Footage of Rust's Console Edition released today that should give fans a little more insight into how the game will run on consoles. Rust was first released for PC and macOS back in 2013 but saw a resurgence in popularity last year after several popular streamers participated in a PvP server hosted by content creation group OfflineTV. The OfflineTV Rust server split up and several streamers quit following loads of controversy, but all of it only increased Rust's popularity.
The renewed interest in the game has given developer Facepunch Studios an opportunity to work on Rust Console Edition, a version that brings all of the multiplayer survival madness to PS4 and Xbox One. Rust for consoles was announced a few months ago and given a 2021 release date. Earlier this month Rust Console Edition beta keys were sent out to a limited number of people in order to test server stability and it was only a matter of time before some gameplay showed up online. Today gameplay footage for Rust Console Edition on the PS4 Pro showed up on YouTube, and it at least looks pretty smooth.
The PS4 Pro gameplay video was released on the Double Eleven YouTube channel and it's around 17 minutes long. In the video players can get a glimpse of some combat, inventory navigation, and experimentation with different weapons and armor sets. Although the raid that's in progress seems choreographed, the creators of the video wanted to showcase different situations a player might encounter while playing Rust and what those situations look like on consoles.
If this video is accurate then Rust seems to run fairly well on consoles. Load times after death aren't great but it doesn't look like there's rampant frame dropping or major visual glitches in the video. There are a limited number of people fighting at once, though, and many Rust players pointed out in the comments that some of the sounds in the video don't match those on the PC version. Nothing here is vastly better or worse than the footage shown in the Rust Console Edition teaser trailer earlier this month, but at least fans can get some gameplay footage to analyze.
It will be interesting to see if Rust's popularity will spike again once the console versions are finally released. Most of the big streamers that made Rust so entertaining to watch have left to play other games, and the console versions won't be the ticket to drawing them back in considering they all played the game on PC. The good news is gamers have been playing for Rust for around 8 years now and console versions will only grow the game's audience.
Rust is available to play on PC and macOS, and is coming to PlayStation 4 and Xbox One in 2021.