There has been quite an influx of 2D top-down open-world games released recently since the pioneer’s, Rockstar Games, last foray in the genre back in 2009, with noticeable ventures like Curve Digital’s American Fugitive and Gltichpunk taking some inspirations from the classics like GTA 2.
One game that, although is set in medieval times, takes full inspiration from that said classic is Rustler. A game that has a dedicated fart/burp button and doesn’t shy away from its many references.
But is it a good game, sans its homages and all? Let us see, shall we?
Presentation
From the moment you boot up the game, you’ll be greeted with an intro that’s almost one-to-one with its homage to that Rockstar classic.
The game’s visuals themselves are quite interesting. With the blocks of ye ‘olde castles with dirt roads and painted graffiti that somehow blends with the occasional road signature that not only doesn’t blend with the period but rather fits with the game’s feel of quirkiness, along with its many references which you might notice.
Its cut-scenes do feel like GTA Advance thanks to its still images and moving text style that does its job as expected but feels rather stiff to the more casual audience. The music as well is a bit of a hit or miss as the many bards that you can hire to follow your character will be playing thematic correct music, which is quite nice at first but it feels rather samey when you play the game for long periods of time.
Gameplay
I feel this is where the game’s issues lie. Its mission structure is your typical open-world game structure where you do this to destroy, take items or kill a person. It’s something quite simple but feels like something is missing that makes going through most of the missions engaging. But some standout missions are fun to play through.
The controls are rather clunky at the worst of times, with no lock-on to target enemy combatants, which can gang up on you and kill you at a moment’s notice and its stamina bar depletes rather quickly when you’re wielding two-handed weapons. But the horse mechanics are quite easy to control with good turning and speed to evade the guards on their own horses.
But I do applaud the cheekiness in bringing in some old-school GTA elements onto the game, like removing your wanted level is done by removing wanted posters (aka getting a police bribe star) and respraying your horse in an instant via Pimp A Horse (their version of Pay’n Spray). Even the radio is basically a bard which you have to pay to get music (and they won’t even sound good, for authenticity as mentioned above).
Content
Rustler has a decent amount of stuff that players can do besides the main questline, with a good selection of side quests that you can do to earn gold and earn XP to level up your Guy. You can collect music notes and Horseshoes to earn some quick cash and EXP during your time in the game so there is some incentive for those going for 100% completion.
Personal Enjoyment
I reckon Rustler is an alright game, as both an homage and indie game that hits the same notes as the games that inspired it. It’s fun and frustrating at times to play, which might be a deal-breaker for some but all in all, it’s a solid top-down open-world game.
I would recommend it during a sale and play the game with the intent of just messing around in medieval times, doing shenanigans that fit its childish nature at heart.
Verdict
Rustler is an interesting concept that kinda falls flat when you boil down the game towards the game being another indie top-down open-world game. There are some highlights here and there but besides its setting, it doesn’t really pop up that much as the game that they paid homage to.
Played on the PS4. Review code provided by the publisher.
Rustler
An interesting concept that kinda falls flat when you boil down the game towards the game being another indie top-down open-world game.
- Presentation 8
- Gameplay 6
- Content 6
- Personal Enjoyment 7