12:00am EST - With just one week before the big update, the team is finalizing new functionality.

Our update preview stream goes live at 1pm EST. Follow @Rustafied for news throughout the day.

Modular vehicles next week!

That’s right! The time is finally here, modular vehicles are set to launch next week. As expected, the team is working diligently to get this massive new feature set ready to go. 

This week we’ve seen some finishing touches on the locking system, making it so the drivers seat door now locks entirely, instead of just the ignition. Drivers will now be able to choose if the cabin is locked or not for other passengers.

There’s also an emphasis being put on network optimization to reduce input lag along with a slew of bug fixes. Some balance has already taken place as well. Crafting and repair costs for modules have been reduced by half or more. As with any fresh, large functionality, I’d expect more balance shifts over the coming weeks. Check back next week for a full summary of what you need to know about vehicles in Rust.

Map changes

In preparation for every Tom, Dick, and Newman rolling around the map in a car, the team has tweaked some things with procedural map generation. 

Biggest of note, the default map size has been increased again from 4250 to 4500. Also, roads in general now have a smoother layout (both horizontally and vertically) along with more seamless joining at intersections. In addition, side roads have been made slightly wider and roadside decor has been moved farther away to avoid spawning on the road.

These changes are still on a separate branch, however, we expect them to be merged prior to the update next week.

Edit: This branch has been merged in along with the monuments vendors branch. See more information added below.

Monument vendors

Along with the map changes mentioned above, a slew of shifts to monument vendors has also made its way in. First thing to note: Bandit Camp is now entirely a safe zone just like Outpost. It’s also now clear now players will obtain helicopters with the addition of a helipad to Bandit Camp. Here players can now purchase Minicopters and Transport Helicopters for 1500 and 3000 scrap respectively (although this will apparently be lowered prior to the update).

There’s also a new car parts shop on the second floor of the helicopter vendor. Finally, when speaking to vendors, you’ll notice the dialog now has a more RPG style to it.

Summer DLC?

It appears as though vehicles might not be the only exciting new content going live with the update next week. The developers have been hammering a slew of hidden commits to the Summer DLC branch in the past couple of weeks. Although we have no confirmation yet, it does stand to reason July would be a good time to launch a summer DLC.

What will the summer DLC include? There have been no official leaks, however, commits from this week allude to there being potentially a water gun, sun glasses, pool, board, and beach chair. 

We’ll keep you posted as more information comes to light.

New High External Wood models

The look of the High External Wood walls and gates has been updated.

Other stuff

• Large banners now decay when placed outside of building priv

• small wooden box can no longer be deployed inside trees

• Open fuel is always default interaction when looking at fuel container on minicopter

• Menu background updated for cars