mods folder. If you don’t have this folder, you forgot to run Satisfactory after installing SML.

Installing Mod Dependencies

Some mods, such as the Farming Mod, will require you to install other mods in order for them to work. Read the mod description on the SMR page to find out if the mod you’re installing requires any other mods! People will be very frustrated if you ask them for help and you haven’t followed this simple step.

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If you see this message, you forgot to install the Satisfactory Item Dictionary mod, a common dependency. Go find it on SMR and install it!