- Admiration for the hack’s ingenuity and dedication
- “Super cool” – pema99
- “Yeah, no notes. It's remarkable.” – jvanderbot
- “Madman. Brilliant.” – lowbloodsugar
- “Impressive work!” – myhf
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“Dedication like this is awesome. Finally, we can optimize those starting resource patches without endless map restarts!” – hbroom
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Personal anecdotes of similar RNG manipulation or reverse‑engineering
- “I did an easier version of this in my college intro class… I called the rng a bunch of times to harvest entropy, and scanned the plausible usec times to find the seed.” – strstr
- “Stardew Valley has two random number seeds… By inspecting cracked geode contents, you should be able to isolate your multiplayer ID and then predict random events on Nintendo just as PC players have done.” – PennRobotics
- “by far the blackest magic I ever saw for that game.” – vlyan
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“We chose taus88 mainly because it is the fastest from boost’s generators.” – Aardwolf
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Insight into RNG predictability and the underlying mechanics
- “Really cool example of how something that looks random can become predictable once you understand the underlying system.” – Founderarcstone
- From the article (quoted by strstr):
> “Sampling the current RNG through observations, Computing the current internal RNG state, Predicting the future internal states, Calculating corresponding quality levels for each future call, and finally Making use of the predicted levels with some adapters.” - “neat! more info on LFSRs, fyi: …” – jason_s (link to LFSR explanation)
- “That’s not at all what the article proposed. The author constructed and transpose to the linear shift register coefficients and built a circuit network based on this to predict the next state…” – rogueaine
Reversing Factorio's RNG
📝 Discussion Summary (Click to expand)
🚀 Project Ideas
RNGPredictor: Universal Game RNG Seed Cracker
Summary
- A cross‑platform CLI/GUI tool that takes observed in‑game random outcomes (e.g., Factorio ore patches, Stardew Valley geode contents, crafting results) and reconstructs the internal PRNG state to predict future rolls.
- Core value: lets optimization‑focused players stop guessing and start exploiting known RNG patterns without manual reverse‑engineering.
Details
| Key | Value |
|---|---|
| Target Audience | Speedrunners, factory‑optimizers, modders, and curious players who want to predict RNG in games like Factorio, Stardew Valley, or similar titles |
| Core Feature | Input a sequence of observed random events → algorithmically recover seed/internal state → output predicted next N random values and suggested optimal actions |
| Tech Stack | Python (NumPy, bitarray) for core math; Rust‑extension for performance‑critical LFSR/LCG solving; Electron or Tauri for cross‑platform GUI; optional WASM for web demo |
| Difficulty | Medium |
| Monetization | Revenue-ready: "Freemium – free basic solver, $4.99/month for premium game profiles & priority support" |
Notes
- HN commenters highlighted the fascination: “Factorio players reverse‑engineering an RNG? Peak Factorio.” and “The author constructed and transpose to the linear shift register coefficients…” showing appetite for automated tools.
- Provides a reusable library for new games; community can contribute game‑specific PRNG definitions, fostering discussion and rapid tool expansion.
Switch Stardew Seed Cracker
Summary
- A lightweight desktop/mobile app that helps Nintendo Switch Stardew Valley players deduce their hidden multiplayer ID and forecast random events (traveling cart items, geode contents, weather) from easily observable data like traveling cart listings.
- Core value: removes the need for save‑file hacking on Switch, letting console players enjoy the same prediction advantages PC users have long enjoyed.
Details
| Key | Value |
|---|---|
| Target Audience | Stardew Valley players on Nintendo Switch who cannot access save files but can observe in‑game randomness |
| Core Feature | User enters traveling cart items (or a few geode results) → app computes possible seeds using the known Switch RNG → displays the most likely multiplayer ID and forecasts future random outcomes |
| Tech Stack | Electron (React + TypeScript) for desktop; optionally Flutter for iOS/Android; uses ported Stardew Valley RNG (C# → JS/TS) core |
| Difficulty | Low |
| Monetization | Hobby |
Notes
- The discussion noted: “On the Switch, you can't easily access the save file … There is a seed cracker that looks at your traveling cart listing and calculates the character seed. … I haven't found any tool to crack the other seed.” This app directly fills that gap.
- Enables strategy sharing and speedrun planning on Switch, likely sparking threads on HN and Reddit as players compare predicted outcomes.
RNGSeedDB: Community Seed‑Solving Hub
Summary
- A web platform where users upload logs of observed RNG events from any game; the site runs automated solvers (LFSR, LCG, Xorshift, etc.) and lets the community vote, refine, and share discovered seeds and predictions.
- Core value: turns isolated reverse‑engineering efforts into a collaborative, searchable database, accelerating discovery and enabling cross‑game RNG research.
Details
| Key | Value |
|---|---|
| Target Audience | Speedrunners, theorists, modders, and curious players interested in RNG mechanics across multiple titles |
| Core Feature | Upload observed sequence → automatic seed candidate generation → community verification & commenting → downloadable prediction packs and API access for external tools |
| Tech Stack | Backend: Node.js/Express or Django; DB: PostgreSQL; Frontend: React with Redux; Worker jobs in Rust or Go for heavy math; Dockerized deployment |
| Difficulty | Medium-High |
| Monetization | Revenue-ready: "Subscription – $7.99/mo for private projects, higher‑priority solving, and API rate limits; free tier for public seeds" |
Notes
- Users expressed interest in sharing findings: “I did an easier version of this in my college intro class…”, “I am failing to find the article…”, showing a desire for a communal knowledge base.
- A public DB would generate discussion (“Which game’s RNG is easiest to crack?”) and practical utilities like pre‑computed prediction tables for speedrun routing.