If your Rust voice chat isn't working when you play, it makes your chances of survival even slimmer. In a game where everything is trying to kill you, communication with potential allies is critical. If they can't tell whether you're a friend or foe, chances are, they won't take any chances.
We'll run you through how to fix your mic and make sure it's working correctly. We'll also offer some advice on things you can try if game chat isn't working on PC or console. Hopefully, with our help, your odds of survival will improve considerably.
How to fix the Mic on Rust Voice Chat
If your microphone seems to be the main issue, then there are a few options to try:
- Allow access to your mic. This means making sure that Rust actually has permission to use your microphone.
- Access the Windows Settings menu
- Open Privacy
- Select Microphone > Change > Ensure Microphone access for this device is set to on
- Make sure Allow apps to access your microphone is also on
- Also ensure Allow desktop apps to access your microphone is turned on
- Configure in-game mic settings
- In game, press Shift and Tab, then click on the cogwheel when the Steam friend list opens
- Open the Voice tab and make sure your microphone is the Voice Input Device
- Check your sound settings. While in most cases, plugging in your mic will just work, occasionally you may need to manually check the settings.
- Click the speaker icon and click on Sounds
- Go to the Recording tab. Disable any microphones you don't use
- Set your microphone as the Default
- Click your microphone and select Properties
- Go to Levels, check it isn't on mute, and increase the volume if necessary
- Apply the changes
- Make sure your audio drivers are up-to-date
- On Windows 10, open Settings
- Click on Windows Update and Security
- Any audio drivers will be automatically installed
- Verify the integrity of the game files. According to Steam:
- Restart your computer and launch Steam
- From a game's library page, select Manage > Properties.
- Select the Local files tab and click the Verify integrity of game files... button.
- Steam will verify the game's files - this process may take several minutes.
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What to do if Game Chat isn't working
If you have managed to get your mic working, but game chat itself is having some problems, is there anything you can do? Well, yes, a bit. Here are our top tips:
- Start with the obvious, check the official Rust Twitter and Discord pages, for any updates on known issues. If there are problems, they'll flag them here. And you can also find out who those same issues have been resolved.
- You can also make sure that the chat function hasn't been disabled.
- In-game, open the Settings menu
- Press Options
- Make sure Show Chat is set to On
- Try closing the game, restart your device and then relaunch the game
Usually, this is more likely to be an issue at their end, rather than a problem with your settings. So you may just have to wait until this has been fixed by the developer.
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