Way back in December 2013, Rust was launched into Early Access by Facepunch studios, it went on to get a full release the following February and over the last 7 years has gathered infamy and a substantial cult following.
For anyone unfamiliar, the premise of Rust is survival. It’s a multiplayer only affair where staying alive is the main goal and much easier said than done.
The procedurally generated maps are notoriously unforgiving, harsh environments and wildlife coupled with voracious PVP.
The console release of Rust launched May 21st on PS4 and Xbox. This is a last gen release with no designs or optimization for current gen. There have been reports of bugs and crashes particularly on next gen consoles, although I play tested this on Xbox Series X with no major issues. The game runs smoothly enough and it’s a satisfactory port of the earlier PC version. It really is showing it’s age and it still retains its jankyness and rough animation.
Personally I absolutely hated this game, it really isn’t a survival game in the more widely understood sense of the genre. Games such as Ark or Conan Exiles are built around exploration, gathering and survival, usually limiting players on large maps, resulting in time to establish yourself.
In these games the pace is more leisurely, allowing for exploration and experimentation, slowly easing you into combat with some light PVE usually against low level beasties. As you progress you generally move toward the center of a map which holds greater dangers, treasure and of course, other players. Rust isn’t like that, Rust seems to exist solely as a place for campers and griefers to ply their trade. I spawned in 8 times before I even made it off the beach as players camped the spawn zone picking off newbies.
Some people somewhere must enjoy this game but I found it hard to garner any enjoyment being repeatedly slaughtered while a prepubescent American teenager mutters racial or homophobic slurs over a proximity mic. "Toxic" might be a more apt title. The only positive I can take away from this game is that it does keep all these people on Rust servers away from real gamers and fun survival games.
Now, in the interests of objectivity and balance and to try and offset my fiercely negative opinion (and playtime of under 3 hours). I asked for the perspective of our European writer.
Geir has, for some masochistic reason, put over 90 hours into this world. Here is what he had to say:
Rust Review by Geir Gunnarsson.
First of all my experiences regarding Rust are purely gameplay related. I will not talk comparatively with regard to playing on a PC or console.
You wake up naked on the beach with nothing but a rock. You look around to orientate yourself and you´re dead. This is most likely the first experience most people have with Rust, or perhaps a worse one where you managed to gather some resources, maybe build a little shelter, farmed some supplies and then get killed and raided.
The first experience is better in my opinion because it will prepare you for what´s to come with Rust, the second can fool you into thinking this game is anything but brutal and unforgiving.
Whatever you do try to play this game with friends, it can be very fun with friends and brutally unforgiving for solo players. Sweaty palms and heart palpations are the norm for this game and only the most hardened gamers will keep at it.
Make sure that you like survival games A LOT before taking the plunge with this one. I personally attribute Rust to my aversion to survival games these days, not because the game is inherently bad but because this game is hard and unforgiving. The players are ruthless (not all of them of course but the majority have taken the core principles of the game to heart) and the world is harsh.
Rust is available now on Xbox and PlayStation priced from $49.99 upwards.
However please do your due diligence with this game. Watch some gameplay and read up. Do not purchase this game expecting something along the lines of Ark. This seems a titles that remains incredibly divisive, you are either going to absolutely love it or hate it, there is no middle ground.
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