Generally, game developers are silent about how often their game has been returned on Steam. The developers of the online survival game Rust are very open about it.
Garry Newman, the developer of Rust, explains that his game has been returned 329,970 times through the Steam return program so far. This amounts to refunds of 4,382,032 US dollars. However, it doesn’t seem to hurt the developer much. He also states that this is only about six percent of total sales.
Developer understands when Rust is not fun for players
The most common reason for the return is “Not fun.” Garry Newman can understand that, as Rust is not an easy game. It is hard to master, and any mistake can have severe consequences. For many, this simply leads to frustration, which is why they cannot get into Rust. While other developers view Steam’s refund system critically, Newman has a different opinion. He believes that the system has even led to more sales.
Refunds are usually not discussed publicly
It is interesting to see what refunds developers are facing. Making comparisons with other games here would be very exciting, but most studios do not want to talk about it.
What is your opinion on Rust? Do you think the game is good? Did you perhaps buy it and also return it? Let us know in the comments.
