Interview: Rust Mobile publishing lead reveals more about the upcoming survival shooter
Feeling rusty?
- Rust Mobile is set to launch sometime in 2026
- With upcoming betas in the pipeline, we got in touch to find out more
- And we managed to get some interesting answers from publishing lead Edwin Zheng
As far as survival shooters go, there are few with as long a tenure and as devoted a fanbase as Rust. So I wouldn’t be surprised if the news of an upcoming mobile port has you hungry for more details. How will it work? Will it be true to the original? While I can’t promise all the answers, we did manage to put some of them to Edwin Zheng, one of the key figures behind Rust coming to mobile.
Can you tell us when work started to bring Rust to mobile?For our team here at Level Infinite, we have been working on Rust Mobile since 2023. However, the conversation started way before that in 2020, when our team met with Facepunch at an event.
Since then, we've collaborated closely with the Facepunch team to really build out a mobile-first experience that would be a new way to experience the in-game world. Along the way, we're proud to welcome Rust players to play the beta tests, and provide feedback, so we can make Rust Mobile the game fans want to see.
Rust is a game that is beloved by many sandbox, shooting and survival gamers. It's the perfect game to bring to mobile to make it more accessible to players who prefer handheld play, or simply don't game on PC or console.
Rust stands out from a lot of competing survival games, as the social experience with other players really matters. Other players can determine your fate in the game, whether for good or bad. The stakes are high, and it makes players feel very immersed in their own personal narrative.
Was there anything you specifically wanted to preserve or alter about the gameplay of Rust to make it work better on mobile?In Rust Mobile, we've kept most of the features that players love: the dynamic open world, tense PvP battles, the cycle of scavenging, raiding and building, and definitely the uncertainty of not knowing who to trust. We also are working to really create a mobile-first experience that's easy to pick up and play on the go, wherever our players go.
Once Rust mobile hits storefronts, what's the plan for the future?The Rust fanbase is really important to us, which is why we're kicking off with a closed beta test this year. We want to hear from our players the types of features and content that they want to see in Rust Mobile so that we can build it for them. Once the game goes live (as a live-service title, with no pay-to-win elements) we will continue to provide regular updates for the community, so please stay tuned for more content!
We're really excited to bring an expanded version of Rust to those who already know and love it, but also to a whole new group of gamers as well. We're eager to hear what players have to say, starting with our first closed beta test and beyond
It's all sounding pretty promising so far. But Rust Mobile is going to be meeting stiff competition as aptly demonstrated by our most recent list of the best mobile games of 2025. So maybe it'll top the list in 2026? We'll have to wait and see.
