Rust Jungle Update – May 2025: Explore the Wild

🌴 The Rust Jungle Update, released on May 1, 2025, introduces a vibrant new biome teeming with life and danger. From dense foliage to stealthy predators, this update offers players a fresh and immersive experience.

---

🏞️ New Jungle Biome

The Jungle biome is the first new biome added since Rust’s original procedural world generation. Covering parts of the temperate coastal area, it features flatter terrain, higher river density, and lush vegetation. Players will encounter new flora such as bromeliads, monstera, arrowroot, calathea, trumpet trees, jungle palms, sandbox trees, and towering kapok trees. These kapok trees are climbable and allow for vine swinging, offering new traversal methods.

---

🌿 Vine Swinging

Vines hanging from kapok trees enable players to swing between branches, providing a stealthy and efficient way to navigate the jungle canopy. Unlike ziplines, vines are not stationary; they must be thrown back for teammates to use. Vines can also be used to descend quietly to the jungle floor.

---

🏛️ Jungle Monuments

Scattered throughout the jungle are remnants of ancient civilizations, including the Jungle Ziggurat and various overgrown ruins. These small monuments offer early-game loot and a glimpse into Rust’s mysterious past.

---

🐅 New Wildlife Threats

• Tigers and Panthers: Tigers are stealth predators that approach slowly and strike when least expected. Players will receive subtle in-game cues when being stalked. Black panthers, rarer and equally deadly, also roam the jungle.
• Crocodiles: Found in the jungle’s wider and deeper rivers, crocodiles are formidable foes. They operate on mutual respect—avoid provoking them to stay safe.
• Snakes: Hidden in the underbrush, snakes can poison players, slowing movement. Listening for their hiss can help avoid bites. Snake venom can be harvested to craft incapacitate darts for the new blowpipe weapon.

---

🛠️ New Weapons

• Boomerang: A throwable weapon that returns after each throw. It follows a consistent arc, allowing skilled players to master its trajectory. Can also be used as a melee weapon in close combat.
• Blowpipe: A silent, early-game weapon with various dart types:
  • Wood Dart: Basic, light damage.
  • Scatter Dart: Short-range spread shot.
  • Incapacitate Dart: Slows and obscures target’s vision.
  • Radiation Dart: Applies stackable radiation damage.

---

🌊 Environmental Changes

Rivers across all biomes are now longer, wider, and deeper, requiring players to swim to cross. The jungle biome, in particular, has a higher river density, adding to the challenge of navigation.

---

🧰 Additional Updates

• Vending Machine Fridge: Can now be powered to prevent food spoilage.
• Chicken Coop: Resized to fit on a single foundation and now snaps into place.
• New Meats: Several jungle-themed animal meats added.
• Outbreak Scientists: New NPCs now roam the jungle.
• Leather Gloves: Now a default blueprint, no longer requiring a sewing kit.

---

🎁 Jungle DLC Item Pack

A new Jungle Pack DLC is available, featuring 20 new skins and items, including:

• Bamboo Shelving: Wall, salvaged, and half-height shelves.
• Bamboo Barrels: Vertical and horizontal storage options.
• Jungle Relic Assault Rifle: An ancient AK reskin.
• Cocoknight Wood Armor: Armor set made from bark, vines, and coconuts.
• Obsidian Bone Knife: A sharp, mysterious blade.
• Jungle Idol Rock: A relic with ominous lore.
• Wallpapers, Sprays, Gesture, and Chat Emojis: Customize your base and communication.

---

🛡️ Gameplay Enhancements

• Explosive Protection Fix: Explosive armor inserts now cap at 75% protection to balance gameplay.
• Hunter Vision: Consuming a big cat pie grants the ability to see scent trails of wild animals for 15 minutes.
• Jungle Building Skin: New stone building skin available, transforming your base into a Jungle Temple.
• Wood Gloves: Default craftable gloves made from wood and cloth, offering early-game protection.

---

🛠️ Server and Performance Updates

• Server Profiler Updates: Experimental streaming support added for profiling telemetry.
• Server Optimizations: Batched player processing implemented for improved performance.
• Player Server Occlusion: Now enabled by default on all servers to enhance performance.

---

📺 Twitch Drops

Twitch Drops are active from May 1 to May 28, 2025. Earn exclusive in-game items by watching Rust streams with drops enabled. Ensure your accounts are synced at https://twitch.facepunch.com/.

---

For a detailed overview, visit the official Jungle Update devblog: https://rust.facepunch.com/news/jungle-update.