Throughout the history of culture and art, a mantra has been repeated: copy. Obviously not with the desire to take ownership of a work, but with the aim of learning from the references and thus being able to build your own path.
From Jutsu Games they have taken this idea and applied it, with all its consequences. Rustler is the title that they have shaped and that today arrives in Early Access format on Steam. You just have to take a look at one of his trailers to see that his inspiration in the Grand Theft Auto franchise is evident.
A fact that they themselves do not hide and even use it as a cover letter. What’s more, its beacon are classic Rockstar titles like GTA III, GTA Vice City or the legendary GTA San Andreas. Although what we will find here is somewhat closer to GTA Chinatown Wars, the excellent portable installment of the saga and one of its most beloved works, Bully.
Nobody expected the Spanish Inquisition
If there’s one word that defines Rustler, it’s a hooligan . Throughout the campaign we will see how the kingdom in which we play is full of references, gestures, posters and other elements that exude the most adolescent humor.
Although there is no lack of blood during the fighting, everything breathes a more youthful air. In fact, our protagonist, The Guy, is the spitting image of Jimmy Hopkins , the main character in Bully. We will be the typical bully who abuses his position, filling the dialogues with intimidating and profane phrases every time we open our mouths.
Bards playing non-medieval tunes, vassals beatboxing in the corners, graffiti on the city walls or a modern traffic system are several of the modern elements that populate the kingdom.
Of course, if there is a reference beacon in this section, those are the Monty Python . The famous English comedy group is present everywhere , with the appearance of the famous Spanish Inquisition or nods to The Knights of the Square Table with the Holy Granada as an object that we can really use. Even on Rustler’s Steam page you can find the black knight losing his limbs, although sadly I haven’t had a chance to find him.
The missions of the game will keep us in this line, with the typical situations that never fail. No matter the time or the situation, everyone is corrupt . From the most greedy Church to the most ignorant peasant, everyone is ready to get their share of the situation.
Delusional events, such as convincing roundabouts that the planet is flat by launching them from a catapult or escaping from jail by drugging the entire prison while playing I Want To Break Free by Queen. The variety buffet is served.
Past times weren’t always better
Sometimes the reflection of the mirror in which you look confuses you and you end up thinking that you must be like him. Rustler has wanted to emulate the structure that elevated the GTAs and that point of view, today, ends up being detrimental.
Throughout the little more than 9 hours that the Rustler campaign has lasted me, I have noticed a feeling of boredom more and more present. Yes, as I said before, missions usually have a certain variety of situations, but that is something that translates more into the narrative course than the mechanic .
Normally, it will all come down to making long journeys on horseback or annihilating some unwary with our steel. If the mechanics were attractive enough to sustain this repetition there would be no problem, but the reality is that they are not . This section needs to be further polished, since killing a few enemies is not a challenge and when too many are accumulated on the screen, it can be frustrating. A balance in the difficulty would help a lot.
Another improvement that should come to the final version is a better job compared to the police / royal guard. A GTA is defined by inviting the player into chaos, making it an engaging experience. Here is probably the last thing you want to do . As soon as a chase begins against you, they will be extremely sticky and there are only two methods to get rid of them: take off the Wanted posters or paint your horse, just like the cars in Rockstar games.
Throughout that process, unless you have a fast horse, they won’t stop pestering you. This is especially cumbersome during missions, so you will have to see yourself restarting them frequently, since they will spoil your objective many times. Missions that have been so attached to the basic concept of GTA that no matter what moment you fail, you will have to start over, without checkpoints . A waste of time by today’s standards.
Overall, Rustler still lacks a couple more coats of paint to round out his work. Jutsu Games probably couldn’t do a better job with the aerial view approach, especially starting from the Kickstarter crowdfunding. Hopefully in a few months, improvements such as more minigames or balancing difficulty will add the extra ingredient of attractiveness to the title.
- Platforms : Steam Early Access
- Multiplayer : no
- Developer : Jutsu Games
- Company : Games Operators, Modus Games
- Released : February 18, 2020
- Price : 20.99 euros
- Pc
- Analysis
