Rust Console Edition Review

Rust is a game that I have been playing for almost a decade. Most of this time comes via the PC version which has seen years and years worth of new game mechanics, quality of life updates, and optimization. Naturally, when the console edition of this survival game was announced, many were skeptical, and rightfully so. The PC version has not ways ran very smooth. After spending 150+ hours with the console edition, I am here to give my review. It is important to note that every hour played has been on a PlayStation 5 console. I do not have experience on last-gen or Xbox Series S|X consoles. 

Right off the bat, this game is ugly – which is fine. Rust on PC isn’t the best looking game either. However, the console version is uglier. Low quality textures, weird glitches in the sky, choppy animations. Overall, while this is technically a negative, it doesn’t really impact the way the game plays, which for the most part, is pretty good. 

The gameplay loop for Rust consists of you waking up naked on an island with a rock, you gather enough stone and wood until you can make stone tools. You then gather more stone and rock with your upgraded tools so you can build a house. You get a house then you can start farming scrap, which is the primary resource used to learn new items to craft. You can also start gathering sulfur and metal ore which will allow you to smelt into metal fragments or sulfur. Metal fragments allow you to craft new items and upgrade your house, sulfur is used primarily for ammunition and explosives. Unfortunately, the end of this gameplay loop comes when someone eventually raids you. Then the cycle begins again.

One thing that people either love or hate about Rust is how unforgiving it is. If you’re raided, you have the chance to lose every single thing you’ve worked for with the exception of the blueprints you’ve researched. However, in a matter of moments, your house, all weapons, ammo, tools, etc. could be stolen. Another interesting aspect is that your character is always in this world, even when you’re not playing. They take on a sleeping position and can be attacked and killed even when you’re offline. Offline raiding usually left to the cowards in the game, but it happens quite frequently. 

Since I am playing on a PlayStation 5, I have not noticed many issues other than the graphical ones I mentioned before. The movement feels good but can get clunky when trying to make your way up a mountain. The shooting feels fine for what it is; it is not of the same quality of a AAA first person shooter, but it works for this. 

Rust requires a significant time commitment if you want to be successful with it. As stated before, you can lose anything and everything in a moment. The best way to defend yourself is to grind countless hours to build up your defenses and this still might not be enough to counter the giant 8+ person teams that will steamroll any new naked player or small base. 

Another thing to keep in mind is just how far behind the console version of Rust is. The PC version has several years worth of updates that are noticeably missing from the console port. Based on what I have witnessed, the updates on console are moving at a slow pace with the last major update being months ago when oil rig came out, something that was on PC three years ago. 

Overall, this is one of the most definitive survival games, even with its issues. I have a love/hate relationship and I just can’t seem to quit.