Facepunch Studios follows the footsteps of PlayerUnkown's Battlegrounds as Rust prepares to leave Steam Early Access soon. It's coming out next month.
Unlike PUBG, which lingered in beta for only less than a year, the multiplayer survival-sandbox title maintained its status for over four years. It made its debut back in December 2013 and regularly received updates on a weekly basis.
An Ongoing Process
However, the developers do not want their fans to think that it's a finished game. Rust will launch as version 1.0 on Feb. 8, 2018, but development and updates will continue albeit at a slower pace, according to the game studio.
As stated above, the title originally received updates every week. Moving forward, the update schedule will move from weekly to monthly.
Their goal is to avoid instances wherein a rushed adjustment might end up with a problem elsewhere in the game.
"Please try not to compare the game to some other finished game or some idealized version you have in your head," said Garry Newman, the studio's founder.
Continuous Improvement
Most gamers would like to think that Rust is finally graduating from beta to a full release. However, Newman wants their fans to consider the release as an Alpha phase from a prototype.
Furthermore, he wants fans to know that its release will be treated like any other day in the office. Unlike other game companies that celebrate a launch with parties and giveaways to mark the event, Facepunch Studios will continue working on the same title that their players have enjoyed over the past four years.
What leaving Early Access means to us and how it's going to affect the game (and when) https://t.co/FU4tkhh6Us
— Rust (@playrust) January 22, 2018
Running Two Version On Launch Day
The developers also revealed that the team-based survival shooter will run in two formats. Gamers can actually install two versions of the game at the same time, which are the staging branch and the stable branch.
The idea is to stress test the daily updates via the staging branch, work out all the kinks, and then supply a monthly patch to the stable branch. Sources claim that other games on Steam also relied on the process to successfully launch their respective games.
Comparison With 'PUBG'
To the casual eye, both Rust and PUBG look and feel like the same game, but upon closer inspection, there are nuances that make each title unique. The latter is a Battle Royale type of game that forces players to engage in battle through as the area shrinks around the user.
Rust, on the other hand, encourages crafting and negotiating with other players in order to survive. Players can create a base of operations and defend it against other groups.
For those who want to pick up the game, now is a great time to grab the title for only $19.99 on Steam. The price for Rust will go up to $34.99 when it launches next month.
