What changed
Rust’s November update Printed and Polished arrives with new blueprints, the Uzi 9mm, gamepad support, a livestock rework and a huge optimisation pass.
Facepunch released Printed and Polished, its November update for Rust, on November 5. Described by the studio as its biggest optimisation-focused update yet, the patch adds new content and touches almost every corner of the game.
Blueprints reworked
Workbenches no longer require blueprint fragments to craft, and scrap is no longer spent on tech trees. Instead, three tiers replace them, one for each tech tree level: Blueprint Fragment, Blueprint Page and Blueprint Book. The lowest tier drops from barrels and boxes and can be upgraded into the next. Facepunch says the old system caused heavy friction in the early game, especially for players with less time to play. The salvage workbench upgrade now has a 20 percent chance not to consume a blueprint, while the prototype workbench has a flat 25 percent success rate.
Uzi 9mm and gamepad support
The new Uzi 9mm fires full auto and works with shields when its stock is folded. Unfolded, it switches to semi-auto and gains accuracy. Gamepad support also arrives via Steam Input, covering core gameplay.
Easier livestock
Buying a cow or having it eat at your trough now makes you its owner. Cows no longer die of old age, and instead of starving they lie down at 1 HP. The new Potential stat measures how happy an animal was as a youngster and boosts rewards. Cows and sheep can now be petted, the new Shears produce more wool, and the Wool Armour Insert offers strong cold resistance.
New content
Crocodile Pie keeps nearby animals at bay. The deep sea cycle now starts once the lighthouse is repaired. Roaming scientist boats patrol around the main island, only engaging geared players and showing no map markers. Crow and seagull flocks have been added, and the Nailgun has received a visual refresh after almost 9 years in the game. Four new phone numbers offer details such as the weather forecast and power grid status, and mirrored L and U stairs have been added.
A major step for performance
Facepunch admits the game isn’t where it should be performance-wise. According to the studio’s data, the median framerate is up around 10 percent and total memory use is down around 1.6 GB. Network traffic drops by up to 25 percent on 500-player servers. Building privilege checks in large bases fell from 5.7 ms to under 0.02 ms, and hitches from gunfire and base loading have been reduced. High population servers now restart in 2 minutes instead of 10, and map generation is almost twice as fast.
Rust Premium and a ban wave
Facepunch confirmed that the upcoming Rust Premium won’t be a battle pass. The paid monthly service will offer exclusive skins and non-gameplay perks. The studio also announced bans for over 3,000 accounts tied to script providers with the new wipe. Softcore now has a limit of 6 tool cupboards per player, and support for Intel-based Macs has ended.