In Rust, there is a push for the enforcement of gender roles. The lead developer has taken a stand.
After Rust recently faced criticism from many fans for randomly assigning players a gender, lead designer Garry Newman has elaborated in a lengthy blog post. If you think he is backtracking and regrets his decision: think again!
“It does not improve the game if you can choose the gender of your character!”
Newman is quite clear and direct in his blog post. He does not shy away from criticism. He states: “Rust is not a game about identity. The goal in Rust is to survive. This is made difficult by the threats of starvation, dehydration, radiation, weather, or bear attacks.”
However, there are also very good reasons why players cannot freely determine the appearance of their character. In Rust, like in almost all survival games, trust among players plays a large role. “A survivor should not be able to rob other players and then return in a different form and with a different gender to ingratiate themselves into the group.” This means: Anyone who misbehaves in the game must live with the consequences of being recognized in the future and cannot escape into a new avatar.
Criticism has also come from some transgender individuals who view such forced gender roles negatively; one described the system as “frightening and uncomfortable.” Other players feel harassed because they believe they are being forced into “feminist ideals.”
Women have reportedly reacted very positively to the new system. Allegedly, several female players welcomed the changes, even if they still had to play as a male character.
In conclusion, Newman reinforces the decision once again:
“We do not believe that it improves the game if we allow you to freely choose gender and skin color. On the other hand, all our needs as developers are met if we randomly assign you gender and skin color.”
You can view the original report on the random assignment of character gender here.
