Rust, the popular multiplayer survival game, has long captured players' attention with its brutal environment, intricate base-building mechanics, and cutthroat player-versus-player interactions. Like most games, Rust has begun expanding its rich gameplay through an array of downloadable content (DLC) packs in its permanent in-game store.
While the only goal in Rust is to survive, these DLCs, which can be solely cosmetic, add an undoubtedly fun dimension to the cruel game. From goofy role-play items to must-have skins accused of being outright pay-to-win, these add-ons can drastically enhance the Rust experience. Let's see how the best DLCs fare against each other.
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10 Instruments Pack
Adds Playable Musical Instruments For Role-Play Fun
- Price: $9.99
- Release Date: December 2019
The Instruments Pack marked Rust's first premium DLC release, establishing a precedent for the lighthearted additions that would become a recurring theme in future installments. This pack introduced ten make-shift playable musical instruments, including the wheelbarrow piano, junkyard drum kit, the plumber's trumpet, and the jerry can guitar.
The standout feature for many is the ability to connect a MIDI device to play the instruments, allowing players to serenade their fellow survivors in real-time. Should players decide to embrace the game's musical potential by investing $9.99, they should prepare themselves for the unpredictable mix of cheers and gunfire their tunes might elicit—after all, it's still Rust.
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9 Abyss Pack
Elevates Underwater Gameplay With Diving-Themed Items
- Price: $12.99
- Release Date: July 2023
Along with a huge Deep Sea update in July, which refreshed the water system and added a ferry terminal to the game's list of monuments, Facepunch Studios dropped the Abyss Pack, which further transformed players' time in the water with five new items.
The Abyss Divers suit, a featured addition in this pack, is a re-skinned version of the hazmat suit that comes in three distinct variants randomly assigned during the crafting process. The other items in this DLC pack include an assault rifle, a metal pickaxe, and a metal hatchet designed to look like they have been salvaged from the ocean's depths. The best item in the pack is undoubtedly the Abyss torch, which, unlike the default item, has a bonus feature that allows players to light up the underwater world, making it a must-have item when diving.
8 Sunburn Pack
Adds Lots Of Summer-Themed Role-Play Items
- Price: $9.99
- Release Date: July 2020
In July 2020, Facepunch Studios dropped the Sunburn DLC, packed with 15 new summer-themed items, plenty of which came with various skins. Among the standout items are the beach towel, which functions like a sleeping bag, and the boogie board, which allows players to paddle across the water faster than swimming while maintaining their ability to shoot.
The pack features various functional and deployable items, including a water gun, paddling pools, inflatable rings, beach recliners, and an instant camera, so players can capture and frame their fun in the sun. Players can then lounge by the pool in style with the pack's sunglasses and swimwear-themed underwear skins. It's a stacked DLC pack with many refreshing role-play items, some of which have practical purposes, making it a worthwhile addition to the Rust experience.
7 Voice Props Pack
Enhances Players' Bases With Disco-Themed Items And Real Music
- Price: $12.99
- Release Date: July 2021
Renowned for fostering spontaneous and humorous player-driven scenarios within its unforgiving wasteland setting, Rust solidified this with the Voice Props pack. This pack is filled with role-playing items that will drastically enhance players' bases, such as dance floors, disco balls, lights, and lasers that synchronize with music.
The portable and deployable boom boxes, which can connect to internet radio streams, allow players to immerse themselves in real tunes while utilizing the pack's three dance gestures. With this slightly more costly pack, at $12.99, players can also project and record their voices with the cassette recorder, megaphone, microphone stand, and mobile phone, extending their reach across the island.
6 Adobe Building Skin
Transforms Stone-Tier Bases With A Clay Design
- Price: $12.99
- Release Date: May 2023
In May, Rust introduced the first of a series of base-building-related DLCs, the Adobe Building Skin, to diversify the game's architectural options. This DLC replaced the default Stone Tier material with a smooth clay-like cosmetic.
The Adobe Skin has plenty of detail that extends beyond the textured exterior, with wood scaffolding and beams for the inside walls and patterned tiles for the stairs and frames. The skin almost blends into the color palette of the Desert biome, which could pose practical advantages. Its price of $12.99, however, raised some eyebrows, yet if it suits players' tastes, it is a worthy addition, offering the enjoyment of personalized base-building.
5 Brick Building Skin
A Stylish Upgrade For Stone Bases
- Price: $12.99
- Release Date: August 2023
After the success of the Adobe Skin release, Facepunch added another Stone Tier Skin DLC, the Brick Building Skin. This cosmetic for the Rock building material elevates base design possibilities to new heights with its intricately detailed orange-hued brickwork, arched windows, and flag-stone floor tiles.
This skin's aesthetic is a dream come true for the role-playing community. It aligns perfectly with various role-playing scenarios, from a country estate to a New York loft, making it a must-have DLC for players who love base-building.
4 Brutalist Building Skin
Blends Style And Tactical Advantage For Snow Biome Bases
- Price: $12.99
- Release Date: October 2023
The October force wipe treated Rust players with the Brutalist Building Skin DLC. Originally intended to be the first building skin for the Armored class, the Brutalist skin underwent a swift reevaluation due to its strong visual resemblance to the Stone material, ultimately leading to its reclassification as the third option in the Stone category.
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This skin has a simple concrete appearance that resembles an elevated version of the default Stone material. However, it is a fan favorite due to its light gray color, perfect for providing tactical camouflage in the Snow biome.
3 Frontier Decor Pack
Adds A Western Vibe To Role-Play Bases And A Valuable Storage Barrel
- Price: $12.99
- Release Date: November 2023
The Frontier Decor Pack entered the permanent store in November, adding ten new western-themed base decor items and 17 variants. This pack includes a single weapon rack, torch holder, wanted posters, frontier planters, and a rocking chair, among other cowboy-themed decorative pieces.
While most items are strictly role-play-adjacent, this release also introduced an item that was accused of being pay-to-win: the storage barrel. Like a large wooden box, the storage barrel has 48 storage slots, yet when deployed, the barrel is smaller, giving players more overall storage for less space, which is an invaluable advantage in Rust, making this DLC an essential choice for many players.
2 Shipping Container Building Skin
Unleashes Colorful Base Customization And Tactical Advantage With 16 Vibrant Options
- Price: $13.99
- Release Date: June 2023
The most pricey DLC currently available for Rust is the Shipping Container Building Skin, released in June 2023. This building skin for the Sheet Metal Tier injected a burst of color into the game with 16 vibrant options. Beyond adding a playful element to the gritty landscape of Rust, the Shipping Container DLC also provides a practical advantage.
The array of color options means players' bases can seamlessly blend into the backgrounds of different environments, such as opting for the green skin in the Forrest biome and the white shade for concealment in the Arctic biome. The visual customization and strategic potential this DLC unlocks propel it to a high position in this ranking despite costing more than the other Building Skins.
1 Arctic Pack
Adds A Game-Changing Pay-To-Win Arctic Suit And Stylish Skins
- Price: $12.99
- Release Date: February 2022
The Arctic Pack, released in February 2022, is in a league of its own when it comes to DLCs. This pack is famous for offering a so-called pay-to-win Arctic suit designed for the harshest weather conditions.
This Arctic Suit is a re-skin of the default hazmat suit that makes a calculated trade-off, sacrificing some of its radiation protection for a more robust defense against the cold.
Such defense is a massive bonus for Rust players since they typically have to choose between projectile protection or cold protection when venturing into the Snow biome. With the additions of the icy assault rifle skin and the Tomaha snowmobile skin, this DLC comes out on top.
