Ok i'm nearing almost 1000 hours in this game so i'm guessing it's time for a review:

Let me start with saying Rust has changed alot over time and not every change was positive. Facepunch has tried to balance the game more and more which of course is understandable but they sometimes forget not everybody has alot of time to play this game. I don't play as much as I used to in the past which means I simply cannot play Vanilla anymore for the following reasons:

Rust Vanilla is just no fun anymore. It is an endless grind for Blueprints and resources and if you're a solo player you can pretty much forget about it unless you wanna spend a couple hours every day. The only way Rust Vanilla can still be fun is if you play with a large group. That way you can share Blueprints and resources. In the past being in a group also was easier obviously, but as a solo player you still stood a chance because you could get your hands on better tools and guns. Now this is way harder if you're on your own. So they think they helped to balance the game with this but really they made it just harder for solo players.

This wasn't always the case. About a year ago Rust Vanilla was still a great experience. Of course gathering resources took alot of time, but you at least could craft everything right away. Now you need to spend almost an entire day to find the blueprint of a better tool which you need to farm resources. So if you play Vanilla prepare to spend alot of your time hitting trees and rocks with the worst tool available in the game which just means grinding and grinding and grinding.

Another big downside of Vanilla is the introduction of Workbenches. Workbenches is what you need to stand next to to craft basic stuff. So no more crafting on the run. Horrible decision. These awful things require a shatload of scrap (more like crap) which getting your hands on also means extra grinding.

So Blueprints and Workbenches was a terrible move by Facepunch and have pretty much ruined the Vanilla Experience for Rust.

Another thing that is worthy of mentioning is that the Tool Cupboards have changed alot. Over time a Tool Cupboard had a radius of 50m to protect your base and people coulnd't ladder up your base when they were within it's zone. Now a days you need a single Tool Cupboard for your base and it expands all around your base no matter how big or small it is, but they can ladder up your base easily. I also dislike this because now everybody just roofraids you. Getting raided is piss easy now so I prefer playing on Modded servers that still block any form of building in someone else's Tool Cupboard radius.

This game is still great fun if you play Modded. Modded has alot more support for solo players since most Modded servers have faster gathering rates or don't require the need for Blueprints at all. So if you're like me and only play in the weekends or maybe like an hour during the week, Modded is still the way to go.

So if you're gonna play solo: make sure to play Modded on a x5 server. I also recommand playing on a server that doesn't require the need for Blueprints or the need for a Workbench. That is hands down the most fun experience for this game.

I highly not recommand getting this game if you wanna play Vanilla on your own because that way it's almost like a fulltime job to get a fun experience.

Downsides of Rust Vanilla:
- Endless grind for Blueprints to unlock basic stuff
- Endless grind for resources (this wasn't the case before but it is now because you have bad tools untill you found better blueprints and you also need more resources to upkeep your base).
- Building upkeep
- Everybody can just build up your base with ladders or twig building and raid you from there

So in short: Rust Vanilla vs Rust Modded

Rust Vanilla: Not Recommanded

Rust Modded: Highly Recommanded

Ok i'm nearing almost 1000 hours in this game so i'm guessing it's time for a review: Let me start with saying Rust has changed alot over time and not every change was positive. Facepunch has tried to balance the game more and more which of course is understandable but they sometimes forget not everybody has alot of time to play this game. I don't play as much as I used to in the past which means I simply cannot play Vanilla anymore for the following reasons: Rust Vanilla is just no fun anymore. It is an endless grind for Blueprints and resources and if you're a solo player you can pretty much forget about it unless you wanna spend a couple hours every day. The only way Rust Vanilla can still be fun is if you play with a large group. That way you can share Blueprints and resources. In the past being in a group also was easier obviously, but as a solo player you still stood a chance because you could get your hands on better tools and guns. Now this is way harder if you're on your own. So they think they helped to balance the game with this but really they made it just harder for solo players. This wasn't always the case. About a year ago Rust Vanilla was still a great experience. Of course gathering resources took alot of time, but you at least could craft everything right away. Now you need to spend almost an entire day to find the blueprint of a better tool which you need to farm resources. So if you play Vanilla prepare to spend alot of your time hitting trees and rocks with the worst tool available in the game which just means grinding and grinding and grinding. Another big downside of Vanilla is the introduction of Workbenches. Workbenches is what you need to stand next to to craft basic stuff. So no more crafting on the run. Horrible decision. These awful things require a shatload of scrap (more like crap) which getting your hands on also means extra grinding. So Blueprints and Workbenches was a terrible move by Facepunch and have pretty much ruined the Vanilla Experience for Rust. Another thing that is worthy of mentioning is that the Tool Cupboards have changed alot. Over time a Tool Cupboard had a radius of 50m to protect your base and people coulnd't ladder up your base when they were within it's zone. Now a days you need a single Tool Cupboard for your base and it expands all around your base no matter how big or small it is, but they can ladder up your base easily. I also dislike this because now everybody just roofraids you. Getting raided is piss easy now so I prefer playing on Modded servers that still block any form of building in someone else's Tool Cupboard radius. This game is still great fun if you play Modded. Modded has alot more support for solo players since most Modded servers have faster gathering rates or don't require the need for Blueprints at all. So if you're like me and only play in the weekends or maybe like an hour during the week, Modded is still the way to go. So if you're gonna play solo: make sure to play Modded on a x5 server. I also recommand playing on a server that doesn't require the need for Blueprints or the need for a Workbench. That is hands down the most fun experience for this game. I highly not recommand getting this game if you wanna play Vanilla on your own because that way it's almost like a fulltime job to get a fun experience. Downsides of Rust Vanilla: - Endless grind for Blueprints to unlock basic stuff - Endless grind for resources (this wasn't the case before but it is now because you have bad tools untill you found better blueprints and you also need more resources to upkeep your base). - Building upkeep - Everybody can just build up your base with ladders or twig building and raid you from there So in short: Rust Vanilla vs Rust Modded Rust Vanilla: Not Recommanded Rust Modded: Highly Recommanded