Review | Rustler

LifeisXbox’s Rustler review | Could you imagine if Grand Theft Auto took time during medieval times? If you’re not really sure what to picture, developer Jutsu Games has got you covered. Their newest release is called Rustler, which is exactly this… It even has gotten the alternative name ‘Grand Theft Horse’. Rustler is an open-world, top-down action game paying tribute to the popular GTA style and gameplay. Add to that some historically inaccurate medieval setting, and you’ve got yourself a very peculiar game filled with humor and weirdness. Credit needs to be given where it’s deserved, so yes, this is an original and refreshing concept. We see a lot of re-releases of old games, or new games inspired by old school titles to play on people’s nostalgia, but does Rustler deliver beyond its idea? Let me walk you through my findings.

ℹ️ | Maui played Rustler for 7 hours on Xbox Series X. This game is also available on PC, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation and Mac OS.

What we liked!

• Graphics and sound | Rustler doesn’t have the best graphics out there, but by all means, it’s not an AAA game so I wasn’t expecting anything groundbreaking. Overall, the game looks quite good for what’s it’s offering. A dirty look that fits the setting of medieval times perfectly. The focus isn’t on the graphics and I don’t mind. Everything looks as it should, and dialogue introduces characters cartoony-wise, which was also looking fine. I did enjoy how my character’s appearance changed when he had to dress up, for instance, like a women or like the Grim Reaper. Sometimes, you just find joy in the little things, and I feel like this is what we’re looking at in this game. Note that you play Rustler in top-down perspective, so I think this made it easier for the developers to pay less attention to graphical details.
• Humor | If you’re looking for a game with (dark) humor and the lamest jokes around, including references to popular pop culture, then Rustler is your go-to game. A fan of Monty Python type of humor? I’m usually a fan of humor, but the humor in Rustler wasn’t really my cup of tea. Still, I can look at this objectively and can definitely see its charm. The opening scene of Rustler gives you a good grasp at what you can expect of this game: a man knocking over all the chickens with farts, a group of troubadours rapping their hearts out, graffiti using hashtags on a roof, and a man running around on fire. You get the drift, right. Either way, spotting references, whether subtle or in your face, was pretty fun throughout the game. And for those of you enjoying the most basic concept of humor: there is a button on your controler that allows that main character to fart of burp as much as he wants. Not a necessary addition, of course, but I’m sure one that players can enjoy just for the sake of it.
• Quests | There is a main questline you can follow, and some side quests occassionaly pop up. Usually, the quests you are tasked with are pretty obvious and simple, like killing someone. However, there are also more difficult quests, so not to worry. I had a few quests that took me a few tries. What really made the quests stand out was their silliness. Having to dress up as the Grim Reaper to scare people, tracking a guy in a horse mask, collect horse shit, and so on. It was honestly fun to discover new quests and I had quite a few good laughs.

Somewhere between

• Story | Just as is the case with GTA, Rustler also introduces an easy story filled with humor. You play as Guy, yes that’s his name. Apparently, his parents were too lazy to give him an actual name so they just went with ‘Guy’. Of course, when his best friend Buddy is introduced, their names already show that they are a great duo. It’s their plan for Guy to win a local tournament called The Grand Tournament (here we are again with simplicity in naming). And of course, as is the case with any ‘knight’ story: everything happens because Guy wants to get with the princess! Obviously, this is a very simple story, and not too much focus was put on it. I didn’t really feel like the story was appealing at all, so I just ended up fulfilling quests without too much regard to the story.
• Overall gameplay | Rustler’s gameplay is pretty straightforward. As mentioned before, they are a bunch of quests available. A small arrow and map indication always show you exactly where you need to go so you won’t have a hard time finishing quests. Unless the police get wind of you and condem you, of course. Either way, you get some really uncomplicated guidedance which makes the overall gameplay rather simple. I think a little more challenge would have been welcome, because right now it felt very basic. Aside from this, you work with a plain, but clear map. And unfortunately, also with a limited array of weapons. I usually just went with a basic sword and shield because this proved to be most effective. There were other weapons scattered around the map, but overall, more variety should have been added, in my opinion.

What we disliked

• Bugs | Unfortunately, Rustler isn’t without bugs. I often saw the game glitch in various ways. For example, my character running into a horse and getting dragged in the most unnatural way game-wise. Or an officer just running around in circles instead of coming after me. Or random people not acting the way they should act. My horses also got stuck a little too often and it didn’t feel very natural navigating them, plus a loading screen messed up the game once and I only got sound and a black screen so I had to restart the game entirely. On top of that, there was a side quest where I had to dig up something and plow the field, but I couldn’t because for some unknown reason, the plowing wasn’t working. All these bugs were very annoying and I really do hope they get fixed quickly because they were a little too overwhelming.
• Length vs price | If I’m being totally honest, I expected Rustler to be a much bigger game. This prediction was mainly based on the price tag. If you don’t know yet: Rustler costs about 30 Euros, which isn’t a very high price, but it’s not low either, you know. I’m not entirely sure I would be willing to spend 30 Euros on a game doesn’t even take 10 hours to finish, and that, even though it has its charm, isn’t one of the better games out there in this price category.

How long to beat the story | 7 to 8 hours
How long to achieve 1000G | 7 to 8 hours
Similar with | Grand Theft Auto

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