Does Rust run on Linux?
Verdict: No
No. Rust uses Easy Anti-Cheat and VAC, and its maker has declined to let it work on Linux, so you cannot play it there. There is no safe workaround.
Rust is blocked on Linux, and the decision is Facepunch's own. In August 2019 the studio said it would stop shipping a Linux client altogether and offer refunds to people who had bought it, keeping only the Linux version of the server software that other people run. That is still where things stand.
In October 2022 producer Alistair McFarlane said Facepunch had moved to a new anti-cheat platform meaning to support the Steam Deck and had not done it, and that nobody should expect Proton support in the near future. Steam lists the game as using kernel level anti-cheat, and it is that anti-cheat, not the game itself, that shuts Linux out of official servers. There is no safe way around it.
Rust is an indie action, adventure and RPG game from Facepunch Studios, first released on 8 February 2018.
It is played co-operatively. Critics scored it 69 out of 100 on Metacritic.
The evidence
- Its own Linux version
- No, it runs through Proton
- Player rating on ProtonDB
- Silver, from 388 reports
- Steam Deck (which runs Linux)
- Marked unsupported by Valve
- Anti-cheat
- Easy Anti-Cheat, VAC: Maker has refused Linux support
What you can do
No version of Linux and no setting can fix this, because the block is on the game's side. Trying to get around anti-cheat can also put your account at risk. If this is a game you play often, keep Windows on that PC, or install Linux beside Windows and restart into Windows to play.
New to this? Can I play my games on Linux? explains Proton, anti-cheat and which Linux to pick for games.
If you play this, you probably asked about these
Ratings are reported by players at ProtonDB and anti-cheat status by Are We Anti-Cheat Yet. Both change, so follow the links below for today's picture.
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